February 1990
To the surprise of everyone in Dario Martinez, the authorities agreed finally to build a new school on a site suitable to all parties concerned. Construction was completed just before Christmas and in record time. This followed not long after another surprise. State of Mexico Governor Beteta, an old guard PRIista with close ties to the business community, was forcibly replaced by a young technocrat named Ignacio Pichardo, a change symbolic of President Salinas's pledge to reform his party.
Estela's own surprises might have been predicted with somewhat more certainty- the birth of her baby daughter Clara Ruth, her seemingly definitive break with Daniel, and her rumored dealings with local PRIistas and, if certain gossips were to be believed, with Juan Martinez himself. Taken together, these events seemed to leave UPREZ on unfamiliar ground, having lost one of its chief activists and, with the school now built, a main rallying cry of protest.
UPREZ's broad appeal has been further undermined by the government's S3.8 billion public works program, the National Program of Solidarity, known simply as Solidarity, which has targeted precisely those neighborhoods where PRI did most poorly in the 1988 presidential elections.
Needless to say, the Valle de Chalco has been a major Solidarity beneficiary. But now there is some uncertainty in Dario Martinez as to where to credit the building of their new school- to the grassroots activism of UPREZ or to the pork barrel politics of PRI? Even Guadalupe and Estela flirt with the idea of crediting PRI. Thus the difficulty in maintaining their own solidarity and initiative in the face of government co-optation and well-financed paternalism. ·
GUADALUPE
Big time politicians really don't care. Even so, sometimes, someway, we get through to them- but not ever to our own town officials. They've come and seen everything here a hundred times, but it wasn't until the new governor Pichardo came that we made any progress. That's because he's open. He walked through the neighborhood when he came, he didn't just ride through in his car. There was a lot of mud in the streets that day and he saw it all- everything we had talked about. Maybe he came just because he saw PRI losing votes here, but I don't care.
Our success getting the school built depended on Pichardo coming visit us, and getting him to take an interest in us in the first place. What counts most is having a good connection. We've been fighting since the early days of Governor Beteta, and he never showed any concern for poor neighborhoods. This new guy Pichardo comes to see things with his own eyes, and that's a big change.
But the other political parties just use us like pawns in their games. They want to take power, that's it. If what they say is true, that we're all fighting for the same things, then we'd have gotten what we all want by now. But they march and demonstrate just for their own reasons. Not for what people really need.
ESTELA
The change in governors was really unexpected, like day and night. But I guess they finally realized Beteta wasn't doing his job. He blocked every request we'd ever made. He'd say, "Okay, we'll give it to you'', but no one ever got anything. They always said we'd get things, but when?
We'd been demanding a school for two years, and for two years he said it couldn't be done. Juan Martinez and Beteta would get together and say no. We'd go to Beteta's office and he'd hide. His secretary would tell us to come back another day. Salinas finally saw Beteta wasn't doing any good. That's what got rid of him.
As far as we're concerned, Pichardo is a miracle. When our people told him what we needed and he saw for himself, he said, "I'm going to do it." Guadalupe and a few others dragged him over from the Red Bridge all the way to the school so he'd see how bad it was and how stubborn the town authorities had been. So Pichardo promised to fix it, to find out who owned the empty lot we wanted for the new school. And he resolved it all without any problems.
When I went to town to sign the agreement, because I was still PTA president then, Juan Martinez said, "Okay, you've finally got the lot, do whatever you want to with it, just don't say another word to me. What else do you want?" He was really mad, because we got the lot he wanted for himself. That's how we saw the change between the two governors. We finally had support!
And the government itself is finally changing. It's changing because Salinas finally heard our cries and decided to change the system. He's trying in every way to get people to believe again in PRI, because he knows the opposition is ready to act if he doesn't. PRI has to give what it promises, because when Salinas came to the Valle de Chalco, we told him, "No more promises! We don't believe you anymore!" And he said he'd deliver what he promised.
This is how I analyze the situation. He wants to win people back from the opposition. Who knows, maybe I'd even become a PRIista when the time is right.. But I doubt it. My neighbors say if Salinas begins to deliver and the opposition continues just to complain, they'll go with PR!. But I'm not sure. Who knows what will happen? There's always bad with the good. Even if everything's perfect and they give us somethings for free, somethings they'll still want to take away.
CATARINO
The PRIistas are different now. In the last election, people didn't believe anything PRI said. So we hope they'll listen when we say we want to change. The party officials have the last word, but they don't have any alternative. If you go house to house and ask people what party they belong to, no one would say PRI. But that's because of what PRI did before, not what it's doing now.
President Salinas has the chance to change everything for the country's sake. He's going out to the public, and he sends his governors out too. Governor Pichardo came here on his own, he didn't need to be invited.
Beteta had some political problems, which I don't know anything about. But he's the one who started all the projects Picardo is carrying out now. So we're benefiting directly from what Beteta did.
Pichardo is much more open than Beteta. Each has a different style. Beteta always worked through functionaries. Pichardo is personally involved, he's out in the townships checking into things. He's more attentive and closer to people. The change in governors reflects a change in policy, to h ve a greater impact with the people. For us, it's a brand new thing.
This has never happened. Before Salinas, the President of the Republic had never come to the Valle de Chalco. But he said he'd go neighborhood by neighborhood if necessary to see what's needed. He's working with the people, and whoever wants to run in the next election has to work as hard as he does.
DANIEL
This new governor is a real change. Before there were real problems. Beteta got into a jam with powerful economic interests in the state. PRI was in a real squabble about it, and there wasn't anyone who could impose order. There was chaos at the top and disagreement at the base between supporters. And everyone had their eyes on the upcoming elections, trying to regroup and get rid of their own divisions.
But we didn't get our school just because Pichardo paid us a visit, and not just because we pressured the authorities either. We got it because we organized and negotiated. We learned finally how to get the mayor and his followers to listen. But we also put on the pressure. When Pichardo came to the Red Bridge, our people had to drag him here to show what we needed. And that's how he saw what sad shape the school was in.
So it was a combination of three things. Our own negotiating and organizing, the pressure we put on the officials, and the governor's visit, which finally made him see the problems caused by Juan Martinez and his crowd. Maybe pressure was the decisive thing, I don't know. If we hadn't brought the governor here in person, he'd never have seen the swindles pulled by town hall:
That's why the other schools in Chalco never move forward. They build one classroom at a time over years and years. But we got our new school in just two years because everyone was together on it. None of the authorities did anything here until we got together and protested.
But by giving us the electricity and the new school, they're just looking for legitimacy. People don't think they're getting gifts from heaven above. They see them simply as the results of what they've fought for. They don't think electricity and education are anything presidential.
In other neighborhoods they say it's because of Salinas that they finally got electricity. Even the PRiistas think it's due to him. If you talk to someone from PRI, they'll tell you their party made the difference. But we know the truth.
Governor Pichardo denied that he was purging mayors in the State of Mexico. ttThere has been no purge'' said the Governor. At the same time, he affirmed that four mayors, some of whom are his principal supporters, were jailed following investigations. “Whoever acts badly will have bad things happen to him", he said.
El Excelsior, February 24
GUADALUPE
Now that we've got the new school, everyone's slacked off. We've all gotten lazy, even me. Before, I was willing to do anything, but not anymore. Sometimes we start to talk about our problems during a meeting and it just turns into gossip. That's where our problems come from. You get disillusioned with so much gossip.
I hope the problems inside UPREZ are over, but I don't know. Daniel is still our number one. When we see something that needs doing, he's always out front. But we've still got the problem of Estela. The truth is; I don't know if she's gone with PRI now, or with the Cardenistas, or where she's gone. I have no idea. From what I hear, she's with PRI.
I almost never see her anymore, but we've stayed fiiends. For me, she was just a friend who had problems. What bothers me most is she never admits that friends can help. But whenever I see her, I still say hello.
When Estela dropped out of UPREZ, she showed us what a temptation that corruption can be. It makes you see other ways of getting ahead. You forget about UPREZ and think it's easier on your own. You think you can play dirty politics like the others and do a lot for yourself that way. That if you're on your own, without UPREZ or your friends, you can get farther ahead. You think you can help yourself.
ESTELA
I really didn't drop out of UPREZ. I just needed some rest after I met a man and got pregnant. I knew I couldn't stay active with UPREZ because of my commitment to the guy. But my UPREZ friends thought I left for other reasons. They thought then and they still think I got involved with PRI, but up to now I haven't even thought of joining either PRI or the Cardenistas.
They've got no reason to think that. Who knows why? I'm not in any organization. If one day I decided to join something again, I'd just rejoin UPREZ. That's the only line I know. It's where I got started and where I've always been. And if not here, then it'd be with UPREZ in another neighborhood.
Anyway, in this neighborhood UPREZ isn't doing very well anymore. According to what I hear, Daniel is trying hard to keep it alive. In fact, there's not much left of UPREZ at all. I heard Daniel called a meeting to tell people he was going to give some land away. That's how he's trying to get people back, with promises. But that's all I know.
DANIEL
The leadership group here is very loose. Some participate a lot and some just come and go. I don't see any ideological explanation for who participates and who doesn't. Some people act with the group only when it pleases them, only as far as it serves their own interests.
Like in Estela's case. She's not ideological, and when she saw there was another way to get ahead, she did whatever she had to. She withdrew from the group and went her own way.
We try to keep making changes. We've been able to keep going because we have a steady turnover of volunteers. You can't have a frozen leadership, that way you become bureaucratic and authoritarian. And arrogant. The PTA keeps changing, and UPREZ keeps changing. Our only problem is we don't have a lot of people active at any one time.
UPREZ doesn't have a pyramid structure. Our idea is to have horizontal power with a lot of independent heads, so one can't corrupt the others. In the beginning, it's inevitable that the ones in power too long become corrupt. People aren't used to power, and when they finally get the chance to take charge, they feel different from the others- with more rights and more responsibilities. But in time, people in charge settle down, because if they don't, their followers will try to get rid of them. If you don't have the right style, you'll be fired.
In big organizations, just one person can corrupt all the others. And when that happens you're in for trouble. When everyone is thinking what they can do for themselves, what gets done for others? There's some advantages in poor countries like this, because manipulation isn't as sophisticated as in rich countries. People's thinking can change faster here. When you don't live with the masses, you'd be surprised how fast they change.
But we can't come up with just any new project, because people know what can help them and what can't. So if we're wrong, they'll eventually turn their energies to what really matters and leave us behind no matter what we say. So we've got to keep people together.
Opposition groups ask to what extent the new government Solidarity program is simply a device for PRI to recover the votes it lost in the last elections. A government official answers that the program is not an activity with poltical goals, but rather the result of having recognized the real needs of the lower class.
La Jornada, February 26
CATARINO
We've always felt that UPREZ doesn't do anything positive. Their people aren't constructive. They've got their own way of doing things; but I wouldn't call it help ful. If they want to coordinate with us, we'd all have more power, not less. And that way we could all do positive things.
It's the people who should decide what's positive and what's negative. Not just UPREZ. But they're not serious. They won't even talk with the officials they always say they want to meet with. They abuse us verbally, and that's sure not the way to treat people you're trying to work with.
It's true the teachers helped get the new school, but it was town hall and the state government that finally accepted it. The problem couldn't be resolved until we all got involved. They think what we say are just lies, but we were involved and we know the truth of the matter.
UPREZ might not cause the government as many problems as the opposition parties do, but they'll still regret their activities some day. PRI is the only party that can deliver what they want. It's the only one that gets things done. What President Salinas has accomplished speaks for itself. When he visits the Valle de Chalco, he sees what's needed. And then PRI delivers. You won't get more help from anyone else.
A new use for the old school's classrooms was debated in the neighborhood. Those who built the school naturally felt the decision should be theirs alone. Daniel, never before involved in school matters, saw this as an opportunity for UPREZ to expand into other community activities. Catarino hinted meanwhile that all decisions involving the school should be made by the PRI patronage system.
GUADALUPE
Now we're thinking about what to do with the old classrooms. We're thinking about building a twenty-four hour health clinic or an adult education center, or maybe a community restaurant or a cooperative workshop.
But Juan Martinez says everything goes to town hall when the new school opens. And we sure won't let that happen. That place is ours, we built it with our own hard work and suffering, not theirs! And it can still serve our needs.
I'm afraid we'll have less enthusiasm than before if we start another project so soon after getting our school. But a community workshop could solve a lot of problems here. People who have to travel a long way to find a job, they're the ones who should fight for it! And how many kids here sometimes need a doctor right away? The only doctor we've got works just in the afternoon. And how far do we have to haul the kid if the doctor's not in? So we'd be fighting for our own needs.
That's why UPREZ wants to build the community center where the old school is. Daniel is the one behind that idea. It's through him that we got our store. He organized all our petitions and went all over the place to do whatever needed doing. When the governor came, Daniel was right here. And the next day Daniel went to talk to the governor's secretary about what he'd promised to do for us. And before that, he fought for our teachers to get paid.
But if the community center ever does get built, I wouldn't let them put me in charge. When I was PTA president, all its problems were mine, even when I had my own problems at home. So I've had it with problems like that. I feel fine staying just where I am, without taking any responsibility. When you're president of the PTA, if you don't work hard, you've got problems. And if you do work hard, you've still got problems.
ESTELA
And who's getting the old classrooms? Is Daniel going to get rich off them
too? I was told he wants them for his store. Is that right? Should you get rich off someone else's work? It's the worst that could happen. Let's have a real community project, not profit for just one person!
The store is just for Daniel. It's not for everyone. He should be investing profits back in the community, but instead we're making him rich! He's the only one who benefits. He says he's restocking the store, but where is he putting it? In the store or in his new house? They say the store is barely breaking even. And whenever there's profit, there just happens to be a robbery the same day.
How can anyone afford to build a house as fancy as Daniel's in this kind of neighborhood? Where's he getting all that money with no steady work? And his wife is poorer than me! Maybe he did inherit a two story house in Ciudad Neza, but where does he get the money to build here too?
You've got to see things like they really are. At least some of us do. He looks after his own interests and doesn't get involved in things that can't help him. And now he wants UPREZ to get involved with the school. He wants to appoint new teachers, but the ones already there told him no. They don't want any UPREZ teachers.
DANIEL
Our plan for the old school is to use the classrooms for other things we need here, like maybe an adult education center or a health clinic. But the problems we'll have building them are the sames one as always. Juan Martinez and town hall! But we can eliminate them if everyone joins in and we get the higher-ups to listen.
True community leaders should make people see what can help everyone. They should make people see what they need but haven't yet discovered for themselves because of all their other problems at home, problems like their family, finances, and neighbors. There're so many distractions here that we forget the wider context. That's the job of activists, to stimulate others to act for what's still missing.
I'm talking about stimulation in two senses. One is getting everyone out front, making distinctions about priorities. And the second is letting people choose their own path, getting them to realize that if they can't feed their kids for instance, then they need the school breakfast program . And next a place to feed their kids those breakfasts. When they realize the old classrooms are the best place, then we'll try to get them for good.
We might see a loss of community spirit, but that's just because we've already got what we want with the new school. There might be some drop off now, but we've still got to fight for other things, like the water system and drainage and paving. People will fight those fights just like they did for the school. That was everyone's number one priority and now we don't really know what to do next. We have so many needs and we don't distinguish between them.
CATARINO
The community itself must decide what'll happen to the old school. Maybe the previous landowners will reclaim their lots, because they still haven't been officially relocated or recompensated. If they don't, then we can assign the lots for any use the people choose, like a park or a soccer field. But that's only if the previous owners don't make a claim.
Some say Juan Martinez opposed moving the school to the new site. But he didn't. In fact, he intervened to help us buy the new lots from their original owners. He just said we didn't need a school as much as we do other things. He'd rather have a secondary school, not another primary school.
I repeat, we're not against education, but we don't want schools we don't need. We've got to coordinate our priorities. We don't want two primary schools or two kindergardens when we don't have even a single secondary school. We don't want fewer schools, we want more schools, but only when they're really necessary. Maybe that's why people say Juan Martinez is against the new school.
DANIEL
Before, there was no opposition movement in this neighborhood. Not because everything was perfect, but because Juan Martinez was the cacique, and whatever he said was law. Word got around not to speak up or you'd be killed, be careful what you said or he'd double your taxes. And that's still the way he'd rather do things if he could.
But when we got here, he had to change. Now he tries to convince people that what he's doing is right. But we've had our own success, and he can't pretend he's the only one who can deliver. Catarino is just like all the rest. He's got the job, he says whatever he wants, and takes whatever he needs whenever it suits him. But we've caught on to Catarino He's never mixed it up with us except once or twice in meetings. We've never confronted him like we do Juan Martinez, but he's still just a puppet.
We're not yet sure how we'll handle the upcoming elections. Some say we should take part, others say no. Some even say we should start our own party. There's an outside chance we'd ally ourselves with an opposition party, but we haven't thought much about it. It would depend on what they offer us. If they want to lead and us to follow, then no.
In UPREZ, we're free to vote for whoever we want or participate with any parties we want. We haven't thought yet about organizing votes for one candidate or another. First we'd have to talk it over. Some might refuse. It's a question of moving the popular will to a higher level.
It's not up to me alone, because this needs a much broader commitment. It's not simply a matter of taking over another building lot or making sure there's no fraud at the store, but really getting involved in politics. Some might want to participate only among ourselves but not with politicians.
I think the time to make deals with a political boss has come and gone. That was the 1970s when people said, "Let's back this or that congressman, tell him we're with him, and then get something out of it." But people have changed after having been fooled so many times. We've seen too many candidates buying votes and giving nothing in return.
Political groups have turned the walls of historical buildings into canvasses for their "propaganda paintings". Community advocates have asked that this practice be ended before valuable monuments are converted into a "grotesque blackboard" that can never be restored. At the same time, representatives of the opposition parties stated that because they lack the means of legal political expression, they must paint on walls in order to be heard.
El Excelsior, February 24
-Listening to Your Demands and Working for Solutions- PRI
-The Only Party that Manages Effectively- PRI
-We will Work for the Future- PRI
-Because the Chance for Social Peace is in Your Hands- PR!
-PRI Brings Strength
-Because Unity and Work are better than Criticism-PrI
-PRI, Join and Participate
Signs and Billboards, Valle de Chalco
GUADALUPE
There are a lot of opposition parties here. They paint their slogans on the walls and hand out fliers, but they don't do any good. Just talk and paint, but no results you can give them any credit for. They tried to get close to UPREZ once, but we're independent and told them so.
I don't want to campaign for any public office. Before, maybe I did, but I · never made up my mind for sure. I'm content just as I am. I don't want any special job. You have to be responsible all the time to take a job like that. But I'd oppose Juan Martinez anyday. I'd even get involved in politics to stop him from being reelected. And I don't want some other inept thief in his job who'll screw up just like he does. Sure I'd get involved.
ESTELA
Some leaders of the left wing parties tried to get me to join their group. But I don't see anything concrete in what they do. They wanted me to help take over empty building lots. They said they were going to do it no matter what happened, but they had kids with them! They were risking the lives of the little ones! I don't see why they had to go that far.
They came to me because they know I like to fight. They've known me since my early days in UPREZ and now they know I've quit. But I don't want pressure from anyone. I'll help people, but I won't get involved in an organization. I've already got my land, so I don't need to fight this for myself.
I was out front of everybody in the fight for our school, but thank God that problem is fixed. And now I'll only get involved again if I see something that really requires everyone's support. But with the opposition parties, they just want to take over land, without even trying to talk first with the authorities. First you've got to negotiate, to see if people can get permission.
But the people following them are blind. They don't know what they're doing. They're told to just take over empty lots, but when they see the police in their helicopters, they'll have to back down. They'll stop following then. They could be walking right into a massacre. One cop told me they've got orders to shoot to kill, not just scare them back. So why put people and even little kids in such a risky and useless situation?
In the past, whenever UPREZ decided to take over a lot, it was only after we'd discussed it with the authorities and had everyone involved. So when we did take it over, we knew we'd be successful. And if UPREZ said not yet, it was because the authorities hadn't answered yet. And when they said yes, it meant they had promised not to make trouble.
For me, those politicians on the left are playing with our lives. They're acting just for their own sakes and their own political gain. They feel superior to us. They think they're the only ones with connections. They treat the rest of us like followers and think once they've got_us, they can do anything with us they want. If they really knew what they were doing, they wouldn't have to take such risks. Instead of playing with our lives, they'd get the authorities to sell us land at good prices. They'd negotiate peacefully first. Or they'd only invade land they knew they could get.
DANIEL
The strategy of the leftist parties is to confront the government, pure and simple. And what would happen now if they did otherwise, establish a dialogue with Salinas for instance? They'd lose every single person who backs them now just because they're anti-government. That's why they'll never get anywhere.
They come in and say we should have tortilla coupons, or that public services should be provided free of charge. But what does it matter when we're dying of hunger here? All they do is talk and not act. They just want to elect their own leaders.
UPREZ does whatever's necessary to get services here, but we do it carefully. We won't let our people get beat up by the police. We're more flexible. When we have to sit in, or march, that's what we do. When we've got to talk, we'll talk. Just like we talked with Pichardo. He came, we talked, and he agreed to build the new school just the way we wanted it.
Neighborhood groups in the State of Mexico have demanded a dialogue with the authorities. The Popular Mexican Front, a federation including UPREZ and five other associations, protested the government's noncompliance with its petitions for public lighting, special labor brigades, and a reversal of the recent 90-120% price hikes for drinking water.
La Jornada, February 25
GUADALUPE
That's our way of working, to put it in writing- writing, writing, and more
writing. And we have meetings, meetings, and more meetings. And when we finally see we aren't getting anywhere that way, that's when we start marching. But we keep it peaceful. We just want our demands answered and our problems solved. That's it.
UPREZ still works by·itself. Just us, without any political parties. We aren't a party, and we couldn't run in elections anyway because we're not registered. We're just neighbors. But we're going to fight and stay independent, and who knows, maybe in the next elections we'll support someone.
But I told Daniel it's better to stay on our own and not make deals with anyone else. That way we're free to protest whatever we want, with less risk of losing members to the other side. If we ever got close to a political party, they'd tell us to shut up and let them run the show.
As the new PTA president, Rafaela serves as a kind of litmus test for how people rated Estela during her term in office that has now ended. If they like her, it means they dislike Estela, and vice versa. Rafaela's style certainly contrasts strongly with that of her predecessor. She is meticulous about details, punctual for meetings, and careful with her public opinions- all qualities that might guarantee a long if undistinguished career in neighborhood politics.
ESTELA
Rafaela thinks her politics put her above everyone else. She goes around saying she's helping the community, but really she's hurting it. I told the school principal that since he's the one who wanted her elected, now he's the one who's stuck with her. I told him he'd elected her just because she's on his side. But what about me? Don't they remember who went to jail for the school and who left four kids at home alone with the chicken pox to fight for it?
Rafaela even accused Guadalupe of stealing money when she was PTA president. And she accused me of doing nothing when I was president. I wasn't about to tell her I was pregnant and that's why I couldn't be so active anymore. She'd just try to dirty our reputations even more.
Now that she's president, let's suppose she acts well and doesn't give me or Guadalupe any reason to criticize. But others are watching too, and they see someone just giving orders and never saying please. People are already talking about her. They make you PTA president not to have authority over others. You're supposed to make good decisions for the school and get all the parents to work together. But I can't say Rafaela is trying to improve things. She's just dividing us.
There should be more kids in our school but Rafaela won't let them enroll. Parents from other schools asked the principal if they could bring their kids here. Inocente said yes, but Rafaela said no, not if they hadn't personally fought for the school. Bosses always say no, but sometimes they're replaced by higher-ups. Look what Salinas did to Beteta. And Rafaela too might be replaced when she's not looking.
GUADALUPE
There aren't a lot of us willing to really work hard. Since Rafaela was elected president of the PTA, we've seen her do her bit. But she's by herself. There isn't anyone else on the PTA board who lifts a finger. She works harder than Estela did, but that's still not enough. She goes to the capital, she goes into town, she talks to the engineers about the new school plans. She's a real activist, but the others, no. After Estela dropped out, Rafaela was the only one who wanted to take her place.
We're too informal here. Maybe that's why there's no one else on the PTA. And in UPREZ, all we've got is Daniel. When you take a job like that, you've got to carry it out. No one has the time. You could say we're irresponsible for not making the time. But what's the alternative? Always have the same president just because that person happens to be free? That's the way it is in PRI. At least here we keep changing.
And if we see Rafaela is still doing a good job on the PTA, we'd reelect her . We can change things whenever we want to. The term in office is one year, but if we see something we don't like, we'd call a meeting and ask for her resi gnati on. That's why Estela didn't have any choice about dropping out. We'd have voted her out anyway. And she was pregnant with her new baby so she couldn't come to meetings anymore. And now with her husband, she can't run around like she used to.
Although municipal elections are not scheduled in the Valle de Chalco for eight months, violent protests over vote fraud in the states of Michoacan and Guerrero have forewarned residents here of the troubles to come. No party has yet begun to campaign actively in the neighborhood. However, there is a widely held opinion that this election, regardless of the winners and losers, will redistribute political power from town hall back to the neighborhood.
DANIEL
Look at the election results in 1988! The PRiistas got a big surprise because they didn't bathe to mix with the people. They didn't know what we were thinking. Now they've got to consider everything that went wrong. There's a big shake up now inside PRI, and that's why. Their politics of manipulation won't work here anymore.
Juan Martinez doesn't have a chance in the next election. There'll be a complete change. People here have pushed him into a political corner. Any new PRlista candidates will have to be much cleaner than Martinez, because he's just ripping us off and everyone knows it. In other neighborhoods, you might get services if you play the politician's game and do him favors. Here there's no way to get services that way. The bosses just want to get rich without doing anything in return.
If PRI changes, it won't be because they want to. They have to, because society is changing under them and they've got no choice. We're a younger population now, less respectful of the old ways and less patient than we were in the 1970s and 1980s. People won't wipe the feet of politicians anymore. Both the politicians and the people realize this. We've all got other options now.
What's missing is a true social movement. We're just reacting to problems and looking for individual solutions But we still don't have access to power. We can get a few things done here, but when we run into the authorities, nothing more happens! So that's next on our agenda. That we all stick together to get power.
Some PRiistas might want to change the system, but it will be hard. Bribe money is too tempting. Look at what they did to Estela! Unfortunately, people like her can go bad, I don't even know what she's up to any more. But it doesn't matter to us what party she's with now. Our politics aren't based on individuals. A lot of our people have dropped out. Some stay at home, others like Estela try to stir up other things.
But PRI doesn't care about Estela either. She's isolated herself with all her gossip. She's a troublemaker, saying one thing to one person and something else to another. Then she gets into such a mess she can't get out. She forgets that an organization watchs what an individual does. Gossip in the street isn't like gossip in an organization. That does a lot more damage, which she didn't ever understand.
ESTELA
I don't know if I could ever call myself a PRiista. Just because they give me a school doesn't mean I'll let them keep screwing me with other things. And so what if they give us a dairy store and then raise the price of milk? We've got to analyze things first, because many threads come together into one yarn.
Today I went to the land tenure office to see about some empty lots in the neighborhood. I want to get them for people I know who need a place to live. I told the authorities they should give vacant land to the needy. I didn't go alone, I went with two others, but we went as individuals and not as an organization. Nobody else knows I went, and even if they do, I don't care.
I didn't tell Daniel, because I won't give UPREZ the satisfaction of knowing my business. I don't want any contact with them about it. It may be more efficient if I did, but I'm not interested. Solidarity is important sometimes, but often it's better to act on your own.
UPREZ does things their way and I do them my way. They don't care about the empty lots in this neighborhood anyway. They're more involved in other places now. Daniel's not here everyday anymore. All he's interested in are the old school rooms.\
I don't mind their gossip. On the contrary, it just makes me more famous. Let them say bad things, it doesn't bother me. Who comes out worse? Them or me? Daniel's the one with the bad reputation now, not me. They don't want him here anymore. Only about five people still support hi m, that's i t. If I can get those lots from the land tenure office and give them to people who really need them, my reputation will soar. Anyway, I haven't fallen any since leaving UPREZ.
I'm just a housewife now, but I'll fight for others if I can. But I'm still not anything special. A wife and mother, that's all. An occasional visit to the land office doesn't make me anybody important. I do things quietly, just seeing what others need and how I can get it for them. Right now, I just want to put all the empty land here to good use.