Escribir para Resistir Incorporating cultural knowledge, sacred texts and anti-colonial visions gained from a month of study in Oaxaca, Mexico, towards a middle school Narrative Writing unit.

Week ∙ Origins of Writing  Mesoamerican Historical context  Cradle of writing  Glyphs, stelae, codices used to express ideas (to write = to paint)  Mexico’s language diversity  Burning codices as a way to erase/destroy historical memory of communities.  What power does writing-painting still hold for us today?  Ricardo Flores Magón

Writing Prompts/Artistic Activities  Why is it important for cultures to write as a way to express the realities of what they see, feel, and live?  What value exists for “future” generations to leave behind our stories?  What lessons did our ancestors leave with us, whether from stone carvings or codices? ***  Glyph worksheet group activity. Students will try to decipher two-element glyphs.  Students will then create their own glyph that names a thought/object that is representative of something important in their culture.  Example:  ^)  O)* means: unity

Week ·· Cosmología Mesoaméricana  Calendar-counting systems  Divinatory & solar calendars  Time & space relationships  Spiritual relationship with the cosmos  Visions of dualities: male/female, life/death, human/nature, four directions, celestial/underworld, etc.  Environmental coexistence: maíz.  Day signs from Codex Magliabechiano

Writing Prompts Group Activities  What role did Mesoamerican spirituality play in the relationships established between men-women, humans- nature?  Give an example of an idea within the overall cosmic vision that ancestors had that gave them clarity about death.  How did Mesoamerican civilizations see themselves in relation(ships) to other living beings? Did they view themselves as superior, inferior, equal? Provide examples.  How does their understanding of gender duality contrast with some of the values that we practice today?  How does this quote by Ricardo Flores Magón (the man who our school is named after) reflect a sentiment expressed by the societies that existed in Mesoamerica. “Quiero que todo sea bello, en armonía con la naturaleza.”  What was the relationship our ancestors had with maíz? Was this relationship for survival purposes, spiritual, or other?  Why do you believe that our ancestors used animals/elements as representations of the days of the calendar? Provide examples from what we explored regarding cosmology to support your opinion.  How do you think the use of these signs demonstrates their belief that we are all part of the natural balance and movement of the earth-galaxy-universe?  Were these signs used simply for their aesthetic quality or did they represent something more profound and spiritual? Provide details to support your opinion. * Nahuatl language activity Ahuacatl* Chili* Comalli* Chocolatl* Itzcuintli* Metzli* Coyotl* Molli* Chapolin* (Ahuacate, Chile, Comal, Chocolate, Perro, Luna, Coyote, Mole, Chapulín) * ”Ma í z in my diet” activity

Week ··· Movement and Migration  Historical movement of humans  Movement for resources & survival vs. colonization  Migration -- Immigration  Boundaries -- borders  The power of words used to “label” human movement  Criminalization of migration  Migration as a human right

Writing prompts: Teatro (Theatre of the Oppressed)  Why was migration important for the establishment of Mesoamerican civilization?  What role did corn play in the migration of these civilization?  Would [humans] have evolved into the species we are today if migration had been restricted?  Has migration-movement always been a fundamental part of the human survival experience? Provide details for support.  Is migration a human right? Provide reasons and details to support your opinion?  Should governments have a role in determining why and how people should navigate earth in search of resources-work? Spanish conquest (Forum Theatre) Setting Tenochtitlan Cuba Actors Moctezuma II Hernando Cortés Mexicas Spaniards Audience

Week ···· Narratives  Personal Stories  Migration odysseys  Self-expression  Cultural Legacy  “Escribir para Resistir” “Writing is a struggle against silence.” -Carlos Fuentes

Final Narrative  Write a migration narrative. It can be your own or that of someone in your circle/family. Transcribe the oral story.  Who is/are the protagonist(s) in this migration story? Where did they migrate from? Provide sensory details to describe their place of origin (landscape, culture, lifestyle, surroundings)  Where did this person migrate to? Provide descriptions about their place of arrival and experience (first impressions, reactions, treatment/support of others, discrimination)  How was the process of acculturation/assimilation? Example: work, housing, transportation, schooling, etc. Provide examples to describe this process, although continuous.  Did the protagonist migrate because of lack of resources/opportunities or for other reasons? Does this person have the opportunity to return to their place of origin? If so, would they return if these resources/opportunities were available back “home”?  Reflection: How has you idea of “migration/movement” evolved through the study of Mesoamerican civilization and cultural traditions?  Is migration a human right?  Should migration be “penalized” with incarceration?  Final Assessment:  Narrative completion + 2 revisions (1 peer-edited draft)  Oral transcript  Activity: Read aloud to your group (same grouping from calendrical symbols activity) Optional: Read your narrative to the whole class.