Armed vigilantes blur line between self defense and organized crime
With Mexico’s police and armed forces frequently accused of corruption, human rights abuses and a failure to protect rural communities from organized crime, an increasing number of small and often indigenous towns have begun forming their own self-defense groups.
March 2013 was a historic month, as it marked the beginning of the first Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) government in Jalisco after 18 years of National Action Party (PAN) rule.
Easter, for many, conjures up images of spring outfits, sumptuous feats, brightly colored eggs, baskets brimming with candy and days at the beach. For Christians, however, Easter is a time of renewal of natural and human life and a time of spiritual regeneration. English-speaking churches in Guadalajara have planned special services for Easter, which falls on Sunday, March 31 the year.
St. Patrick’s Day is very special in Mexico because it is a time when Mexicans remember their the San Patricios, or the Battalion of St. Patrick. One of the least-known stories of the Irish who came to America in the 1840s is that of this Irish battalion that fought on the Mexican side in the U.S.-Mexico War of 1846-1848. They came to Mexico and died, some gloriously in combat, others ignominiously on the gallows. United under a green banner, they participated in all the major battles of the war and were cited for bravery by General López de Santa Anna, the Mexican commander in chief and president.