IMAGINING RAMONA: THE MYTHOLOGIZATION AND MARTYRDOM OF A ZAPATISTA RESISTANCE FIGHTER A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of Special Case Doctor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Studies University of Regina By Bridget Kathryn Keating Regina, Saskatchewan May 2020 Copyright 2020: B.K. Keating UNIVERSITY OF REGINA FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES AND RESEARCH SUPERVISORY AND EXAMINING COMMITTEE Bridget Kathryn Keating, candidate for the degree of Special Case Doctor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Studies, has presented a thesis titled, Imagining Ramona: The Mythologization and Martyrdom of a Zapatista Resistance Fighter, in an oral examination held on April 29, 2020. The following committee members have found the thesis acceptable in form and content, and that the candidate demonstrated satisfactory knowledge of the subject material. External Examiner: *Dr. Miranda Brady, Carleton University Co-Supervisor: *Dr. Carmen Robertson, Adjunct Co-Supervisor: *Dr. Mark Anderson, Adjunct Co-Supervisor: *Dr. Sherry Farrell-Racette, Department of Visual Arts Committee Member: *Dr. Randal Rogers, Department of Visual Arts Committee Member: *Dr. Christine Ramsay, Department of Film Committee Member: *Dr. Darlene Juschka, Women’s and Gender Studies Chair of Defense: *Dr. Fanhua Zeng, Faculty of Graduate Studies & Research *via ZOOM Conferencing Abstract During the Ejército Zapatista de Liberación Nacional (EZLN/Zapatista) campaign, images of insurgent leader La Comandanta Ramona circulated across Mexico and the globe, encouraging popular support for the Indigenous resistance movement, which was launched from Chiapas’ Lacandón jungle on January 1, 1994.1 Deemed “the petite warrior” 2 and a “modern-day David battling Goliath,” 3 the masked Maya woman, according to political scientist Karen Kampwirth, captured “[m]ore than any other single Zapatista woman…the imagination of millions.”4 Indeed, by challenging the Mexican government and defending the rights of Indigenous peoples, Ramona became one of the most important revolutionary women in the country’s history. In an official pantheon of virile heroes and hypermasculine icons, including Pancho Villa and Emiliano Zapata, Comandanta Ramona exists, however, as an enigmatic figure—largely overlooked and dismissed in the nation’s revolutionary canon. For instance, while an extensive body of literature explores the Zapatista uprising and its strategic use of imagery, there is a paucity of work interrogating Ramona’s significance in this resistance movement. This dissertation argues that discursive representations in Mexico’s national press render Ramona within archetypal and bifurcated framings that reproduce dominant ideologies in textual and visual news sources. While these imaginings attempt to weaken her political agency and 1 Comandante/a refers to an officer in command of a military unit. 2 Rene Villegas, “Dying Rebel Takes Zapatista Cause to Capital,” The Philadelphia Inquirer, October 11, 1996, A 23. 3 Villegas, “Dying Rebel Takes Zapatista Cause to Capital,” A 23. 4 Karen Kampwirth, Feminism and the Legacy of Revolution: Nicaragua, El Salvador, Chiapas (Athens: Ohio University Press, 2004), 214. ii diminish the complexities of history, gender, and race in the theatre of resistance, Ramona ruptures and subverts such ideological trappings, wresting herself from the stranglehold of mediated determinations. In doing so, Ramona defines herself as a dissident agent in the counter-archive of women’s insurgency. iii Acknowledgements As a member of the Irish-Canadian settler population who has lived, studied, and worked on Treaty Four Territory throughout the duration of this research, I want to begin by acknowledging the original stewards of this land—the nêhiyawak, Anihšināpēk, Dakota, Lakota, and Nakoda, and the Métis/Michif Nation. For Dr. Carmen Robertson and Dr. Mark Cronlund Anderson, I will never be able to express the depth of my gratitude for your support and guidance during this project. This has been a long journey—one that has taken many circuitous routes, along with a few abrupt and wild turns. Thank you for staying the course. And, thank you for believing in me. Your presence in my life has been a gift—and I am honoured to have had the opportunity to work with you. I am deeply indebted to the members of my committee: Dr. Darlene Juschka, Dr. Randal Rogers, Dr. Christine Ramsay, and Dr. Sherry Farrell-Racette. Thank you for devoting your time to this work—and thank you for your generosity of spirit. In addition to providing careful direction and feedback, you gave me emotional support that sustained me during difficult times. I also want to thank Dr. Miranda Brady of Carleton University. I could not have been had a better external examiner oversee this work. I am a fan of your research—and I hope our paths will cross in the future. Kokum Brenda Dubois, your wisdom, strength, and love not only carried me, but also grounded me. You have given me many gifts. Undoubtedly, I would not have finished this research without the women and the students at the ta-tawâw Student Centre, who embraced me with “hoops of steel.” Thank you for giving me a home and a family on campus. For my mother, who stood by me at the lowest point in my life. For my father, who taught me how to fight. I am blessed. Ciaran, for your exquisite patience and your beautiful heart. There is no one who has loved me greater. I would also like to acknowledge the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research for its financial support. This research was supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. iv To Shannon and Rachel, for your friendship, wisdom, and unwavering support. “The interesting thing about weaving is that when you look back, you will see mistakes. You have to make a choice about those mistakes. Do you leave them there to be acknowledged? Do you try to hide them? Maybe, you unravel it. Or, maybe you just start weaving, rather than fighting it.” – R. Janze. v Table of Contents Abstract .................................................................................................................................................. i Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................. iv Dedication ............................................................................................................................................. v Table of Contents ................................................................................................................................. vi List of Illustrations .............................................................................................................................. vii CHAPTER ONE: IMAGINING RAMONA ..................................................................................... 1 CHAPTER TWO: LOOKING FOR RAMONA .............................................................................. 51 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCHING RAMONA ......................................................................... 88 CHAPTER FOUR: SCRIPTING RAMONA ................................................................................. 131 CHAPTER FIVE: THE RETURN OF IX CHEL ........................................................................... 174 CHAPTER SIX: RAMONA’S REVOLUTION: MILITANT MOTHERS AND WAILING WOMEN ........................................................................................................................................... 234 CHAPTER SEVEN: THE DEATH AND LIFE OF LA COMANDANTA RAMONA ................ 282 CHAPTER EIGHT: CONCLUSION .............................................................................................. 312 BIBLIOGRAPHY............................................................................................................................. 315 vi List of Illustrations Chapter One Figure 1: Diego Treviño, Reforma, October 11, 1996, A2. Figure 2: Comandanta Ramona, Reforma, October 13, 1996, 20A. Figure 3: Amando Salmerón, Emiliano Zapata, March 1914, Fondo Casasola, SINAFO-Fototeca Nacional del INAH, accessed September 12, 2017, http://zapataproject.org/content/emiliano- zapata-his-horse. Figure 4: Frida Hertz, Subcomandante Marcos, Guadalupe Tepeyac, at the Selva (Rainforest) Lacandona, State of Chiapas, México, May 1994, accessed September 17, 2017, http://www.famouspictures.org/subcomandante-marcos/. Figure 5: Principal conflicts between the Federal Army and the EZLN, 1994-1995, accessed August 13, 2014, https://warriorpublications.wordpress.com/2011/12/22/insurgent-mexico/. Figure 6: P. Flores Perez, Mujeres Patriotas (Patriotic Women), n.d., accessed October 2, 2029, https://www.12storylibrary.com/2018/10/women-fought-in-the-mexican-revolution/. Figure 7: Casasola, Margarita Neri, Mexico 1915, Casasola. Gelatin dry plate, Casasola Archive, 186387, accessed November 13, 2012, http://noblebandits.asu.edu/Topics/RevWom.html. Figure 8: Agrarian Reform, Chiapas, 1950, accessed December 15, 2016, https://homerdixon.com/environmental-scarcity-and-violent-conflict-the-case-of-chiapas- mexico/. Figure 9: Agrarian Reform, Chiapas, 1975, accessed December 15, 2016, https://homerdixon.com/environmental-scarcity-and-violent-conflict-the-case-of-chiapas- mexico/. Chapter Two Figure 1: Hulton Archive/Getty Images, Djamila Boupacha, March 14, 1963, accessed October 23, 2019, https://www.gettyimages.ca/detail/news-photo/algerian-resistance-fighter-and-