03: The Laughter of Resistance - Zapatistas Seedbed - dec 28th

 The Laughter of Resistance:

 the Power of the Common:

A Presentation for the Global Solidarity Movement with the Zapatista Communities: 

Friends, family, and sisters and brothers of the Americanas Zapatistas:

We stand at a crossroads in history where the old ways of "commanding" are being dissolved into the new ways of "sharing." In this profound video, recorded on December 28, 2025, Subcomandante Insurgente Moisés of the EZLN brings us a message that is both a report from the front lines of autonomy and a manual for the future of global resistance. It is a message that begins, surprisingly, with a laugh.

1. The Rebel Heart: Why We Laugh

Subcomandante Moisés opens his talk by reminding us that for the Zapatista movement, rebellion is not just about the struggle; it is about the joy of it [00:21]. 

He speaks of "clown-like rebellion" as a way to clear the mind—to find the humanity that the system tries to strip away. This is our first lesson: if we are to resist a system that seeks to demoralize and divide us [03:16],

"We must do so,

 with a spirit that cannot be broken!"

2. The Great Shift: From the Individual to "The Common"

The heart of this presentation is the transition to what the Zapatistas call "El Común" (The Common). Moisés explains that this is not just a political theory; it is a way of relating to the land and to each other [10:41].

He challenges the very concept of private property, asking a powerful question to those who claim to "own" a piece of land: "How many millions of years is your life?" [13:48].

 Since our lives are but a blink compared to the Earth, how can we claim to own her? Instead, we belong to her. This realization has led the Zapatista communities to restructure their entire governance into three levels of horizontal authority:

•  * GAL (Local Autonomous Government): The foundation in every community [50:54].
•  * C-GAZ (Collectives of Zapatista Autonomous Governments): Where regions coordinate [51:51].
•  * AC-GAZ (Assembly of Collectives of Zapatista Autonomous Governments): The zone-wide assembly where the "maximum government" resides [52:51].

3. "The People Truly Rule": The End of the Pyramid

For years, the world has heard the Zapatista slogan "Mandar Obedeciendo" (To Lead by Obeying). In this video, Moisés describes the practical evolution of this principle. They have dismantled the "pyramid" structure—even their own previous councils—to ensure that decision-making power resides at the base [49:15].

He shares honest, often humorous stories of the growing pains of this system: how Zapatistas and non-Zapatista "brothers and sisters" (formerly known as partidistas) are learning to work the land together [12:14]. 

He speaks of resolving conflicts in the moment, in the field, rather than waiting for a distant authority to intervene [18:37]. 

This is the "Common" in practice—a tool that even saves the lives of those displaced by organized crime or natural disasters [43:22], [45:12].

4. The Future: Organizing the Youth

Perhaps the most urgent part of the message is the call to organize the youth [59:18].

 Moisés warns that "the future" is not a given; it is something that must be organized. Without a collective path, the future will be dictated by the same capitalist forces we fight today. By involving young people in El Común, the Zapatistas are ensuring that the seeds of autonomy will continue to grow for the next 120 years and beyond.

5. A Message for Global Solidarity

To the Americanas Zapatistas and all those in global solidarity: this video is a reminder that resistance is not a static state, but a constant practice of "sharing" (compartición) [08:24].

 It is about learning from each other's mistakes and successes without competition.

Moisés leaves us with a profound metric for our work: "If the enemy applauds us, we are doing something wrong; if the enemy hates us, it means we are on the right path" [03:55].

Let us take this message to heart. Let us look to the Zapatistas not as a distant ideal, but as a living example of how to build a world where many worlds fit—a world where, finally, the people truly rule [59:57].

Watch the full message here: 

PARTICIPACIÓN DEL SUBCOMANDANTE INSURGENTE MOISÉS, 28 DE DICIEMBRE DE 2025

02: Reclaiming History from Below - Zapatistas Seedbed - dec 27th

 

Reclaiming History from Below:

The Story They Told Us is a Lie 

A Presentation for the Global Solidarity Movement with the Zapatista Communities: 

Friends, family, and sisters and brothers of the Americanas Zapatistas

Reclaiming History

We are often told that history is a settled record—a museum of statues and dates. But as we see in this "Semillero" convened by the Zapatistas [10:57],

 history is not a graveyard; 

it is a battlefield.

In this session, Raúl Romero and Carlos Aguirre Rojas take us on a journey to understand how those at the top of the "pyramid" use history as a weapon. For the state, history is a tool of legitimacy. They take our heroes, strip them of their radicalism, and put them on banknotes to tell us that the "Revolution" has already ended, and they are its heirs [26:12].

But Romero reminds us of the "pueblos without history"—the communities that the colonial and neocolonial powers tried to erase [18:47].

 He speaks of the 1712 Tzeltal rebellion and the Seri insurrections—voices that the official history books refuse to name [24:19].

 The lesson for us is clear: When a people loses its history, it loses its identity. And a people without identity is a people easily conquered [20:05].

The Science of Truth vs. The Trap of "Decoloniality"

Carlos Aguirre Rojas pushes the conversation further. He challenges us to look beyond the "hard words" of academia [01:12:44]. 

While the current "progressive" governments in Latin America use the language of "decoloniality" to ask for apologies from the Pope or the King of Spain for crimes committed 500 years ago, they simultaneously repress, despoil, and silence the indigenous peoples of today [01:26:59].

Rojas argues that true history belongs to the people who build the world—the ones who make the factories run and the fields grow [01:34:51].

 This is the wisdom of experience. While the elite provide a history that is 90% lie, the people hold a history that is 90% truth because they are the ones living it [01:34:09].

He takes us back to a pivotal moment: December 1914. For a brief window, the popular armies of Villa and Zapata controlled Mexico City [01:49:02].

 He asks a haunting "what if": What if they had marched on and built a radical peasant republic? The entire history of the 20th century, and the global dominance of U.S. imperialism, might have looked different [01:50:39].

 This "interrupted revolution" is a reminder that the future is never written in stone; it is always open to the organized and the brave.

Autonomy as the New World

The Zapatistas are not just theorizing; they are building. Through their concept of "el común" (the common) and the non-property of the people, they are showing that a non-capitalist world is not a dream—it is a reality in the mountains of Southeast Mexico [01:53:35].

They have replaced the hierarchy of the doctor with the "health promoter" and the authority of the teacher with the "education promoter" [01:32:30]. 

They are teaching us that to survive the "storm" of the "hydra" (capitalism), we must look long-term—prepared to fight for 120 years if that is what it takes [01:52:16].

A Story of Love and Heartbreak

The video concludes with a lighter, yet equally sharp, touch: a story about Dení, a first-generation Zapatista girl [01:58:21]. 

Through the lens of childhood, we see the Zapatista ethic: a deep suspicion of those who seek individual glory over collective liberation, and a recommendation to always have a way to escape the traps of "patriarchal" or "state-led" love [02:02:44].

Our Call to Solidarity

To the communities in resistance across the Americas: This video is your mirror. It asks you to be the "archivist of your own rebellion." It asks you to doubt the "history from above" and to trust in the collective intelligence of your neighbors.

We don't need titles to be wise. We only need the memory of our struggles and the courage to plant the seeds of a world where many worlds fit.

Watch the full video and join the "Semillero" here: 

SEMILLERO “DE PIRÁMIDES, DE HISTORIAS, DE AMORES Y, CLARO, DESAMORES”, 27 de diciembre 2025