Woodstock comes to Mexico

Readers depressed by the news from the Middle East might like to read this brief report - it was forwarded to me by a stranger, and I have no idea who Mitchel Cohen is - from Mexico City, which is the epicentre of an enormous uprising against the electoral fraud that cost centre-left candidate Lopez Obrador the Mexican presidency last month. Obrador ran for office on a moderate platform, but his supporters are creating a momentum of their own as they challenge Mexico's venal elite on the streets of the country's cities and towns.

Hi folks,

You wouldn´t believe how great it is here, for now, in Mexico City. Thousands of campesinos are occupying the zocalo and are branching out to various targets. Today
several hundred are blockading the central Mexican Bank, and it is closed down. I´ve been taking a gazillion pictures for Z mag, Counterpunch and elsewhere, and have surprisingly met a couple of NY friends who have snuck down here too. We were
interviewed in the rightwing newspaper Excelsior, which will be out tomorrow with our pictures and words.

The traffic is going crazy. I´ve seen many instances of road rage, as campesinos´ horse-drawn carts are starting to clog the streets, the police have been extremely friendly (unlike NYC) and the whole center of the city is in chaos .... Artists are bursting out everywhere, there´s a signup sheet to perform on the main stage with full band back-up. Woodstock comes to Mexico Of course literally millions of dollars are pumped into this movement by Obrador ... where is it coming from? The literally hundreds of tents that completely cover several miles of avenues. Music all night long, around 8,000 people last night building platforms to sleep on, children´s areas, etc. Democracy in action.

I´d love to send photos but they take too long to send (theyre too big). Still, if you individually want a couple let me know and I´ll do my best. Complete media blackout on TV here, except for la Jornada.

Mitchel Cohen