The Truth About the Mayans
The year 2012 is one that is regarded with superstition among some people, and among most, skepticism. You may have heard vague
rumors about the “end of the world” and the “ancient” Mayans, but we are going to talk about who is putting out this information about
the Mayans.
Who exactly are the Mayans? “Some dead ancient civilization that lived around Mexico”? This is the conclusion that most sources
would have you draw. It is true that the Spanish conquistadors like Columbus slaughtered the Central American natives in numbers
that put Hitler’s genocide count to shame. However, as shown in the documentary, “2012: The Mayan Word” quite a few of the
Mayans are in fact, very alive, and still speaking, but no one is listening. It’s not because the ones that are alive “disappeared”; the US
Department of State estimates the population of Guatemala to be about 14.7 million, and also states “More than half of Guatemalans
are descendants of indigenous Mayan peoples.” So there are over 7 million Mayans living in Guatemala alone (they are spread out
across several countries in Central America).
You may be wondering why, then, is their very existence being suppressed by the media. It doesn’t take a genius to understand once
you know the conditions they have been living under, and the mess that would be unearthed if the Mayans had access to the
mainstream media.
Since the establishment of a “democratic” government supported by the US in the mid-1900s, the Guatemalan government has had
policies that border on communism. The first elected leader had policies based on Franklin Roosevelt’s “The New Deal,” and was
backed up by the US for a long period of time, until a president a few decades later banned military aid.
The Guatemalan government now has possession of most of their ruins and sacred ancestral sites, and promotes Mayan history so
that they can make money off of it. None of it goes to the Mayans. They are still getting thrown off of the land they settle on now, without
any explanation besides “this is now federal property,” occasionally resulting in some of them being murdered if they protest. Yet it is
mostly ignored by the media and other uncaring citizens, much in the same way that the similar poverty and pathetic, dangerous living
conditions of the US reservations are widely ignored.
The money made off of tourism of Mayan ruins goes to their government, which is essentially a dictatorship when it comes to the
Mayan people. The government keeps the Mayans continued presence silent so that the real, living Mayans can’t speak out against
them.
Land and money is still being taken from the Mayans, and in the old but relevant words of the holy man of a tribe of the United States
plains, the Sioux's Black Elk, “They have made little islands for us and other little islands for the four leggeds, and always these islands
are becoming smaller, for around them surges the gnawing flood of the Wasichu (the white people); and it is dirty with lies and greed.”
rumors about the “end of the world” and the “ancient” Mayans, but we are going to talk about who is putting out this information about
the Mayans.
Who exactly are the Mayans? “Some dead ancient civilization that lived around Mexico”? This is the conclusion that most sources
would have you draw. It is true that the Spanish conquistadors like Columbus slaughtered the Central American natives in numbers
that put Hitler’s genocide count to shame. However, as shown in the documentary, “2012: The Mayan Word” quite a few of the
Mayans are in fact, very alive, and still speaking, but no one is listening. It’s not because the ones that are alive “disappeared”; the US
Department of State estimates the population of Guatemala to be about 14.7 million, and also states “More than half of Guatemalans
are descendants of indigenous Mayan peoples.” So there are over 7 million Mayans living in Guatemala alone (they are spread out
across several countries in Central America).
You may be wondering why, then, is their very existence being suppressed by the media. It doesn’t take a genius to understand once
you know the conditions they have been living under, and the mess that would be unearthed if the Mayans had access to the
mainstream media.
Since the establishment of a “democratic” government supported by the US in the mid-1900s, the Guatemalan government has had
policies that border on communism. The first elected leader had policies based on Franklin Roosevelt’s “The New Deal,” and was
backed up by the US for a long period of time, until a president a few decades later banned military aid.
The Guatemalan government now has possession of most of their ruins and sacred ancestral sites, and promotes Mayan history so
that they can make money off of it. None of it goes to the Mayans. They are still getting thrown off of the land they settle on now, without
any explanation besides “this is now federal property,” occasionally resulting in some of them being murdered if they protest. Yet it is
mostly ignored by the media and other uncaring citizens, much in the same way that the similar poverty and pathetic, dangerous living
conditions of the US reservations are widely ignored.
The money made off of tourism of Mayan ruins goes to their government, which is essentially a dictatorship when it comes to the
Mayan people. The government keeps the Mayans continued presence silent so that the real, living Mayans can’t speak out against
them.
Land and money is still being taken from the Mayans, and in the old but relevant words of the holy man of a tribe of the United States
plains, the Sioux's Black Elk, “They have made little islands for us and other little islands for the four leggeds, and always these islands
are becoming smaller, for around them surges the gnawing flood of the Wasichu (the white people); and it is dirty with lies and greed.”
(I wrote this for my journalism class and thought I would go ahead and post it)
Sources
here are some links which I got my information from, including the documentary which influenced me to research my suspicion about
the quieting of the Mayans, which is an amazing documentary and definitely worth watching
Documentary: http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/2012-mayan-word/
Other sources, including the Department of State page on Guatemala:
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2045.htm
Honestly, I used Wikipedia to get a little extra historic background. I know that most people hate on Wikipedia as a reliable source
because "anyone can change it," but I have pretty solid faith in it because the Wikipedia community is just as legit at any website,
which is always made by an "anybody" (I easily made a website in 5 minutes; anybody can) and the Wikipedia community tends to
be pretty brutal on keeping things "correct." I know this because I used to mess around on it when I was 13 and changed some pages
about bands, and literally 5 minutes later it was already fixed by someone. And I doubt many 13-year-olds are going to get their jollies
on the internet by changing political information on Guatemala.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guatemala
the quieting of the Mayans, which is an amazing documentary and definitely worth watching
Documentary: http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/2012-mayan-word/
Other sources, including the Department of State page on Guatemala:
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2045.htm
Honestly, I used Wikipedia to get a little extra historic background. I know that most people hate on Wikipedia as a reliable source
because "anyone can change it," but I have pretty solid faith in it because the Wikipedia community is just as legit at any website,
which is always made by an "anybody" (I easily made a website in 5 minutes; anybody can) and the Wikipedia community tends to
be pretty brutal on keeping things "correct." I know this because I used to mess around on it when I was 13 and changed some pages
about bands, and literally 5 minutes later it was already fixed by someone. And I doubt many 13-year-olds are going to get their jollies
on the internet by changing political information on Guatemala.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guatemala