The importance of iconography as an art of resistance in contemporary social movements was manifested in the 2006 strike by members of Oaxaca’s Local 22 of Mexico’s National Union of Education Workers. Striking teachers used iconography that incorporated irony, poignant images, and cultural icons such as La Tehuana in presenting their demands for salary increments and a change in government. Ethnographic data collected in Oaxaca since 2006 allow an exploration of the various interpretations of these images. The images were an important visual component of the action, and there is little question that they stirred emotions in viewers, dividing public opinion between those who supported the movement and those who criticized the teachers for hurting Oaxaca’s children and the state’s economy.
La importancia de la iconografía como un arte de resistencia en los movimientos sociales contemporáneos se manifestó en 2006 durante la huelga de los miembros oaxaqueños del Sección 22 del Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores de la Educación de México. Los maestros en huelga utilizaron iconografía que incorporaba la ironía, imágenes conmovedoras e íconos culturales tales como La Tehuana para presentar sus demandas por incremento salarial y un cambio en el gobierno. Datos etnográficos recolectados en Oaxaca desde 2006 permiten una exploración de las variadas interpretaciones de estas imágenes, las cuáles eran un importante componente visual en la acción y, sin duda, suscitaron reacciones de índole emocional entre los espectadores, dividiendo a la opinión pública entre aquellos que apoyaban al movimiento y aquellos que criticaban a los maestros por el daño causado a los niños oaxaqueños y a la economía del estado.
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