(Translation from Spanish by Katherine Mosser and Racquel Cruz) a struggle over land and the rights of the indigenous people across the Mexican state of Oaxaca reached murderous heights The Chatino people faced losing their ancestral lands and we’re engaged in a life and death battle Despite the combined opposition of the state and landowner class On the thirtieth anniversary of his murder a collection of writings and memories edited by one of his daughters will be published What follows is translation of the book’s foreword Tomás Cruz Lorenzo (1950-1989) was a Chatino activist who belonged to that generation of communal among whom you can find Floriberto Díaz and Jaime Martínez Luna are a clear call for the defense of the Chatino language and culture and for the autonomy of the Chatino land that extended from the coast to the highlands of the sierra in southeast Oaxaca Killed while waiting for a bus in 1989 (the murder remains unsolved) Tomás lives on in this collection of writings that establishes a dialogue with the new This collection is a tribute that both honors the past and updates the fight and resistance to present day and the defense against extractive practices on the land 2019 saw the thirtieth anniversary of my father’s murder His death was a decisive event in the history of the attacks on the Chatino people which involved much violence against community and indigenous leaders in Oaxaca from landowner’s forces and those of the state At this time when the participation of young people in the movement for the protection of rights is increasingly important we do not want to forget his murder: we choose to commemorate his life will continue to be defended and promoted by new generations titled evitemos que nuestro future se nos escape de las manos (we can’t let our future escape through our fingers) It was born from the desire to continue his dialogue to make his ideas about Chatino autonomy available to the new generation and to relay the need to decide our own destiny We want to again hear his call to reflect on and analyze questions of rights Since his unexpected death in 1989 there continues to be pending conversations It was a hard blow that for a long time rendered us lost we can resume our course and move forward— as he would want us to For those who didn’t know my father and never got the chance to speak with him Tomás left enough written material that we are able to continue the conversation This is how we want to celebrate his struggles and his wisdom Faced with this need to close our wounds and open new conversations I also collected writings of his from El Medio Milenio I gathered some young Chatinos together who wanted to participate in the project by reading some of my father’s writings and offering their own reflections The first exercise was to read; each month they were sent an article from El Medio Milenio to go over each participant chose one article to write a reflection about in their own style and according to their own interests These reflections are included in this book interwoven with the articles that inspired them I also conducted an interview with my mother about what it means to be the wife of a social fighter and to carry on as a widow with several children and no money This book is a collective exercise in which Tomás is remembered as a father He is remembered for his fight against discrimination and for his work so that all Chatinos could have the basics a human needs to survive: a roof Tomás’ work left a profound mark on the movement for Chatino rights in particular for those of the town in which he was born to but also for Chatinos in general His effect was so great that even in distant villages you will hear people say proudly This collective memory we have compiled here is without a doubt an homage to the past It is also a force to strengthen Chatino rights and the rights of all indigenous people in Mexico Tomás made journalistic notes on the Chatino region which borders the municipalities of Santa Cruz Zenzontepec This piece is a translation from the book’s foreword by the editor The book will be published in September (Spanish language) The book release event will be on September 26, 2019 in the Claustro de la Biblioteca Juan Córdova A moderate magnitude 4.3 earthquake hit 29 km (18 mi) away from Pinotepa Nacional, Estado de Oaxaca,  Mexico 2024 at 1.46 pm local time (America/Mexico City GMT -6) The quake had a very shallow depth of 29 km (18 mi) and was not felt (or at least not reported so).