Ceiba Tree in the clouds by Michael Grofe
5 Ajaw 3 Kumk’u (March 8, 2025)
Soul-Searching in a Challenging Time:
Our Work Must Go On!
After a meeting of the MAM Executive Committee, and in consultation with the Congreso planning committee, we have decided to postpone the 6th Congreso until next year for a number of reasons. The current climate of political and financial instability makes it especially difficult for us to raise adequate funds this year, while transportation of our Maya colleagues across the borders between Guatemala and Mexico and between Belize and Mexico or Guatemala is particularly challenging in these times of increased border security and the chaos of deportations. We know that this is a painful and difficult time for many of us—for many of our fellow citizens and fellow human beings on this continent and throughout the world, especially in Ukraine and Palestine. Regrettably, this will mean that we must wait another year before the next Congreso and reassess in 2026. In the meantime, we are in discussions regarding a series of smaller, online conferences that will be much easier to fund and carry out, most likely towards the end of the year.
I also realize that I have been the President of MAM now since 2016, and it is coming up on nine years this Spring! I have been doing a lot of soul-searching and reflection about where MAM has been and what our goals will be in the future. Since I have taken on the responsibility of being the Department Chair of the Anthropology Department at Sacramento City College, as well as teaching five classes this semester, I recognize that I have had less time to focus effectively on MAM or on my own publications and research. One of the items we discussed at the Executive Committee meeting was the possibility for us to bring on a Vice President that could help me carry out some of my obligations, looking toward a future date when I will eventually step down as President. That time has not yet arrived, but it will be important for us to ensure that our work continues.
We also propose sending out a survey to our colleagues asking what the greatest needs are regarding the teaching and dissemination of the Maya script and the calendar. High on the list, we know, is the importance of the preservation of the living Mayan languages, which are all suffering from varying degrees of language pressure and language shift. Another important issue is the teaching of the script and the calendar as a way of celebrating the achievements of Maya people in mathematics, astronomy, and history, especially when this history has been taught or understood very little in education systems in Mesoamerica, as well as in the United States.
At this moment in history, we are all being inundated with an extreme, xenophobic backlash of Eurocentric thought that seeks to whitewash history. Old and familiar prejudices against non-Western peoples, histories, and achievements that devalue the contributions of Mesoamerican people are reappearing and attempting to render them invisible. But the truths of history—both the painful truth of ongoing colonialism, as well as the truth of the histories and achievements of Mesoamerican peoples—never can be erased completely, and we will firmly stand against this by continuing our work. Attempts to performatively and selfishly rename longstanding geographic features like the Gulf of Mexico will hopefully not last the test of time and rationality, and now more than ever it is vitally important for us to celebrate and share the recovered knowledge of the Maya script and the extraordinary achievements of Maya mathematics and astronomy. We know it means a great deal to many people, and I believe that it is profoundly important for the history of the world to set the record straight and to give credit where it is due. That is my own connection to this work, and it is something that I am dedicating my life to pursuing as a teacher and a scholar.
In continuing our work with Maya communities, we recognize that there are many different Mayan language communities, each with their own needs. Some wish to involve only those who are active speakers of their languages, while others seek to broaden their scope to involve others who may be actively losing their languages, or some who may have lost them entirely. It is our role to support all of these groups as they wish to be supported. Likewise, it is also our role to involve non-Maya people in this work by enlisting them for help, as well as getting them excited about Maya writing and calendrics. Through sharing online video presentations on our website, in Spanish, English, and Mayan languages, it may be possible to involve many more people in this collective work. Likewise, supporting the publication of resources for Maya and non-Maya students may be very helpful.
Speaking of online and video presentations, I was graciously invited to present some of my own research for the Aztlander’s virtual programs on March 24th at 8 pm Eastern Time. Here is a link to the free program:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89353789932
The title of my presentation is “The Maya Great Year: An Astronomical Key Embedded in the Palenque Tablet of the Cross.” It corresponds with one of my publications from 2021 at Glyph Dwellers.com:
http://glyphdwellers.com/pdf/R70.pdf
The presentation, like the article, is in English, but I hope to be able to record the presentation and then later provide Spanish subtitles for posting on our MAM website afterword.
Lastly, I am also interested in involving my own students from Sacramento College in our shared work through Mesoamerican field courses that can be incorporated with MAM workshops as I have done in the past through the Maya Exploration Center. These courses can allow many students, particularly those with Mesoamerican heritage, as well as those from any background, the opportunity to travel and study abroad in Mesoamerica for the first time for college credit, and, to help efforts to revitalize Maya writing, mathematics, and astronomy through working with Maya communities. I will be exploring the possibilities with my college district, and through pursuing grants to help support international travel for my students and our work with MAM.
These have been my recent thoughts on the importance of our work, and my role at MAM for as long as I am able to continue as President. In the meantime, it is my distinct pleasure now to announce our most recent call for applications for MAM minigrants! We have some funds available for several minigrants for those who have participated in previous Congresos. I will be sending out an email with the application form soon, but applicants can simply send a request to the following address to receive an application:
We look forward to receiving these next applications!
Thank you, as always, for your ongoing support for our shared work!
May there be peace and justice for all in this world, for ourselves, and for our children.
Sincerely,
Michael Grofe, President
MAM
La Ceiba en las nubes por Michael Grofe.