Every Day Is An Education

There was a show on CNN last year called Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy that featured many of my loves, from food and cooking, to travel and history, to the adorable Stanley Tucci. Well, this year they are doing Eva Longoria: Searching for Mexico, and again it features food and travel and history, though, sadly, without The Tooch.

On a recent episode, Longoria was in Oaxaca cooking with the Indigenous Zapotec people, and she was introduced to an extremely interesting subset of people, the Muxe—pronounced moo-shay. As legend has it, San Vicente Ferrer, the patron saint of Juchitán, was carrying three bags of seeds meant to be distributed around the world. The first contained male seeds, the second contained female seeds and a third bag contained a mixture of the two, and as San Vicente was passing through Juchitán, the third bag ruptured and from that arose the  town’s famed community of Muxes. The Zapotec people often refer to Muxes as a third gender; they embody the characteristics of both men and women, but as Felina Santiago, a Muxe featured in the episode says:

“We are people of two spirits. We are the duality, neither man nor woman. You are neither less nor more.”

Muxes are generally assigned male at birth but tend to present in typically feminine ways through their behaviors, brightly colored clothing and makeup, flowers in their hair and chosen occupations. Many are skilled in embroidery or other artisan crafts, or work as merchants in the markets that drive the region’s economy; often they are the caretakers for the elderly in their community. And yet other Muxes are teachers, lawyers and social justice activists who wear masculine clothing at work but don the more feminine attire in their private lives.

But Muxes aren’t defined by their appearance, nor are they labeled with being transgender, a more Westernized, almost simplistic description. Muxes are not male and they are not female; they are the duality of gender. Most Muxes are attracted to heterosexual men, though many do not label themselves as gay but see themselves as a social and gender category rather than a sexual orientation classification. Even the Zapotec language is accommodating to the Muxe as it has no grammatical gender, only one form for all people. And while the older generations of Muxe don’t experience gender dysphoria, the younger generation is more open to hormone therapies.

One thing all Muxes are is proud of their Zapotec heritage, and they play a key role in preserving Zapotec culture, upholding culinary traditions and other ancient rituals. And as the keepers of their history and society, Muxes enjoy a level of respect and acceptance in the Zapotec community. Some think having a Muxe in the family is a blessing, because of how Muxes tend to nurture the young and care for the elderly.

Still, life is not all easy for Muxes, especially in a Latin country with a distinct patriarchy and a high level of machismo. Many are forced to leave home by their fathers if the father becomes aware the child is Muxe, seeing it as a mark against the family, but many more times the women in the household override the male machismo and allow their child to remain and stay part of the family; they say women choose their children over their men any day.

And they are becoming more well-known, more outspoken, and more accepted by the outside community; every November Muxes in Juchitán put on a festival, “La Vela de Las Auténticas Intrépidas Buscadoras del Peligro,” or “The Vigil of the Authentic, Intrepid Danger-Seekers.” The festival began in 1976 in response to the persecution Muxes faced, and the celebration draws crowds from all over the world, with a parade of colorful floats, a Catholic mass and dancing, and a catwalk show that culminates in the crowning of a queen.

“La Vela de Las Auténticas Intrépidas Buscadoras del Peligro” is a way for Muxes to assert themselves, to come out so to speak, in a space that’s their own. And every year Muxes and non-Muxes alike join the celebration, embracing Muxes and their culture. But their lives are not all fancy dresses and flowers and a once-a-year celebration, for they still struggle for recognition while the debate about what it means to be Muxe, and whether their identity is inherent at birth or shaped by society, whether Muxes must be of Zapotec ancestry, and whether undergoing gender reassignment therapies changes the calculus.

But what I learned most about watching the episode, and then reading about Muxes, is their joy; their passion for their lives, their beauty, their desire to care for others that may have been forgotten by their own families. I thought about all of the anti-transgender hatred, and the anti-drag laws in this so-called modern society, and  then look at Muxes who have been in existence for hundreds and hundreds of years, and most of the time, aren’t given a second thought.

They are just Muxes, reminding the rest of us that literally since time began there has been no single way to express gender identity. And if this ancient community can understand that, even as some struggle with the idea, why can’t the rest of the world, especially in this country?

Sidenote: and this isn’t the only community like this that has been around for centuries. I also learned from Drag Race … sheesh, who knew a cooking show and a drag show could be so educational … and Sasha Colby that in Hawaiian culture, Mahu refers to someone with a male and female spirit and a mixture of gender traits.

This is nothing new people, so why are some of us so frightened by it?