An Empty Zocalo

On January 1, 1994 a date when most evidence suggested that armed revolutionary movements were counterproductive to democracy and that Mexico was ready to democratize the Ejercito Zapatista de la Liberacion Nacional (EZLN) emerged on the national scene. With a highly mobilized civil society, they initiated a movement determined to develop democracy and bring about indigenous rights in Mexico. However, without the support of civil society, the Zapatistas have had very little capacity to implement their agenda, and they have been vulnerable to pressure from the Mexican government. The movement that began in 1994 still continues today, but civil society s role has been inconsistent and seems to be nearly inactive in recent years. Because high support has been so crucial to the movement s success, and because the movement represents such a unique experiment in a period of democratization, it is important to ask why that support has vanished. This monographs aims to explain why support for the Zapatista movement fluctuates through a context of democratization.