The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1930-03-24
The "Ejido"-a Fake Commune.

The Spaniards had, therefore, to create the
"ejido," with the object of attracting the In
dian from the mountains, compromise to the
occidental petulance Of the invaders. The
"ejido" was parcel of land in the environs
of native town. The word "ejido" is de-
rived from "exodus," referring to e'exile." The
"eiido' of the Spanards pretended to revive
the "ayllu" and the "callpulli." But this
"eiido" implied small rural individual prop
erty. The right of its usufruct belonged to
the vce-roy and not to the people. And the
vice-roy took advantage of his right always
when the harvest was good. 1t is very pos
sble that the object of the "ejido" was the
Spaniards desire to win over the chief of the
native tribes And though it did not always
work, in many cases it did.
The "eiido" was a proportional measure of
no more than ten hectares (about % acres) OF
cutivatable land. Besides these, the Spaniards
created holdings called "propios" property OF
the government and "erales," the last being
lands not fit for cultivation. 1t is this sort
of "eriales" or land unfit for cultivation which
Gales and Portes Gil, and now Rubio, agents
of Yankee imperialism in Mexico, are giving
to the Indians, among din of noise abroad
about the benefits" thus conferred by the
called Revolutionary" government.
The "propios" were worked by the Indian
to the third part of the harvest. And they
could neither sell nor transfer it. There was
a tax in kind The conquerors pretended with
this means to create native communal prop
erty. But by it the feudal senores were
enriched.
The "eiidos" were surrounded by feudal
properties. To pass their product to market
it was necessary to pay toll to the feudal
senior. The taxes, tributes excuses and church
imposts, made of the "ejido" and so-called
Communal property" of the 'propios," an APP
pendix of the feudal lands
Some fascist governments of Latin America
which pose as Revolutionary" Mexico and
Peru, and particularly the former) pretend to
return the communal lands to their ancient
proprietors, the Indian communities or towns.
But they find that the Indians possess no
titles" which show their right as "propretors"
But who is so simple as to think that the In
dams could exhibit, after 400 years during
which the Spanish conquerors first and the re-
public later, made free with both the lands
and the Indians, that the Indians should come
forward with documents proving their ancient
title?
The republican form of government in Latin
America, form that in these countries is adj
justed to its typical feuda-capitalism, in OPP
pressing and exploiting the In1ian has gone
further than did the Spaniards. In some places
they are exterminated, in others they are
robbed of all forms of agrarian property, be
it communal or "ejiditaria"
This can partly be explained by the fact
that the Indians do not trust the whites and
have for them a profound hatred. But today
the Indian is an exploited, a most exploited
class. The problem of the Indian as a land
worker must be faced as a problem of the most
brutally exploited part of class, with its ra-
cial characteristics, but not as a race. This
is almost commonplace, as is known; but it
is true that there exists strong current in
Latin America that hates the Yankee because
lie killed Indians, that hates Europeans for
like reason, without distinction between the
exploiting invaders and the exploited immi-
grants.