11 · 04 · 05

The film Muxe´s at Cineteca Nacional

Por Clara Sánchez / Fotos: Paulo Vidales (Viernes 4 de noviembre del 2005)

By Clara Sánchez / Photographs by: Paulo Vidales (Friday, November 4th, 2005)
Winner of the Audience Award for Best Documentary from Michoacan at the Third Morelia International Film Festival, Muxe´s auténticas intrépidas, buscadoras de peligro, captured audiences at the Cineteca Nacional.
The documentary tells the story of a group of indigenous and mestizo men, all of them gay, from Oaxaca called Muxe’s, which means women. Directed by Alejandra Islas, the film describes their way of life, their family relations, and the way in which they came to terms with their homosexuality.
Cuahtémoc Sánchez, a psychoanalyst who coordinates courses on sexology, sexuality, masculinity, human rights, as well as family and social issues, attended the screening and offered the following comments on the film.

Why did you come to see this documentary?
I’m writing my theses on the meaning of masculinity. The theoretical part of my work deals with sexual diversity, and the Muxe’s present an interesting case.

What did you think of this film?
It’s very interesting, particularly because of the research I’m doing. The film not only talks about the muxe´s and how they live, but also marks the difference between a homosexual, a gay person, a muxe’s, and a faggot, based on their own experiences.

Did you like the film’s narrative structure?
I think it only describes what it encounters, and, like research, a documentary should serve other purposes, it should makes us think, and see things from the investigator’s point of view. I think it should offer more ideas. I didn’t like the fact that some parts of the documentary where cut off, as if they where out of context. Why do muxe’s think the way they do? Because there’s a context behind them, that brings together these different forms of existence. This film doesn’t generate a lot of meaning, the viewer cannot fully appreciate that there’s a context that supports what he or she is watching. I would have like if the director had been more descriptive, instead of concentrating on all the sub themes, because most people don’t know enough about these issues, and no way of acquiring more information.

Do you think that homosexuality is more widely accepted in Mexico now?
I don’t. People feel empowered, and they have started to live their lives in relation to themselves instead of others, without so many prejudices, but that doesn’t mean they are fully accepted in our society. I see it as a psychoanalyst; a lot of gay people get kicked out of their homes when they are 14 or 15 years old. People still think that homosexuals carry HIV. Maybe we are more open to the subject, but there are still many prejudices, even people who work in health services.

Do you think that tolerance gets confused with acceptance?
Tolerance does not equal acceptance: when you tolerate someone, you know they exist, but maybe you try to avoid seeing them, or to be interested in their lives. Acceptance has to do with how I truly and fully relate to what is unknown to me.

Why do men attack homosexuals?
Our social order commands “real men” to reject feminine things. If they see something in a gay person that reminds them of themselves, they have to get away from that.

None the less, men have a strong need to get close to feminine things, at least through their mother…
Both homosexual and heterosexual men idealize their mothers, they are fascinated with the feminine world, and they place this fascination in their mother. Women have to carry with everything, the good things, the bad things, with what their kids desire, what they don’t… their role is very complex; and it shouldn’t have to be that way. The documentary shows the way these young men are fascinated by their mothers, their lives even come to a stop, the mother dies and they can’t get over it, even though this is not a situation that’s exclusive of homosexuals.

Why is this?
In our society, the father doesn’t usually form part of the child