Afromexican Activist to Head Business & Tourism School of Zihuatanejo, Guerrero
Dra. Candelária Donají Mendez Tello was recently elected Business & Tourism School Director at the Universidad Autónoma de Guerrero (UAGro) in Zihuatanejo. She will assume her new position in September. Elected by her colleagues and professors, she ran on a platform of Academics, Innovation, and Sustainability. She also directs Afromexican studies at the university.
The Universidad Autónoma de Guerrero is a state-funded university with a presence throughout the state, including its main campus in the state capital of Chilpancingo, and programs in major cities such as Acapulco, as well as preparatory schools in dozens of cities statewide.
The Business & Tourism School of Universidad Autónoma de Guerrero (UAGro) in Zihuatanejo.
In addition to her academic work, Dra. Mendez Tello is the co-founder and President of Mexico Negro Civic Association, one of the leading civil rights organizations in the country, and is a member of the Mexican Society of Geography and Statistics. She also serves on the International Committee of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Task Force of Southfield, Michigan.
Dra. Mendez Tello received her advanced degrees at UAGro in Acapulco, Guerrero, and has been an instructor at Zihuantanejo’s Business & Tourism School for many years. An author, lecturer, and social activist, Dra. Mendez Tello exemplifies Mexico’s racial and cultural diversity; she is a descendant of enslaved Africans brought to Mexico during colonial times. Dr.Mendez Tello was born in Cuajinicuilapa, Guerrero, in the “Costa Chica” region. The “Costa Chica” region is comprised of the southern parts of Guerrero and Oaxaca states and has the country’s largest population of African descendants.
Photos of an African hut in the Costa Chica Region.
Many people are unaware that Mexico – its people, its culture, and its cuisine – is a mixture of the native indigenous people, Europeans, and Africans. During the colonial period, Africans outnumbered Europeans in “New Spain” by 3 to 1. Mexico’s President Vicente Ramon Guerrero (1783-1829), for whom the State of Guerrero is named, was Afromexican and abolished slavery in 1821. During the 1880s, many Mexicans helped thousands of enslaved African-Americans escape across the border from Texas to freedom in Mexico. African-American job seekers migrated to Mexico during the Jim Crow apartheid era. Mexico continues to offer opportunities for Black families and entrepreneurs today, with many migrating as part of the “Blaxit” movement.
In 2010, Dr. Mendez Tello was the lead researcher for the “Pathways to Freedom in the Americas,” an international project sponsored by the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Task Force and funded by the Michigan Humanities Council. The project aims to educate the public about the presence of Africans in Mexico.
In November 2024, Dr. Mendez Tello will host national and international guests at the 25th Annual Meeting of the Black Towns of Mexico in Morelos. Her goal is to help educate the world about the contributions of Afromexicans to the history and culture of the country.
References:
Gonzalo Aguirre Beltrán, La población negro en México, México, Fondo de Cultura Económica, 1946.
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