Constructing Mutuality: The Zapatistas’ Transformation of Transnational Activist Power Dynamics Abigail Andrews ABSTRACT This article examines the evolution of transnational Zapatista solidarity networks. Although scholars have described an emerging “mutuality” between the Zapatista movement and its allies at the level of international framing, this article considers how the Zapatistas forged this mutuality on the ground, through active redefinition of alliances with Northern supporters. It argues that the Zapatistas delimited who was included in their solidarity networks, set new terms for partnerships, and redefined legitimacy in their transnational alliances. In so doing, they asserted their autonomy from donors. They also fostered discourses and practices of mutual solidarity and Southern leadership, shifting the balance of power between North and South. The case both illuminates the possibilities for Southern movements to challenge Northern control from within and suggests potential pitfalls of doing so; by defying Northern NGOs’ influence, the Zapatistas may have risked their long-term viability.
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ecent scholarship on transnational activism heralds the growth of “mutual,” “reciprocal,” horizontal activist networks (Eterovic and Smith 2001; Olesen 2005; Juris 2008), recognizes and examines the impact of power imbalances among participants within and across movements (Thayer 2001; Leyva Solano 2001), and highlights the dynamic nature of social movements (McAdam et al. 2001), but it rarely brings these insights into conversation with each other. The discourse of horizontal networking often ignores or conceals power struggles on the ground (Juris 2008). Meanwhile, scholars who thematize power dynamics (e.g., Bob 2005; Hulme and Edwards 1997) often assume that these asymmetries follow the North-to-South resource flows among activists. Some scholars take it for granted that disparities within movements— particularly the preponderance of Northern power—echo broader economic, social, and political inequalities and are therefore structurally stable. They also assume that Southern movements’ dependence on outside resources precludes change. As a result, few scholars explore how or how much Southern movements can transform Northern control and construct mutuality from inside transnational activist networks.1 To fill in these gaps, this article traces the evolution of partnerships between the Zapatista movement, a grassroots, indigenous, rural social © 2010 University of Miami