Latin America Challenge 12
Latin America has had its share of "Robin Hood" characters, men (and some women) who roamed the land, stealing from the wealthy and giving at least some of it to the poor. As one historian says, "[Banditry] was as much a means of protesting injustice and righting wrongs as it was of equalizing wealth or taking political revenge." Many of these outlaws became folk heros. Some went on to become important political figures in their countries.
A Mexican bandit whose notoriety has grown in recent years was Jesús Malverde, who supposedly lived around the turn of the 20th century. Local legend named him the "generous bandit" and "angel of the poor," and even credited him with some miracles. Today he is considered to be the unofficial "patron saint" of drug traffickers. (Obviously the Catholic Church does not recognize Malverde.)
Today's challenge: Name a Latin American "Robin Hood" and tell us something about him (or her!).
Please post only one bandit per response but feel free to make multiple posts.
5 Answers
Here's a famous fellow from Chile:
Joaquin Carrillo Murrieta (1829–1853), also called the Chilean Robin Hood or the Robin Hood of El Dorado, was a semi-legendary figure in California during the California Gold Rush of the 1850s. Depending on the point of view, he was considered an infamous bandit or a Mexican patriot.
Jesuíno Brilhante (1844 - 1879) was a famous Brazilan bandit (or cangaciero) whose story was told in popular poetry of the time. He was apparently driven to a life of banditry because of injustices done to his family. He attacked the rich and redistributed their money and goods to the poor. He bragged that he never robbed for himself.
I could not find a contemporary image of Brilhante, but I did find this photo of an actor depicting him in a film.
Pancho Villa.
His real name was José Doroteo Arango Arámbula. As a young man he was a member of a gang of bandits. Later, he and his supporters seized hacienda lands and distributed them to peasants and soldiers. He became a general in the Mexican Revolution and served as the governor or Chihuahua.
Che Guevera
Known mostly for being a rebel, The Motocycle Diaries provides a look into earlier life and helps you understand why he was so passionate about trying to inflict change. He was trained medically, and wanted to see people treated like people. Wanted the indigenous people to be recognized in society, and beleived that his cause would help establish that. Unfortunatly, he chose a path to try and do that, which has not proved helpful over the years, but its amazing to see the commitment and passion he had for the less fortunate in South America.
Some may consider Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz in the same light as the legendary Robin Hood...being highly instrumental in leading the transformation of Cuba into a socialist republic, nationalizing industry and introducing free healthcare and education for all...whether the last two are a current reality, I cannot comment (Do we have any Cuban participants on our site?)...either way, he remains a controversial figure (though not as vigorous as before) and critics continue to this very day to point out his numerous human rights abuses....
