After writing When a Woman Rises, my first novel, I realized that I had finally written something that the people who made my novel happen – the Maya people of Chiapas – can read and enjoy, and in doing so be reminded of the creative spark they carry within themselves and encouraged to bring it out to the world.

But in order for that to happen the novel had to be in Spanish. My publishers, Bobby and Lee Byrd, offered to find a Mexican publisher to produce a Spanish edition, but I knew that would probably take a very long time. Most importantly, even when the book would finally be available, few original people in Chiapas would have the money to buy it.

I knew that in order for this book to be a way to give something back to the people who helped me become who I am — a more aware person, a person with more questions than answers — I would need to give it away for free. When I shared this idea with individuals and organizations in Chiapas in August they were encouraging. Some told me if they received free copies of the book they could use it in reading circles with participants in their programs. Others suggested that literate women and men could read the book out loud to their parents and grandparents who can’t read.
In September 2019 my friend LeeAnn Meadows kindly helped me launch a go-fund-me campaign to raise funds to print 2,000 copies of Cuando una mujer se levanta to give away free to Maya people and other original peoples in Chiapas. My campaign invited donors to join me in challenging the legacy of colonialism that had made it difficult for Mayas to know what has been written about their people.

Over 125 people joined me in this challenge. I am deeply grateful to these donors for making Cuando una mujer se levanta a reality and to the talented and generous people who produced this book: translator Camilo Pérez Bustillo; editor Sylvia Aguilar Zeleny; designer Paco Casas of Blue Panda Design Studios in El Paso, Texas; and Jorge Ponce de León Albarrán of Fray Bartolomé de Las Casas Editorial in San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Chiapas.

Cuando una mujer se levanta became available in April 2020, at the same time as the coronavirus was spreading throughout the U.S. and Mexico. Business as usual came to a halt in San Cristóbal. It was not easy for organizations to pick up their free copies of the book at the press. Nevertheless, some organizations and individuals have received their copies and I trust in time that others will. I’m deeply grateful to Jorge for storing the books at the print shop until they can be picked up.

I am also grateful to Cinco Puntos Press for agreeing to make an additional 250 copies of Cuando una mujer se levanta available for sale in the United States. At this writing I’m not sure when this will happen, as small presses have been facing many challenges during the shutdown.

If you are looking for a worthy cause to support, please consider donating to Fray Bartolomé de Las Casas Editorial (http://www.editorialfrayba.com.mx/) and Cinco Puntos Press (www.cincopuntos.com) Both presses are facing hard times during the pandemic. The former is a non-profit press that has been in business for 40 years publishing books by and about Maya people and the history and culture of Chiapas. Cinco Puntos Press in El Paso, Texas first started publishing in 1985. Its list includes books about the U.S./Mexico border and bilingual children’s books in Spanish and English.