Once a year, hundreds of indigenous Wixárika people leave their villages in the states of Nayarit, Jalisco and Durango to reach the sacred site of Wirikuta, located in the desert of San Luis Potosí, to follow the path of the pilgrimage their ancestors have been doing before them. The limestone soil of this area allows the peyote to grow: a hallucinogenic cactus that the Wixárika people (also known as Huichol) have been consuming for centuries during their pilgrimage and blessings. This land is however experiencing a severe drought: rain hasn’t been falling during the last year and local people, as well as the indigenous pilgrims, are blaming the tomato’s farms which settled in the area with their anti-rain technologies. Margarito Díaz, Wixárika’s Marakamé (singing shaman) and former Wixárika Union’s secretary, was at forefront of the fight against these tomato’s farms and the mining industries, that are extracting minerals since centuries in this area and are pushing to start digging caves again (the main mining company is the Canadian First Silver Majestic). Margarito’s struggle was savagely silenced in a hot summer night in 2018, when a man identified as Lliber Breide reached Margarito’s home during a traditional fest in his hometown Aguamilpa - a place known for the hydroelectric dam built a decade ago - and shot the Marakamé on the head while he was lied on his bed with his wife Modesta and one of his daughters.His family believe Margarito was shot by local organised crime groups for his activity of protection of two sacred sites. The family is waiting for Lliber's trial to seek justice for Margarito, while the Wixárika people did not give up on their commitment to protect their holy sites where water has become increasingly scarce. They hope that Mexican president Andrés Manuel López Obrador will comply with his intention of carrying out a “Justice Plan” and create a sanctuary for their holy places.
