Mara Lezama & Taibo II Boost Reading in Quintana Roo

Cancún — Governor Mara Lezama Espinosa and the director general of the Fondo de Cultura Económica, Paco Ignacio Taibo II, led the State Meeting of Reading Clubs as part of the National Strategy promoted by the President of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo. The initiative aims to make reading visible as a public policy and a right that strengthens social cohesion and a culture of peace.

245 Reading Clubs Operate in Quintana Roo

The governor, accompanied by the president of the Sistema DIF Quintana Roo, Verónica Lezama Espinosa, at the Centro de Bachillerato Tecnológico Industrial y de Servicios (CBTIS) No. 111 “Leona Vicario,” reiterated before members of the Reading Clubs that reading is a right and is not just about guaranteeing access, but also about inducing a passion for stories, ideas, and memory.

Mara Lezama celebrated that there are more than 14,000 reading clubs in the country, of which 245 are active in Quintana Roo. She stated that at this meeting, the habit of reading would be replicated among more than a thousand people in their neighborhoods, communities, and cities.

“The clubs are seeds of hope in urban and rural communities. Through institutional alliance as an example of the joint work of the Fourth Transformation, Quintana Roo maintains its commitment to a culture of peace and the formation of healthy youth free from violence,” she said.

Mara Thanks Presence of Paco Ignacio Taibo II

The governor of Quintana Roo thanked the presence of the head of the Fondo de Cultura Económica, Paco Ignacio Taibo II, who, through the National Reading Strategy led by the first female President of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, promotes reading, seeks to increase interest in libraries, and encourages community cultural activities through the habit of reading.

“Because every book allows us to live another life, understand another time, accompany someone else, and sometimes, also recognize ourselves,” she said.

The Librobús Will Tour the State

Mara Lezama thanked the arrival of the Librobús, which has traveled more than 350,000 kilometers across the country, carrying 4,000 books to each place for the enjoyment of the population. Upon its arrival in Quintana Roo, starting on September 8, it will visit Kantunilkín, Solferino, Cancún, Isla Mujeres, Puerto Morelos, Leona Vicario, Playa del Carmen, Puerto Aventuras, Tulum, Felipe Carrillo Puerto, José María Morelos, Mahahual, Bacalar, and Chetumal.

“At every stop, a festival of letters is set up, with workshops, storytelling, and books at accessible prices, because in this new form of humanist government with a feminist heart and of the New Agreement for the Well-being and Development of Quintana Roo, reading is one of the most powerful ways to do it, because when we share a book we strengthen the social fabric, sow peace, and build well-being,” she commented.

Reading Opens Doors

In his address, the director general of the Fondo de Cultura Económica, Paco Ignacio Taibo II, said he wants to find the correct path among young people through the habit of reading. He acknowledged that the lack of reading directly impacts the educational sector; therefore, he and other writers are working so that words once again have meaning.

“Reading opens doors. Now we have to reach other schools to promote reading. We are going to create a collection of 5 books about the Yucatán Peninsula, the biography of Felipe Carrillo Puerto, the History of the Caste War, among other topics that the collection will have,” he stated.

Money for Culture is an Investment

For her part, the director general of the Instituto de Cultura y las Artes in the state, Lilian Villanueva Chan, explained that in Quintana Roo, since the first day of Governor Mara Lezama's administration, reading has been promoted throughout the territory with the support of the Fondo de Cultura Económica: “Because as the Governor says, money for culture is not an expense, it is an investment.”

The event concluded with a presentation on the State Meeting of Reading Clubs by the head of the Fondo de Cultura Económica, Paco Ignacio Taibo II.

Attendees at the Event

The event was attended by the Senator for Quintana Roo, Anahí González Hernández; the federal deputy, Enrique Vázquez; the Director of Reading Strategy for the Bachillerato Nacional, Pável Granados, representing the Undersecretary of Upper Secondary Education, Tania Rodríguez Mora; the Submanager of Training and Reading Clubs of the Fondo de Cultura Económica, Alejandro Camarena Cuevas; the Secretary General of the Benito Juárez City Council, Pablo Gutiérrez Fernández; the State Commissioner of the DGTI in Quintana Roo, Javier Yam Dzib; and the Undersecretary of Attention to Education in the northern zone of the state, Luis Alberto Tun Calderón.