The Family Tree.

• Author: Glantz, Margo
• Position: Latitudes

You know, I think that in our heart of hearts we all have some links with Franz Kafka. Or at least with The Trial. That's why my father often tells me, getting very excited every time, about his brushes with the law. After all the changes in Russia that led him to this lovely ancient place that is Mexico City, my father became involved over here with leftist groups, and eventually with the anarchists.

It is a good thing to remember, and the theatres in this city remember a great deal. They still show or rather perform the story of Sacco and Vanzetti, which when I was little sounded to me like a single name. A name that was later to be linked with that of the Rosenbergs, who died in the electric chair supposedly for treason. That was when I was a teenager and used to take part in demonstrations for all sorts of lost causes.

My father went to a literary-political evening event in honor of the murdered Italians, which was held at 31 Palma Street towards the end of 1927. At that meeting there was a speech by Abrams, an anarchist who had gone back to Russia after being expelled from the United States (and for some reason that nobody can remember was passing through Mexico) because he had supported in writing Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti who were executed on 23 August 1927 in a Massachusetts jail, accused of theft and murder and not of having unacceptable political views. Abrams talked about a book called America Against Abrams, which gave an account of his trial and deportation because he had taken a stand against the American legal system on behalf of the men who were executed. My father read a poem that was later published in a New York Jewish anarchist journal, Frier Arbeiter Stime (The Free Worker's Voice). A detective was present at the meeting who was employed by the chief of police and when it was over he arrested my father along with Abrams. Jacob was held in custody seventy-two hours, and at first he was with four...