By Paola Velasco
On June 22, the birth of Ignacio Ramírez “El Nigromante” was commemorated with a series of events and conferences in what used to be his home on Umarán Street. It is a property lost in time that still contains the energy of the free thinker from San Miguel.
Juan Ignacio Paulino Ramírez Calzada, known by his pen name “El Nigromante”(the Necromancer), was born on June 22, 1818 in San Miguel el Grande, Guanajuato. Ramírez studied art and law in the country’s capital, and became a lawyer; later serving on the nation’s Supreme Court. He was a Mexican liberal writer, poet, journalist, lawyer, politician and ideologue. His most valued contributions were to promote the reform of the country in the economic, educational and religious fields in the latter part of the 19th century. During the government of Benito Juárez he unified primary education in the capital with that of the states.
The Necromancer also participated in the drafting of the Reform Laws, and was one of the purest liberals. When the conservatives were defeated, President Benito Juárez appointed him Secretary of Justice and Public Instruction. During this administration, Ramírez created the Public Library and unified secular primary education in the Federal District and in the federal territories.
The theater group «Las sanmiguelitas» directed by Jesusa Rodríguez presented the play «An afternoon of God in the Lateran Academy,» by Guillermo Prieto. It is a work for educational purposes and it gives details about the life and work of «El Nigromante.» The same work was also presented earlier in June, with five performances at Los Pinos in CDMX.
On June 23, a concert was presented to inaugurate the cultural space in the «Casa de Ignacio Ramírez,» with a repertoire of music from his time. This tribute was done through the efforts of the Patronato San Miguel de Allende (Cultural Patrimony of Humanity), A.C. and the University of Guanajuato.
