Stories told about the first Thanksgiving often perpetuate harmful stereotypes and erase the true history of the early encounters between Native communities and colonizers.
Yesmi Ajanel (Maya K’ich’e) comes from the highlands of Guatemala. At the age of 10, she moved from San Cristobal Totonicapan to Quetzaltenango. This change opened her eyes to the gap that society was creating between being from a city and being from a small town. Even though the distance between the two locations is only about 40 kilometers, the discrimination is part of social behavior. “For a long time, I hid my Indigenous identity to fit in but later, I realized that I was hiding my roots, my mother’s roots, and my family.
Cultural Survival condemns the use of excessive force and violence in the aftermath of the forced resignation of Bolivian President Evo Morales (Aymara), the country’s first Indigenous president, after 10 days of public protest.
Morales fled to Mexico after allegations of election fraud from the Organization of American States. Subsequent protests have so far left 23 people dead, more than 100 injured and multiple incarcerated in different parts of the country.
On November 1, 2019, Chile cancelled its hosting of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties (UNFCCC COP 25) meeting due to unrest in the country, which also highlighted the marginalization of Indigenous Peoples. Spain will now host the meeting during the same time frame, on December 2 -13, 2019, in Madrid, under the presidency of the Chilean government. The move impacts Indigenous Peoples and delegates coming from the global south who are facing obstacles in obtaining visas, in event planning and implementation in this short period of time.
Interviews by Miriam Anne Frank, article by Miriam Anne Frank and Alexandra Carraher-King
Como parte de su proceso de autonomía, las comunidades zapatistas han desarrollado un amplio proyecto de comunicación con el cual tienen informado a todo su territorio en la zona montañosa y autónoma en el estado de Chiapas en México. Más de una decena de radios localizadas en diferentes partes del estado tienen como fin reivindicar su lucha y los derechos del Pueblo Maya que habita el territorio ancestralmente.
OVERVIEW:
By Alexandra Carraher-Kang
Land Acknowledgement
We acknowledge that we are headquartered on Massachusett land, in Cambridge, MA, and we thank the past, current, and future Indigenous stewards of this territory.