Whirlwind Legislature Threatens Garifuna Lands

The government of Honduras is currently amending its constitution, and Article 107, which forbids the sale of lands within 40 kilometers of the coast to foreigners, may be altered to allow for the sale and development of coastal lands to foreigners and tourist interests.

Welcome to Oaxacalifornia

The political experiences of indigenous migrants who seek to influence, from the United States, political processes at varying levels from local to national presents a challenge for the emerging indigenous movement in Mexico.

Voices from the Silence: Guatemalan Literature of Resistance

Described as a "collage epic" by its editors, Voices from the Silence attempts to creats a literary narrative of Guatemalan history from the Mayan Conquest to the 1991 elections. Organized chronologically, and centered on specific events, the first part of the book contains writings from 1300 to 1954 -- the period of conquest, colonization, and independence.

Treaty Violations and the Hydro-Payment rebellion of Cross Lake, Manitoba

When the signing of Treaty 5 took place in Norway House, Manitoba in 1875, the leaders representing the Cree hunters and their families who put their "X" next to their names in the Roman alphabet understood that they were being assured the future prosperity of their people, that they were sharing the land with the settlers only to the extent that it would not interfere with their practices of h

The Wixaritari Today

The Wixaritari are an extremely religious people, linked through their ancestors to a mythical, primordial past. Despite having adopted some Christian elements, they maintain a mesoamerican religion strongly rooted in their history and surroundings. The current population forms part of a community that has existed for at least 1000 years.(1)

The San Andrés Accords: Indians and the Soul

The San Andrés Accords: Indians and the Soul

The Lesser Antilles in the Age of European Expansion

The eighteen essays in this weighty tome provide much new information about a region that at one time had sufficient stature to be the cause of general European wars. Stretching from the Virgin Islands in the north to Trinidad and Aruba in the south, the Caribbean's Lesser Antilles were once the scene of the most advanced economic enterprises in the world.

The First Anniversary of the Acteal Massacre in Chiapas

December 22, 1997, forty five Tzotzil indigenous women, children, and men were massacred while praying for peace in their chapel in Acteal by paramilitaries. Among those assembled in the church were people not only from Acteal, but also from several surrounding communities such as Los Chorros, Pechquil, and Yabteclum, who had been driven out by paramilitaries.

Preserving Andean Weaving: The Center for Traditional Textiles of Cusco

Textile systems, developed in Peru over the millennia, represent a treasury of techniques, forms, layouts, and symbolic meanings unique in the world. In the Andes weaving contains many layers of meaning and serves ritual as well as utilitarian functions. Peruvian textiles honor Pachamama, Mother Earth.

Police Raid Protesters Blocking Highway Construction

More than 600 armed law enforcement officers swarmed Camp Coldwater in Minneapolis, MN, on December 20, 1998 to forcibly remove members of the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota who were "blocking" the construction of Highway 55.

Nunavut Territory Established: Inuit Gain New Homeland April 1

While January 1, 2000 signals the beginning of the new millennium for most of the world, the next century symbolically begins on April 1, 1999 for the Inuit of northern Canada. On April 1 st, a new flag and coat of arms will be unveiled as the Inuit celebrate the official establishment of their new homeland, Nunavut.

Not In The News: Class Action Against Texaco Reinstated by US Court of Appeals; Victory for Secoyas

The lawsuit involving Texaco and 30,000 Secoya people from the Eastern province in Ecuador has been reinstated by the US Court of Appeals. The case was originally presented in 1993, but later dismissed in 1997 on jurisdictional grounds.

Mexico's Indigenous Population

Mexico's indigenous population is one of the two largest in the Americas (only Peru is comparable in size). More than one in ten Mexicans speaks an indigenous language.

Indigenous Women's Participation in Formulating the San Andres Accords

Indigenous Women's Participation in Formulating the San Andrés Accords

Indigenous Rights and the Democratic Reform of the State

To promote a deep transformation of the State, as well as the social, political, cultural and economic relations with indigenous peoples, to satisfy their demands for justice" is the first joint government-EZLN proposal in the San Andrés Accords.

Indigenous Rights and Self-Determination in Mexico

Indigenous autonomy or self-determination is understood as respect for the internal practices and decision-making modes of indigenous pueblos.

Indigenous Peoples and Autonomy in Mexico

Introduction

Indigenous Autonomy and the Strengthening of National Sovereignty and Identity

The Zapatista Army of National Liberation made indigenous autonomy a national issue. Autonomy burst onto a national scene that was historically marked by the absence and exclusion of the indigenous peoples from all arenas, beginning with the constitution, according to the idealized vision of National Identity and Unity that presupposes cultural homogeneity.

Hungry Lightning: Notes of a Woman Anthropologist in Venezuela

In Hungry Lightning, we journey with Pei-Lin Yu and researcher Dr. Russell Greaves away from our familiar world of "civilization" to the completely unfamiliar world of the savanna Pumé of Venezuela. The Pumaé live in small nomadic communities, shifting location according to the season.

Finding Our Own Solutions: Mixe Communities of Oaxaca

Beginning the Journey

East Timor Considers Independence Offer from Indonesia

East Timor, a former Portuguese colony, was invaded in 1975 by the Indonesian military, which has since then killed 200,000 Timorese. New Indonesian president Habibie's administration has recently offered first limited autonomy, then full independence to East Timor. The most recent offers, first by Defense Minister Ali Alatas, then Habibie, were for independence within one year.

Declaration: "Never Again a Mexico Without Us"

The representatives of indigenous peoples and organizations gathered together in the National Indigenous Congress from the 8th through the 12th of October of 1996 in Mexico City do solemnly proclaim the following declaration:

CS In The Classroom: Upcoming Conference; Community Organizing and Social Change in Chiapas

Our student conferences, educator workshops, and public events will focus on the the changing roles of women in Mexico, the Indigenous movement, and the demands of the Zapatista rebels. This spring Cultural Survival will be offering separate conference days for middle school and high school participants.

CS In The Classroom: December Conference Summary

On December 7 and 9, 1998, the Education Program of Cultural Survival held its fourth annual Student Conference at the Harvard Graduate School of Education's Gutman Library. Sixteen schools and over 400 students attended.

Nation Building and the Pluriethnic State

Mexico has traditionally prided itself on being a mestizo nation, one that blended the cultures of its Spanish invaders with those of the local Indians to create a new civilization. This "new civilization, struggling to be born" (to quote the inscription in the center of Mexico City that commemorates the coming together of the Spaniards and Indians) has always been a work in progress.