Hemisphere Volume 9 Article 1 Issue 3 Winter

2001 Hemisphere Volume 9 Number 3, Winter 2001

Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/lacc_hemisphere Part of the Latin American Studies Commons

Recommended Citation (2001) "Hemisphere Volume 9 Number 3, Winter 2001," Hemisphere: Vol. 9 : Iss. 3 , Article 1. Available at: https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/lacc_hemisphere/vol9/iss3/1

This work is brought to you for free and open access by the Kimberly Green Latin American and Carribbean Center (LACC) Publications Network at FIU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Hemisphere by an authorized administrator of FIU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Hemisphere Volume 9 Number 3, Winter 2001

This issue is available in Hemisphere: https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/lacc_hemisphere/vol9/iss3/1 A MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAS

Volume 9 • Number 3 Winter 2001 http://lacc.fiu.edu

Canada’s Nunavut Territory

Defining Race in Brazil.

inican Republic

Education and Indigenous Identity in Mexico

issue;

Democracy and Civic Participation

The Vote in Mexico

Local Government in Latin America

Photographs by Indigenous Children

The Works of Maryse Conde INDAMI Presents... The 4th Annual Latin American and Caribbean Summer Dance Institute

The next Summer Dance Institute is scheduled for June 25- July 1, 2001 and will feature Grupo Cultural Uk’ux Pop Wuj of Chichicastenango, Guatemala. Formed in 1991 with the mission of rescuing and fostering Mayan cultural traditions through a blend of dance and music, the company’s signature work, the Creation of Man, is based on the sacred book of the Maya Quiche, the Pop (time) Wuj (book). The piece follows the four stages of creation in accordance with Mayan belief-man of mud or clay, man of wood, monkey man and human beings. Other dances include the Deer Dance, the Courtship and Maize Sowing. The group has performed in New York, Mexico and throughout Guatemala. In conjunction with the performance, Jan Hanvik, executive director of Pan American Musical Art Research in New York City and a Fulbright senior scholar in dance, will lecture on Mayan rit­ ual and culture. Hanvik has conducted field research in Guatemala and other Central and South American countries and is the author of many articles on Latin American dance. The program also includes: 1) Technique classes in indigenous Bolivian folkloric dance, Haitian, Afro-Cuban, capoeira, and Caribbean dance and drumming with internationally recognized teachers and artists, including Ecuadorian choreographer Susanna Reyes; Caribbean choreographer Peter London, formerly of the Martha Graham Dance Company; Brazilian choreographer Giovanni Luquini; Bolivia Magica; and Louines Louinis of the Jean Leon Destine Haitian Dance Company. 2) Interdisciplinary, team-taught academic seminars in “Cultural Crosscurrents and Hybridity: Amerindians and Africans in the New World” and “Amerindian and African Dance and Culture in the New World” with FIU humanities and social science scholars. 3) Panel discus­ sions with distinguished artists and scholars in the field, including Allegra Fuller Snyder, Professor Emerita, University of California- Los Angeles. Courses may be taken for academic credit. Produced in collaboration with the Florida Dance Association and the Florida Dance Festival, the Summer Dance Institute is co-sponsored by FIU’s Department of Theatre and Dance, African-New World Studies Program and Latin American and Caribbean Center. The Institute is a component of the “Dancing Grupo Cultural Uk’ux Pop Wuj was form ed Across Disciplines” project funded by the US Department of Education’s Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary in 1991 with the mission o f rescuing and Education. To find out more about Summer Dance Institute 2001 or other fostering Mayan cultural traditions through INDAMI programs, please contact: Niurca Marquez, Program a blend o f dance and music. The company’s Coordinator,, Intercultural Dance and Music Institute, Florida International University, Latin American and Caribbean Center, signature work is based on the sacred book o f University Park, DM 353, Miami, Florida 33199, Phone: (305) 348-2894, Fax: (305) 348-3593, E mail: [email protected]. the Maya Quiche. •w* «w« 0 W A MAGAZINEMAGAZIN OF THE AMERICAS

Volume 9 • Number 3 Winter 2001 Hemisphere http://lacc.fiu.edu

FROM THE EDITOR Eduardo A. Gamarra

REPORTS

A Partial Victory Jean F Mayer and Thomas Legler

Building Partnerships Allan Rosenbaum and Cristina Rodriguez-Acosta

Civic Participation in Brazil Mariano J. Magalhaes 11

FEATURES

Black Into...Black Kathleen Bond 14

The Mulatto Myth Andrew J. de Groot Fernandes 18

Coloring the Nation David Howard 21

Ethnicity and Nationhood Ileana Schmidt-Diaz de Leon 24

Our Land Andre Legare 28

Northern Jurisdiction Ails a Henderson 32

PHOTO ESSAY

Image and Vision Sarah Corona Berkin 36

LITERATURE REVIEW

Memory and Identity Marian Goslinga 42

COVER An Inuit man inside a traditional igloo dwelling in Nunavut, Canadas newest territorial jurisdiction. Photo: Yvette Cardozo. UKC Leadership in the Field o f Latin American and Caribbean Studies Hemisphere L atin A m e r ic a n a n d C a r ib b e a n C en ter EDITORIAL STAFF

lorida International University, a pub­ Founding Editor Anthony P. Maingot lic institution of higher education in Editor Eduardo A. Gamarra South Florida, created the Latin Associate Editors Mark B. Rosenberg American and Caribbean Center (LACC) in Richard Tardanico F1979. As a federally supported National Patricia Price Resource Center for Language and Area Managing Editor Alisa Newman Studies, LACC has a mandate to promote Art Editor Pedro D. Botta graduate and undergraduate education, fac­ Book R eview Editor Ivelaw Griffith ulty research and public education on Latin Bibliographer Marian Goslinga American and Caribbean affairs. LACC faculty span a broad range of academic dis­ ciplines, including the social and natural CONTRIBUTING EDITORS sciences, humanities and business. David Bray Walt Peacock C enters a n d In stitutes Janet M. Chernela Lisandro Perez • Summit of the Americas Center Carol Damian Ana Roca • Cuban Research Institute Damian J. Fernandez Andrea Mantell Seidel • Intercultural Dance and Music Institute Sarah Mahler Victor Uribe • Institute for International Professional Ted Young Services

A c a d e m ic P r o g r a m s in Latin A m erican EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD a n d C aribbean S tu dies • Master of Arts Program Don Bohning Guido Pennano • Undergraduate/Graduate Certificate Ettore Botta Alejandro Portes Programs Wolf Grabendorff Sally Price • Certificate Program in International Alistair Hennessy David Ronfeldt Business Harry Hoetnik Selwyn Ryan • Foreign Language and Area Studies Franklin W. Knight Steven E. Sanderson Fellowship Program Vaughan Lewis Saskia Sassen • Haitian Summer Institute Larissa A. Lomnitz Andres Serbrn • Latin American and Caribbean Summer Abraham F. Lowenthal Carol A. Smith Dance Institute Terry L. McCoy Lourdes Sola Andres Oppenheimer Yolande Van Eeuwen

C onferences an d W o r k sh o ps Robert A. Pastor Arturo Villar • Journalists and Editors Workshop Anthony J. Payne Juan Yanes • Conference on Cuban and Cuban American Studies • State of Democracy in the Americas Hemisphere (ISSN 08983038) is published three times a year by the Latin American and Caribbean Center at Florida International University. Copyright © 2000 by the Latin Conferences American and Caribbean Center, Florida International University. All rights reserved. Printed • Teacher Training Workshops in the United States of America.

P ublications Hemisphere is dedicated to provoking debate on the problems, initiatives and achievements of • Hemisphere Magazine the Americas. Responsibility for the views expressed lies solely with the authors. • Position Papers and Special Reports Editorial, Circulation and Advertising Offices: Latin American and Caribbean Center, Florida • Newsletters and Websites International University, University Park-DM 353, Miami, Florida, 33199. Tel.: (305) 348- 2894, Fax: (305) 348-3593, E-mail: [email protected]. Website: http://lacc.fiu.edu/ L atin A m eric an an d C aribbean C enter hemisphere/hemisphere.html Florida International University University Park, DM 353 Miami, Florida 33199 Tel: (305) 348-2894/Fax (305) 348-3593 E-mail: [email protected] FROM THE EDITOR

ore than 500 years after the great wave of European colonization of the Americas began, race remains a charged issue in many parts of the hemisphere. From the northern reaches of Canada to the tip of South America, modern societies struggle with the legacy of con­ quered indigenous populations and African slavery. Resolving these internal tensions has taken on a new urgency as the regions economies move closer toward integration and globalization, putting new strains on marginalized communities and raising new questions about national Midentities. The Iberian colonizers used a range of terms to describe every possible combination and degree of racial mixture. As David Howard shows in his article on the Dominican Republic, such distinctions continue there in somewhat different form today. Dominicans use a long list of terms to describe shades of skin color and avoid the still derogatory word, negro. Kathleen Bond and Andrew J. de Groot Fernandes document a similar situation in Brazil, where the ideal of “racial democracy” remains a myth to many Afro-Brazilians. Pan-black movements are working to instill a sense of pride and common identity in this community. Marian Goslinga picks up this theme in her review of the works of Maryse Conde, an important Caribbean author. Goslinga traces the efforts of Caribbean intellectuals to develop theories of identity to encompass their legacy of slavery and colonization. As a black woman in a geographically, culturally and politically marginal world, Conde tackles interrelated issues of race, gender and class. In Mexico, Ileana Schmidt-Dfaz de Leon discusses the government’s publication of free textbooks in indigenous languages and their implications for Indian identity. This issue’s photo essay also examines cul­ tural survival in a Mexican indigenous community. Children in an isolated Huichol Indian village in the mountains of Jalisco offer us a glimpse of their world through their own photographs. The United States and Canada continue to come to terms with their own racial histories. In the spring of 1999, Canada took a pioneering step toward autonomous government by indigenous peoples with the cre­ ation of the Nunavut Territory in the Arctic northeast. Two articles discuss the issues involved in this deci­ sion and the challenges the territory’s Inuit inhabitants face in the years ahead. This issue also includes several reports on other topics with important consequences for the hemisphere. Canadian researchers Jean F. Mayer and Thomas Legler share their observations as “international visitors” during the summer 2000 Mexican elections. In the midst of widespread praise for the process that allowed an opposition figure to defeat the decades-old hegemony of the PRI, they raise some significant questions about Mexico’s electoral practices and their implications for democratic government. Democracy in Brazil is the main focus of Mariano Magalhaes’s article on civic participation and the role played by civil society in consolidating new democracies. Finally, FIUs Allan Rosenbaum and Cristina Rodrfguez-Acosta discuss the importance of strengthening local government in Latin America and the reasons why commitment to this goal has been fading in the last few years. Thanks to all of the contributors who helped us put together this issue, sending us their work from as far away as Scotland, Brazil and the Canadian Arctic. The wide scope of the articles reflects Hemispheres com­ mitment to covering issues of importance throughout the Americas. I would like to extend my sincere appreciation to Alisa Newman, managing editor, and Pedro Botta, publications coordinator at LACC, for their never-ending commitment to Hemisphere over the years. This issue, in particular, carries the imprint of their dedication to this magazine and the intellectual curiosity that drives them to produce each issue.

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 3 R O A Partial Victory by Jean F. Mayer and Thomas Legler

he July 2000 victory The months preceding Election Day were of Vicente Fox of the National Action Party generally characterized by “business as (PAN) was a water­ shed in Mexican poli­ usual”: a continuation of decades-old meth­ tics, ending 71 years of govern­ Tment by the Institutional ods of intimidation and vote buying. Revolutionary Party (PRI). Both in Mexico and abroad, politicians, journalists and civil society repre­ tinuation of decades-old methods zation dedicated to promoting free­ sentatives were quick to proclaim of intimidation and vote buying. dom and secrecy in the voting this contest the most free and fair Our own experience as interna­ process as well as civic education— Mexican suffrage ever. But the his­ tional visitors on hand for the elec­ and duly accredited with the toric outcome of the election seems tions in the state of Puebla allowed Federal Electoral Institute (IFE). to have led most Mexican and for­ us to verify these observations and We stayed in Mexico for 10 days, eign observers to forget about—or add to them. In particular, we focusing our observation effort on worse, to ignore—the various diffi­ were struck by the extent of confu­ two mountainous areas of the cen­ culties that characterized this latest sion among polling officials and tral state of Puebla: the Sierra electoral process. The prevailing the resulting disorder at many of Norte and the Zone of the attitude seems to be that Fox’s vic­ the voting stations we visited. Volcanoes, the communities tory and the relative cleanliness of Ignorance of voting procedures around the Popocatepetl and the voting process are enough to appeared widespread among both Iztacci'huatl peaks. We observed complete Mexico’s transition to polling officials and the electorate, the elections in a select group of democracy. contributing to a large number of predominantly indigenous and While we share much of the irregularities in the voting process rural communities, including enthusiasm surrounding the elec­ and compromising the secrecy of Tahitic in the Sierra Norte, and tions, we believe that the aggregate the vote. We were also able to wit­ San Nicolas de los Ranchos, electoral trends and outcome at the ness firsthand indications of alleged Santiago Xalitzintla, San Pedro national level hide significant and vote buying and coercion before Yancuitlapan and San Mateo more substantive problems that are and during the process. These Ozolco in the Zone of the profoundly anchored in the coun­ findings lead us to conclude that, Volcanoes. In both areas we visit­ try’s political regime and socioeco­ while the 2 0 0 0 elections represent­ ed, the voting was characterized by nomic system. These problems ed an important advance over pre­ numerous irregularities and a gen­ emerge most clearly in the Mexican vious electoral contests, Mexico eral lack of understanding of the countryside, especially in remote still faces significant challenges in electoral process, from both casilla areas with a high concentration of its path toward electoral democra­ (voting station) officials and voters indigenous population. In these cy. at large. Voting secrecy was repeat­ zones, pre-electoral reports by such edly compromised as a result. groups as Alianza Ci'vica, the T h e V o t e in P u e b l a On Election Day, none of the National Democratic Institute, the Our group was comprised of five voting stations we observed opened Mexico Working Group and academics from Southern Ontario, on time— 8 :0 0 a.m., as stipulated Global Exchange indicated that the Canada. We attended the 2000 by electoral law—because of orga­ months preceding Election Day elections as international visitors nizational problems. In fact, the were generally characterized by invited by Alianza Ci'vica—a first few hours of voting were “business as usual”; that is, a con­ Mexican non-governmental organi­ marked by near pandemonium.

4 Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 R T S Mexicans voted the PRI out of office, but electoral irregularities persist

Casilla officials were nervous and resentatives—when the latter were The counting of the ballots was uncertain of the proper procedure present—made little attempt to generally disorganized but fair, for beginning the electoral process, enforce voting secrecy. although in Santiago Xalitzintla and long lines of voters crowded Confidentiality was also compro­ serious errors occurred in the tabu­ the voting stations. Officials mised when strong winds lifted the lation of the vote. There, PRI and encountered many difficulties in protective curtain on flimsy voting PAN party representatives were assembling the voting booths and booths located outside. On one allowed to participate in the count­ ballot boxes, as well as in unpack­ occasion, the wind blew an entire ing of ballots as well as handle them ing and preparing voting materials. booth away__ and instruct casilla officials about In some cases they allowed voting Many voting officials were clearly the process—a practice strictly for­ to begin even though the casilla following directions and sugges­ bidden by electoral law. Only the was clearly not ready to receive vot­ tions from PRI party representa­ timely arrival of an IFE district offi­ ers. tives. Often, a PRI representative, cial allowed the vote count to con­ Many illiterate or semi-literate instead of IFE officials, instructed clude. voters were unsure how to vote and voters to fold their ballots and put Two incidents confirmed that the often did not receive proper them in the ballot boxes. The elections in these communities instructions from casilla officials. effect was to cast doubt on the occurred in a context of pressure After leaving the voting booth and integrity of the voting process. and intimidation. First, in an age- before depositing their ballots, Despite the legal limit of two old practice dubbed operation tamal, many people either openly exhibit­ political party representatives per PRI supporters in Santiago ed their votes or left their ballots voting station, the PRI often had Xalitzintla and San Nicolas de los unfolded in clear view of many more affiliates in and around Ranchos passed out free breakfasts bystanders. Generally, PRI party the casillas. We noticed PRI mem­ and lunches to casilla officials and representatives were the closest to bers and sympathizers sitting much voters. Second, and of even more the ballot boxes and made note of too close to both the voting booths concern, we received compelling voters’ choices. On numerous and ballot boxes, making it possi­ evidence of coaction y compra, or occasions, two people entered the ble for them to see inside the vote buying and coercion. Three voting booth at the same time and booth and observe how people peasants approached us in Santiago communicated with each other. In voted. These individuals were Xalitzintla to make a formal denun­ several other instances, people out­ supervised by a PRI official who ciation, alleging that in 250 cases side the booths conversed at will coordinated the activities of the they knew of (roughly a third of the with voters inside, sometimes party’s representatives at voting sta­ electorate in that municipality), instructing them directly on how tions in the area. In the Sierra benefits from the government social to vote. Norte, this person claimed to be assistance program PROGRESA Such irregularities may be attrib­ part of Antorcha Campesina, a had been conditioned on voting for uted to a lack of civic education or hard-line faction of the Mexican the PRI. They complained that cultural elements, but they can also Peasant Confedera-tion, itself a sec­ local PROGRESA officials had be interpreted as being part of a tor of the PRI. Against this com­ removed voter identification cards process of vote buying or intimida­ manding local priista presence, two weeks earlier and returned tion. We estimate that more than there was generally only one PAN them just before Election Day after half of the ballots cast in the Sierra representative at each voting sta­ telling their owners that their names Norte and close to 20% in the tion, and the Party of the and voter numbers had been record­ Zone of the Volcanoes were visible Democratic Revolution (PRD) had ed to keep track of how they voted. to onlookers. In all cases, voting only a sporadic presence. Other In addition to the troubling issues station officials or district IFE rep­ parties were not represented. it raises, this episode confirms the

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 5 Reports: Mexico

The irregularities we witnessed in Puebla denunciations of alleged misuse of public monies. In addition, an were replicated in other regions of Mexico, Alianza Ci'vica survey corroborated pre-electoral coercive practices that where they were sometimes much worse. In targeted public employees, obliging them to participate in PRI cam­ the state of Chiapas, for example, delega­ paign events. A second concern is the lack of tions from US and Canadian NGOs were basic and civic education in many rural areas. Inadequate training of forcibly prevented from entering villages, casilla officials, widespread igno­ received threats to their personal security, rance of voting procedures among both polling officials and the elec­ and were harassed by local police and para­ torate, and the low level of basic lit­ eracy in many indigenous and/or military forces. rural communities contributed to produce confusion, disorder and numerous procedural irregularities. usefulness of international and made a strong showing in both Finally, access to the media observers—a subject of much houses of Congress. (The IFE’s remains an important issue. debate lately. At the beginning of final results showed the PAN-led Studies by the IFE and Alianza our trip to Mexico, one high-rank­ coalition with 39.5% of the con­ Ci'vica found national media cover­ ing Canadian official stated that gressional vote, the PRI with age to be imbalanced, denying foreign observers would have little 37.4%, and the PRD-led alliance equal access and objective coverage impact on the elections and that with 19.2%). to all parties. their presence was hardly necessary However, the irregularities we Underscoring these irregularities in the light of the tremendous pro­ witnessed in Puebla were replicated and procedural problems is not cedural improvements recorded by in other regions of Mexico, where meant to detract from the signifi­ the IFE in recent years. Our expe­ they were sometimes much worse. cant advances made in Mexico’s rience, however, suggests the con­ In the state of Chiapas, for exam­ transition to democracy. Beginning trary. In the case of the alleged ple, delegations from US and in 1977, and especially during the PROGRESA abuses, the men who Canadian NGOs were forcibly pre­ 1990s, numerous electoral reforms approached us clearly did not trust vented from entering villages, facilitated the development of polit­ the local PRI-controlled authori­ received threats to their personal ical pluralism and improved the ties. They would probably never security, and were harassed by local conditions conducive to free and have reported this serious irregular­ police and paramilitary forces. fair elections. Since 1996, when it ity without our presence. Based on our observations during became fully autonomous and this and previous stays, as well as operational, the IFE’s role in pro­ C o n t in u in g O b s t a c l e s on the pre-electoral reports men­ moting free and fair elections has In many ways, what we saw in tioned above, we have identified been widely recognized in and out­ Puebla contrasted with the national three main concerns regarding the side Mexico, and polls show that context. For example, voter Mexican electoral process. The most Mexicans today believe that turnout was less than 50% at the first involves vote buying and coer­ elections are an important mecha­ casillas we visited-—an abstention cion. The traditional practice of nism for democratic development. rate much higher than the 35% using public funds to support the The 2000 electoral process high­ national average. Also, in the vot­ electoral campaigns of political par­ lighted the tremendous work ing stations we observed, the PRI ties in power continues and accomplished in the past few years candidates for the presidency, appears to involve all three major by the IFE, as well as by the Senate and Chamber of Deputies political formations. A special numerous Mexican NGOs devoted won by a margin of at least 2 : 1, commission of the Chamber of to the cause of free and fair voting, whereas at the national level, the Deputies formed to investigate the civic education and citizen partici­ PAN decisively won the presidency problem received 145 documented pation in the political process.

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Reports: Mexico

Clearly, Mexico’s electoral process cial. Current civic and political idency in December 2000, but the has undergone significant improve­ education programs, such as the party retains much of its strength ments since the controversial 1988 ones undertaken by the IFE and at the state and local levels. In elections. Voter registration, the Alianza Ci'vica, should be extended addition, both the PAN and PRD impartiality of electoral institu­ to rural and indigenous communi­ have recently come under allega­ tions, the counting of votes, plural­ ties, where this type of training is tions of manipulating state-run ism of political groups, and alter­ particularly lacking. Greater efforts programs and public monies in the nation among political parties have must be made to ensure that basic states and municipalities under all become generally reliable and general and civic education reaches their control. One of the most effective. Nonetheless, numerous rural and/or indigenous communi­ important challenges for Fox’s elements still require improvement ties, and the communication gap administration will be to thwart for Mexico to have truly free, fair between indigenous languages and the use of state patronage and coer­ and transparent elections. the current IFE training programs, cion by political parties and which are predominantly in caciques (local bosses). To achieve R e m a r k s a n d R ecommendations Spanish, must be breached. On these goals, basic and civic educa­ Fox’s victory has already generat­ the one hand, the IFE must reori­ tion must be improved dramatical­ ed significant political change in ent its spending priorities toward ly and poverty alleviated substan­ Mexico, not least the painful and rural civic education and election tially, especially in rural areas. much-debated restructuring of the training. We were struck, for These problems are complex and PRI and PRD. Nevertheless, the example, by the contrast between will require long-term strategies country’s transition to a reliable, the resources the IFE dedicated to and commitment on the part of effective electoral democracy such activities as hosting interna­ the federal government. Unless the remains to be completed. tional visitors or launching ad cam­ social and economic condition of Important deficiencies in the paigns and its weak presence in Mexico’s poor population is Mexican electoral process persist, rural zones. On the other hand, the improved significantly in the next despite significant improvements Secretariat of Public Education few years, the irregularities we over the past 20 years. We believe must renew efforts to expand liter­ observed in the July 2000 elections that the government, political par­ acy in Mexico’s poorer rural zones. are likely to reoccur in the future. ties, electoral authorities and civil Second, advances in electoral Much work remains to be done society must address such deficien­ democracy in the countryside are before electoral democracy is effec­ cies before future elections for impeded by persistent and unac- tively consolidated in Mexico. ■ Mexico truly to accomplish its ceptably high levels of poverty. transition to an electoral democra- Poverty, ultimately, is the feeding Cy' ground of an anti-democratic polit­ Jean F. Mayer is assistant professor o f In particular, our observations ical culture of clientelism manifest­ political science at the University o f confirmed the persistent urban/ ed in fear, vote buying and intimi­ Guelph, Ontario. Thomas Legler is rural divide in Mexico. Elections dation. During the 71 years of assistant professor o f political science in Mexico’s cities generally have PRI rule, voting in poor areas at the University o f Victoria, British become routine and reliable exer­ became a question of survival. Columbia. This article is based on a cises in suffrage. In the country­ Election time represented a period­ report originally prepared with the side, however, especially in margin­ ic opportunity for impoverished help ofNibaldo Galleguillos, Mark al, indigenous zones, election pro­ voters to exchange their votes for Juhasz, Marie-Josee Massicotte and cedures are less dependable. concrete material benefits from the Erin McCaughan. Problems range from poorly ruling party, ranging from cash, trained and educated voting offi­ agricultural credit and debt forgive­ cials and voters to vote buying and ness to building supplies and rural intimidation. electrification. In the 2000 elec­ For electoral democracy to tion, the PROGRESA and PRO- extend adequately to rural Mexico, CAMPO social assistance programs significant changes must be made continued the tradition of exchang­ on two fronts. First, improvements ing votes for goods and services. in education and training are cru­ The PRI will relinquish the pres­

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Reports: Local Governance

Building Partnerships by Allan Rosenbaum and Cristina Rodriguez-Acosta

mong the many issues become weaker. Rather, contempo­ national governments: Poland. Nor under discussion at the rary experience demonstrates clearly is it surprising that when the now that when one level of government vibrant Swedish economy began to becomes institutionally stronger and take a downturn a decade ago, a more competent, other existing levels main focus of reform efforts was A 1998 Summit of governmentthe will inevitably do the enhancing the capacity of Sweden’s Americas in Santiago, same. already strong subnational govern­ Chile, local governance One of the most important bene­ ments. was high on the agenda. The Plan of fits of stronger subnational govern­ Of special importance for develop­ Action signed by the leaders of the ments is their ability to generate eco­ ing countries, the strengthening of 34 participating countries included nomic development at the local level. subnational governments (and, by several objectives designed to Successful economic development extension, local economic develop­ strengthen local government, reflect­ requires locally focused and targeted ment capacity) may also be a signifi­ ing the Summit’s recognition of the support to establish necessary infra­ cant step in dealing with the growing growing significance of local govern­ structure and create an environment problem of income inequality, which ment in Latin America and the conducive to economic development. the Inter-American Development important role it can play in devel­ This is achieved much more readily Bank’s 1999 annual development opment. In the past few years, how­ by officials on the scene, who are report identified as among the most ever, this growth has shown signs of located in the community and pos­ potentially destabilizing forces in reversing, or at least slowing down. sess the autonomy and the resources Latin America and the Caribbean. Across the hemisphere, countries are to respond to the legitimate develop­ Locally elected officials, who are witnessing a decline in commitment ment needs of the private sector. dependent upon local voters, must, to strong, efficient and productive This relationship becomes clear if of necessity, be responsive to the subnational governments. one examines the data on levels of most basic needs of their communi­ Ironically, this trend comes in the subnational expenditure and employ­ ties. aftermath of widespread praise for ment on a regional basis around the Despite these clear benefits, Latin America’s progress in the area world. In Europe, Japan and North reformers who support the move­ of local governance, an example that America—the most economically ment toward stronger subnational has been emulated in other parts of developed regions of the world— government in the hemisphere the world. Eastern Europe, Africa 56% of all governmental expenditure recently have encountered a growing and even China are turning their and public employment occurs at the disinclination on the part of national attention to questions of decentral­ subnational level. In contrast, in governments to adequately and effec­ ization and building the capacity of Africa—the least economically tively support the strengthening of their subnational governments. In so developed region of the world—only government at this level. In fact, doing, they are drawing inspiration 6 % to 10 % of government employ­ national officials seem to have been a from a Latin American model that, ment and expenditure occurs at the good deal more committed to at least for the moment, appears to subnational level. The figures are strengthening local government a be running out of steam. Some crit­ approximately 20% for Latin decade ago than they are today. One ics, especially those in national gov­ America and 30% for Asia. Thus, it possible reason for this trend is the ernments, seem to believe that is not surprising that the country in recent tendency of reformers con­ stronger local governments come at Eastern Europe credited with the cerned about these matters to focus the expense of weaker national gov­ most successful economic transition almost exclusively on the activities of ernments. This argument fails to is the same one that has devoted the local officials in encouraging the understand that strengthening one or most attention to building and development of subnational govern­ another level of government does not strengthening the capacity of its sub­ ments, instead of working jointly at represent a zero sum game, in the sense that if one level of government Hemisphereis enhanced, Volume another 9, Number will inevitably 3 Reports: Local Governance

the local and national levels. In most ence as advisors to the local govern­ sustainable change. Perhaps because cases, one cannot build subnational ment of one Latin American city is a so much international technical assis­ governments simply by working in case in point. Two separate mayors tance and support is overseen by the subnational context. This is attempted to reform that city’s budg­ mid-level administrators and man­ especially true in countries with long etary and financial management pro­ agers, technical assistance efforts tend traditions of centralism, where politi­ cedures. In each case, the effort was to work at similar levels in the coun­ cal, economic and administrative supported by a different internation­ tries where activities are supported. power is concentrated at the national al donor, and in each instance the In many cases there is, below the sur­ level. results were the same: Short-term face, a very real antagonism toward The growing tendency of reform­ assistance was provided for major working with political officials— ers to ignore the need for an active reforms that rapidly enhanced man­ even at the local level. Often, donor role for the national government, agement capacity and dramatically officials will publicly heap praise on and the growing inclination of tightened executive control over the results of projects that support national governments to lessen their agency spending. The donor then local government, while at the same commitment to strengthening ended assistance. Shortly thereafter, time privately criticizing the projects administration at the local level, is in the reforms put in place evaporated for having had too much contact part a result of prior success and its amidst political and fiscal pressures with high-level political officials and, political consequences. Many local on the municipal government. A as a consequence, assuming too high governments—especially, large capi­ short-term focus fails to recognize a profile. tal city governments—have become that serious systemic reform requires Especially in Latin America and important political bases in their a great deal of time. In the United the Caribbean, the kind of long-term own right. In some cases, most States, for example, systematic efforts changes that are necessary to imple­ recently Argentina, the mayors of at encouraging local government ment the goals of the Summit Plan capital cities have successfully run for reform and professionalization began of Action require the full involve­ president as opposition candidates. in the 1880s, but real success was ment of top-level political officials. Those realities should not encour­ not achieved on a broad basis until This involvement cannot be age reformers to neglect efforts to the 1950s. Attempts to professional­ obtained by ignoring or avoiding maintain a partnership between local ize the civil service and eliminate these officials in the process of seek­ and national officials. In most patronage in the US have taken at ing meaningful institutionalized instances, the national government least as long to achieve. reform. Rather, efforts must be not only establishes the policy frame­ A related problem is the tendency made to engage political leadership work within which local govern­ of donors and international assis­ at all levels in not only supporting, ments must function, but also exer­ tance agencies to provide mostly but being a part of—and indeed, cises overwhelming control over the short-term training for local officials. even leading—this process. ■ fiscal resources available to govern­ Less support is granted for longer- ment at all levels. If progress in the term professionalization, such as the development of subnational govern­ development of university-based pro­ Allan Rosenbaum and Cristina ments is to continue, a renewed grams in local government manage­ Rodriguez-Acosta are director and effort must be made to encourage ment. Longer-term programs are deputy director, respectively, o f the and engage national leadership. An essential for the development of a Institute for Public Management and important part of these efforts is permanent culture of professional­ Community Service at Florida stressing the economic development ism. International University’s College o f role of local governments. Finally, those who support reform Health and Urban Affairs. This arti­ Efforts to strengthen local govern­ efforts (in particular, international cle is based on a report originally sub­ ment have also failed to focus ade­ organizations and donors) tend to mitted to the Special Committee on quately on issues of sustainability. forget that the kind of change that is Inter-American Summits Management International organizations and needed goes well beyond administra­ o f the Permanent Council o f the donors must bear some portion of tive and fiscal concerns but is, in Organization o f American States. the responsibility. All too often, fact, political as well. It is necessary donors tend to support short-term to work with the political leadership reform projects that can produce both nationally and locally to bring quick results. Our personal experi­ about important, meaningful and

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 La t in A m e r ic a n a n d C ar ib be an C en ter

F lo r id a International U n iv er sity Master of Arts in Latin American and Caribbean Studies

THE PROGRAM The Master of Arts in Latin American and Caribbean Studies responds to the diversity of disciplinary and subdisciplinary approaches to the study of Latin America and the Caribbean. The program prepares students for doctoral-level studies in academic disciplines and for careers in the public and private sec­ tors. Full-time students can expect to complete the program, including the­ sis, in 18-24 months.

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS The program consists of 36 hours of course work, including a thesis and spe­ cialization in a discipline to be selected from the program’s core departments (Economics, History, Environmental Studies, International Relations, Modern Languages, Political Science, and Sociology/Anthropology). Students work under the guidance of social science faculty whose expertise includes diverse themes such as the illicit narcotics trade, the environment and sustainable development, migration, commerce and trade. Subregional strengths include the Andes, Brazil and the Southern Cone, Mexico, Cuba and the Caribbean. Financial assistance is available on a competitive basis.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT Theodore R. Young, Director of Academic Programs Latin American and Caribbean Center Florida International University University Park, DM 353, Miami, Florida 33199 Telephone: (305) 348-2894, Fax: (305) 348-3593 E-mail: [email protected] Website: http://lacc.fiu.edu Reports: Brazil

Civic Participation in Brazil by Mariano J. Magalhaes

decade and a half after shift over time in response to tremendously since market reforms the massive popular changes in the substance and intensi­ were introduced in the early 1990s. uprising in favor of ty of societal conflict, as well as the Income distribution, already skewed direct presidential elec­ stage of democratization, widespread in favor of the rich, grew even more tions (the diretasjd participation in a rich set of associa­ unequal in the first half of that Amovement), and despite the impres­ tions and organizations enables peo­ decade. The educational level also sive “March of 100,000” on Brasilia ple to advance their interests in the declined, making it easy to under­ in August 1999, Brazilian citizens political arena. The process of dem­ stand decreased participation in poli­ have a low rate of participation in ocratic consolidation, however, tics in general, and associations in political life. The strength of civil marks the point at which the politi­ particular. society will not make or break cal system begins to settle into more More surprising are the survey data democracy in Brazil, but anemic routinized patterns of conflict that from Rio Grande do Sul, one of popular participation in associations, encourage individuals to “free-ride” Brazil’s most developed states. movements and organizations lessens on the efforts of others. Scholars Although it also suffered the negative the quality of representative democ­ expect to find decreased popular par­ short-term consequences of national racy there. ticipation in associational life in most economic reforms, Rio Grande do Many scholars have argued that a newly democratic states, and that is Sul saw its share of the national eco­ strong civil society makes for a certainly the case in Brazil. nomic wealth increase from 10% in strong democracy. In countries 1985 to 12% in 1995. Educational around the world, civil society often M e m b e r sh ip in A ssociations levels have remained constant since provides the force behind the initial Brazilian associations have experi­ the 1980s. The decline in associa­ decision of authoritarian regimes to enced a general decline in member­ tional life in this state seems to fit move toward democracy or pick up ship since the mid 1980s, the high the prediction that after the euphoria the pace of democratic reform. point of political participation. In of the transition to civilian govern­ Brazil is only one example of this 1985, a survey conducted by the ment, people in neodemocracies trend. Popular uprisings in Universidade Federal do Rio Grande begin to settle into their new lives Indonesia in early 1998 led to the do Sul found that almost 40% of and are less likely to join associa­ fall of the Suharto regime; grass-roots adult residents of that Brazilian state tions. movements in the early 1990s pres­ were members of at least one associa­ Aside from the importance of sured the Mexican government to tion. Nine years later, the number political participation for democratic make elections more open and com­ had declined to less than 30%. governance, many scholars argue that petitive; the Eastern European demo­ Although the sample came from a membership in associations fosters cratic transitions were in part spurred single state, the results have mostly democratic attitudes. According to by social forces; and in the late 1970s been confirmed across the country. this logic, strengthening civil society and into the 1980s, the Madres de la The major reason for the weakness is tantamount to deepening demo­ Plaza de Mayo kept the heat on of civil society in Brazil is the inabili­ cratic political culture. We can test Argentina’s military government to ty of the vast number of uneducated this theory by examining whether come clean on its deadly campaign poor to articulate their demands Brazilians who are members of asso­ to wipe out subversive movements effectively. In northeastern Brazil, ciations exhibit more democratic during that country’s “dirty war.” especially, the level of participation of attitudes than Brazilians who are not The level at which the population poor residents in neighborhood and affiliated with any association. participates in organized collective church-based organizations has The sample of interviews from Rio action greatly impacts the quality of declined significantly since the Grande do Sul provides some evi­ democracy. Although levels of popu­ 1970s. The northeast is the poorest dence for the positive connection lar participation can be expected to region in Brazil and has suffered between membership in associations

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Reports: Brazil

respectively, for members and non­ T a b l e 1. P e r c e n t a g e o f R e s p o n d e n t s in R i o G r a n d e d o S u l members. This lack of confidence in A g r e e in g w it h S t a t e m e n t , b y M e m b e r s h ip in A s s o c ia t io n (1994) public institutions at the local and national levels threatens the quality Member Nonmember of democracy in Brazil. Preference for a multiparty system I influence politics 44 30** varied between the two groups of respondents. Less then half of gau­ I trust our system of justice 29 23 chos who were members of associa­ tions felt that the country would be The country would be better better served by a one-party system, off with only one political party 39 55** compared to more than half of non­ members. The preference for more Things will only get better with parties among members of associa­ a revolution or through violence 30 27 tions may be explained in part by the fact that associational life produces Voting is very important 83 75* awareness of the importance of open competition for public power and Under military rule the the proper functioning of democratic 4 5 ** country was better off 40 government. Of the entire sample, 50% supported a one-party system. N=609 In a study published in the American Political Science Review in Source: Nticleo de Pesquisas e Documenta^ao da Politica Rio Grandense, Universidade Federal September 1994, Edward Muller and do Rio Grande do Sul. I would like to thank Professor Marcelo Baquero for this data. Mitchell Seligson found that public support for gradual reform has a * significant a t. 1 level (two-tail test) greater positive impact on change in ** significant a t .01 level (ttvo-tail test) democracy than does support for revolutionary change or intransigent defense of the status quo. They also and democratic norms. The survey government hinges in part on the found that public support for grad­ revealed a sizable (and statistically level of confidence in state institu­ ual reform is positively correlated significant) difference between mem­ tions. The lack of trust in the with other democratic attitudes. bers and nonmembers in terms of Brazilian judicial system reported in Therefore, associational life should perceived political efficacy. Of the the Rio Grande do Sul survey by have a negative impact on support entire sample, only a third of the both members and nonmembers of for violent change. In Rio Grande respondents believed that they influ­ associations should come as no sur­ do Sul, this was not the case. enced politics. The implication was prise. Historically, the judicial Associational membership in the that most Brazilians believed that branch in Brazil has enjoyed very lit­ sample was correlated (albeit not sig­ nothing much had changed after tle public support. More often than nificantly) with greater support for more than 10 years of democratic not, the politically well placed and political change through violent elections. Corruption was more economically well off receive a slap means. The data suggest that partic­ widespread, if anything, and only on the wrist, if they are brought to ipation in civil society does not influ­ one in every 10 gauchos (residents of justice at all. The absence of the rule ence whether individuals will prefer Rio Grande do Sul) trusted elected of law in Brazil is a key obstacle to incremental change over revolution­ officials. Despite changing economic democratic consolidation. Citizens ary change or defense of the status fortunes beginning in summer 1994, need to know that they can turn to quo. citizens were skeptical of the options the courts to defend themselves In an earlier round of interviews in available to them in the upcoming against the state, its officials and Rio Grande do Sul in 1985, respon­ elections, and probably of the elec­ other powerful actors. The survey dents were asked whether quebra- tions themselves. found even lower levels of public quebras (activities such as overturning Effective and stable democratic trust in the police: 15% and 12%, vehicles and arson) were acceptable

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Reports: Brazil

means for confronting public More than 70% of members said leap to imply that the respondents authorities. Almost 90% answered yes, compared to 63% of nonmem­ preferred military rule to democracy, no. How can the difference between bers. The results underline the the survey’s findings corroborate the 1985 and 1994 be explained? One importance of voting in the eyes of conclusions of other studies. Juan possibility is that the expectations the public, as well as confirming the Linz and Alfred Stepan found that and euphoria associated with the difference between members and in the early 1990s, Brazilians sup­ transition to democracy convinced nonmembers. ported democracy at a frighteningly most people that these actions were The survey also looked at public lower rate than citizens of other unnecessary. A second potential support for military rule; specifically, countries studied. Forty percent of explanation for the change between whether the country was better or Brazilians preferred democracy to 1985 and 1994 is the wording of worse off during this period. This any other form of government, com­ the question. In the later question­ question captures Samuel pared to 73% of Uruguayans, 70% naire, respondents were not provid­ Huntington’s notion of “authoritari­ of Spaniards, 61% of Portuguese ed with examples of violent methods an nostalgia,” which he claims actu­ and 87% of Greeks. for seeking political change. ally increases the prospects for dem­ Without visualizing the options, ocratic consolidation. One can C iv il S o c ie t y respondents may have been more argue that longing for a nondemoc­ Civil society in Brazil is weak. likely to condone violent upheaval. ratic regime is not good for demo­ The lack of associational life in Rio A third possibility that follows the cratic political socialization. If citi­ Grande do Sul is particularly telling; chronological logic of the first is that zens do not perceive democracy as given this state’s characteristics, we the inept government of Jose Sarney, the most appropriate form of gov­ could expect it to have higher rates the corruption of Fernando Collor ernment before “procedural” legiti­ of participation. In a presentation at de Melo and the incompetence of macy sets in, antidemocratic a conference in Brasilia in December Itamar Franco—not to mention the forces—the military, in most Latin 1998, political scientist Philip generalized perception that democ­ American countries—are likely to Oxhorn told the audience that the racy, mainly elections, had not done take this cue and perhaps intervene key to the health of Brazilian much to improve most people’s more openly in politics, to the detri­ democracy was a strong civil society. lives—could have fueled the belief ment of the democratic allocation of In practice, however, civil society that positive change would only be public values. Members could be organizations in Brazil are con­ possible through “nondemocratic” expected to have a more negative strained by a lack of available means. These explanations are not evaluation of military rule than non­ resources. The situation will not mutually exclusive and may in fact members, and in fact, 40% of mem­ improve significantly without a have worked together to account for bers reported that the country was helping hand from the government. the change between surveys. better off under the military, com­ Strengthening civil society in A further concern in consolidating pared to almost half of nonmem­ Brazil will require a more serious democracy is a healthy attitude bers. commitment on the part of toward voting. If public regard for Two factors stand out in the data. President Fernando Henrique voting reaches very low levels, voting First, although this information was Cardoso and the help of a national will decline to the point that the not included in the table, one-fifth legislature that has been reluctant to ability of society to hold elected offi­ of nonmembers were unsure about go along with the president’s propos­ cials accountable is seriously under­ which regime was better for the als since his re-election in October mined. In Brazil, voting is manda­ country, compared to less than 10 % 1998. The challenge for Brazil’s tory. This may account for the of members. This finding may be leaders is to overcome partisan results in the table above, in which spurious; lack of education may con­ squabbles to create a legal and social both members and nonmembers tribute to the uncertainty of non­ environment more conducive to citi­ considered voting to be very impor­ members, while conversely, member­ zen participation. ■ tant (although the rate was higher ship in associational life is highly among members than nonmem­ correlated with education. bers). To dismiss this hypothesis, The second outstanding factor is Mariano J. Magalha.es is assistant pro­ respondents in Rio Grande do Sul the high level of agreement that the fessor o f political science at Roosevelt were asked if they would vote even if country was better off under mili­ University. they were not required to do so. tary rule. Although it would be a

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 F E A T Black Into...Black by Kathleen Bond

n 1997, Margarida Pereira da Silva was the leading candi­ date for mayor of Pombal, a city in the interior of the northeastern Brazilian state of Parafba. Pereira da Silva, beloved for her community work with youth, decided to run for office to Ioffer an alternative to corrupt, spe­ cial interest politics. She had little money, so she ran the campaign from her home. One week before Election Day, two strangers offered her the equivalent of $7 5 ,0 0 0 as a donation for her youth program. There was just one condition—she had to drop out of the race. She politely but firmly refused, telling the visitors, “I’m running for my people, not for money.” Days after she refused the bribe, all of Pereira da Silva’s campaign posters were painted over with the words nega feia (ugly black woman). Unable to discredit her honesty or merits, her opponents orchestrated a smear campaign that focused solely on race. Long-time friends and even some relatives, who she believes were paid off, sud­ denly turned against her. Her nephew caught his girlfriend tear­ ing down Pereira da Silva’s posters. When he confronted her, the girl replied, “I’m not going to waste my vote on that ugly black thing.” Pereira da Silva lost by a landslide. Stories of racial discrimination like this one are not confined to the rural northeast. Millions of Afro- Brazilians experience racism every day. From the family living room, where lighter-skinned children are often favored over their darker sib­ The lack o f educational materials about Afro-Brazilian history and culture rein­ lings, to church pews, barbershops, forces negative images o f blackness among school children. Photo: Kathleen Bond.

14 Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 U R E The battle over racial identity in Brazil

Brazil is often described as a “racial democ­ esteem are not so easily measured. At a recent reflection group of racy” because of the high number of interra­ Afro-Brazilian women in Joao Pessoa, the capital of Parafba, a cial marriages and easy banter between the woman named Cida painfully recounted the end of her relation­ races in everyday life. Nothing could be far­ ship with Chico, a lighter-skinned black. The two had dated for sev­ ther from the truth. eral years without their color differ­ ence seeming to create any difficul­ ties. When they got engaged, how­ classrooms and the halls of those who call themselves black ever, Chico’s family exploded. Congress, racism gnaws at the fab­ often have a hard time convincing “This little blackie is going to pol­ ric of Brazilian society. The coun­ other Brazilians not to identify lute our blood. Go and find some­ try is often described by foreigners them as moreno or mulato. For one who will purify it,” Chico’s and Brazilians as a “racial democra­ many people, to be called black is mother raged. Chico caved in and cy” because of the high number of still an insult. broke off the engagement within interracial marriages and seemingly Skin color profoundly influences days. Two years later, Cida painful­ easy banter between the races in life chances. According to a 1992 ly asked the group, “How can you everyday life. Nothing could be study by Carlos Hasenbalg and tell me not to feel inferior because farther from the truth. Nelson do Valle Silva, nonwhite of my color?” Brazilian are three times more likely A L e g a c y o f D iscrimination than whites to be illiterate. The R e c l a im in g I d e n t it ie s Racial democracy, a term coined numbers deteriorate even further at Brazil’s black movement struggles by Brazilian sociologist Gilberto higher educational levels: Whites to address this question by intro­ Freyre in the early twentieth centu­ are five times more likely than peo­ ducing positive images of black ry, is the theory that Brazil’s history ple of mixed ancestry and nine identity and fighting racism at all of extended miscegenation has times more likely than blacks to levels of society. Anthropologist resulted in a cultural melange in obtain university degrees. The pat­ John Burdick traces the movement’s which all races are equally valued. tern repeats itself in the work force, momentum to the 1970s, when a In reality, however, race in Brazil is where, according to government generation of nonwhite students a complex and difficult issue. statistics, whites have access to the was caught in the contradiction Although most Brazilians claim a highest-paying jobs, earning up to between the promise of upward mixed African, European and 75% more than blacks and 50% mobility and the reality of labor indigenous ancestry, the weight of more than people of mixed ances­ and educational barriers. Around racism causes many to “whiten” try. Other socioeconomic indica­ the world, revolutionaries in the themselves. Many morenos straight­ tors are no less grim. Infant mor­ former Portuguese colonies of en their hair and search for lighter­ tality statistics are almost twice as Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau and skinned marriage partners. They high for nonwhite children, and the Angola and militants in the Black often identify themselves and each vast majority of detainees in the Power movement in the United other with terms that indicate a country’s crowded prison system are States offered encouraging symbols lighter skin tone, such as nonwhites. of self-confidence for the fledgling moreninho, cafe, mulato, bronzeado Not all of the consequences of Afro-Brazilian movement. and escurinho. Rarely will they racism can be neatly packaged into Over the past 25 years, the black describe themselves as negro. Even statistics and charts. Effects on self­ movement in Brazil has developed

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 15 Features: Brazil

Paraiba Black Movement participants celebrate the many shades o f their African heritage. Photo: Kathleen Bond.

in different directions. Some descendants of runaway slaves; They suffer intense discrimination, groups dedicate their energy to Banda Yle Odara and other musi­ especially in the school system. judicial and legislative arenas, such cal, martial arts and dance groups; Paulo Cesar, a 26-year-old commu­ as the enforcement of the 1989 Afro-Brazilian religious groups, nity activist, told a story that Cao law that makes racism a crime. including Candomble and echoed the childhood experiences Other organizations—including the Umbanda centers; women’s reflec­ of many participants. His junior internationally acclaimed percus­ tion groups; coalition and organiz­ high school in rural Parafba had sion band Olodum—focus on cul­ ing entities, including the Agentes only three or four black students. tural programs. Various research de Pastoral Negro; and educational When he was called negao besta institutes, primarily in Rio de groups that focus on literacy pro­ (big, stupid black), his teacher Janeiro and Sao Paulo, cater to the grams, training and school curricu­ refused to intervene. His mother, middle class, while Catholic church lum development. These groups lacking formal education and self- groups, most notably the Agentes gather every year for the annual confidence, did nothing when he de Pastoral Negro (Black Pastoral Parafba Black Movement came home from school crying. Church Workers), offer educational Conference. “That experience left a profound courses for the economically disad­ In addition to gaining new mark,” Cesar stated. “My involve­ vantaged. insights into cultural, religious and ment with the black movement The black movement in Parafba political resistance, coming together reinforces in me that being black is reflects this diversity. Participating in solidarity is an important aspect not horrible, it’s being human like organizations include Caiana dos of the conference. In rural regions any other person.” He now directs Crioulos, a black community of of Brazil, blacks are often isolated. a capoeira group (a combination of

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Brazil

martial arts and dance practiced by R e l ig io u s D ia l o g u e together 8000 participants, includ­ slaves to train for escapes) and holds Black activism has also affected ing 67 bishops, in Sao Luiz, workshops on racism in local the church, bringing black mem­ Maranhao. Supporters argued that schools. bers of religious orders together for inter-religious dialogue and celebra­ Activists have reached out to the reflection. Parafba’s GRENI tions would be more inclusive of interior of the state, where (Group of Black and Indigenous the many Catholics who also Tanzanian Maryknoll Sister Efu Religious) is one such group. engage in Afro-Brazilian religious Nyaki and her Brazilian colleagues These small clusters of Catholic practices. However, Frissoti and travel extensively throughout the priests and nuns are beginning the others involved in the outreach drought-stricken, poor countryside process of reclaiming their black effort met resistance on both sides. offering two-day formation courses and indigenous identities. Many On the one hand, the bishops in identity, self-esteem and empow­ participants find strength in the feared that such contact would tar­ erment. During these visits, Nyaki groups to face racism in their own nish the image of the Catholic discovered an abysmally low educa­ religious communities. Church. On the other, some prac­ tional level among most blacks in Catholics are not just talking to titioners of Afro-Brazilian religions the interior. “We’ve been to all­ each other about racial issues. Over also opposed the discussion, largely black rural communities where only the last decade, some have attempt­ because of their historic distrust of one or two people are literate, which ed a dialogue with Afro-Brazilian the church. As Ana Rita Santiago, has led us to seek funding to begin religious groups. Many of these a Candomble religious leader from small literacy programs,” she com­ groups have suffered discrimination Bahia, noted, “I am wary of a mented. throughout Brazilian history, much process that is limited to taking Lagoa Rac^a, 10 hours from the of it condoned by the Catholic some of our symbols and simply state capital, is one of those commu­ Church. For example, until the incorporating them into the nities. Five years ago, when Nyaki’s 1950s, acts of destruction against Catholic Mass.” team first visited the community, it Candomble houses of worship by Despite these concerns, Frissoti’s had no school within walking dis­ either the police or common citi­ spirit of reconciliation has had an tance. Only one of the 200 resi­ zens were never punished by law. impact in Brazil. In April 2000, dents could read and write. With Long after the practice of Afro- during the commemorations of five help from outside, that man was Brazilian religions was legalized in hundred years of Portuguese colo­ trained to offer adult literacy cours­ the early 1970s, participants were nization in Brazil, the National es, and eventually a school was built required to request permission from Conference of Brazilian Bishops to serve the community. “There are local authorities on the day of wor­ sought public forgiveness from Lagoa Ra^as all over the northeast,” ship. To this day, many people dis­ indigenous and black peoples for Nyaki lamented. “The government miss Afro-Brazilian religious sym­ not speaking out against injustices has simply abandoned these people.” bols such as drums and colorful committed against them. For Educational work is also under­ vestments as coisas do diabo (the Nyaki, who has followed the way in urban areas of Parafba, where devil’s things). emerging dialogue for the last six activists such as Nyaki offer pro­ One of the first Catholics years, this is only the beginning. grams on racism and Afro-Brazilian involved in this inter-religious “Public statements from church identity in the schools. Very few effort was the late Combonian Fr. leaders are a step,” she said, “but we children admit to being black when Hector Frissoti, who began his also ask that Brazilian Catholics the question is posed at the begin­ ministry by visiting the terreiros open their hearts and minds.” ■ ning of the sessions. The complete (sacred Afro-Brazilian places of lack of educational material about worship). Frissoti published his Kathleen Bond, a Maryknoll lay mis­ Afro-Brazilian history and culture reflections, sharing his experiences sioned works with women and reinforces negative images of black­ first with his own Comboni com­ human rights issues in Jodo Pessoa, ness among school children. Nyaki’s munity and later with the larger Paraiba, Brazil. For more informa­ team is working with black universi­ Brazilian Catholic Church. The tion about Mary knoll's overseas activ­ ty professors to develop a primary issue reached the agenda of the ities, contact Kathy Wright, MA1AF school curriculum that includes the ninth annual meeting of Inter- Admissions, P.O. Box 307, history and achievements of black Ecclesiastical Base Community Maryknoll, NY 10545-0307, Brazilians. Leaders in 1997, which brought www. maryknoll. org.

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Brazil

The Mulatto Myth Andrew J. de Groot Fernandes

fro-Brazilian activists this view, better-off pardos would and other Euro-Brazilian authors are struggling to have little to gain from political in the 1930s certainly lent the idea change how blacks unity with pretos. Closer examina­ greater currency. A key moment in identify themselves. tion of the country’s history sug­ its acceptance was the first Afro- gests an alternative explanation: Brazilian Congress in 1934, the A In a culture that uses that the weakness of Afro-Brazilian aim of which, according to Ramos, a range of racial designations to unity derives in part from elite was to grant Brazilian blacks “the describe hair types and skin tones, efforts to divide and dominate the scientific and human vindication they are urging Brazilians of black masses, exaggerating preto which could no longer be delayed.” African descent to embrace a pan­ and pardo divisions to undermine Two central ideas dominated the black identity. Noting that blacks the threat of pan-black union. proceedings: greater recognition of all shades suffer similar obstacles (by whites) of positive black contri­ in a white-dominated society, the R a c i a l D e m o c r a c y butions to Brazil, and modification campaigns attack the practice of Powerful Brazilians have long of Brazilian attitudes toward black- auto-embranquecimento (self­ understood the benefits of disunity white miscegenation. whitening), encouraging those who among blacks. Luis dos Santos Controversial as it was then, this classify themselves as mulato, pardo Vilhena, a keen observer of late “vindication” of blacks did not fun­ or moreno to identify as negro eighteenth-century Brazilian socie­ damentally challenge old attitudes instead. ty, argued that “if African slaves are about their proper “place” in socie­ These efforts challenge much of treacherous, creoles [Brazilian-born ty. Instead, it can be interpreted as the conventional scholarship on pretos] and mulatos are even more a skillful effort to foster national race in Brazil. From the 1930s to so ... if not for the rivalry between harmony by an elite forced to the 1970s, in particular, Brazilian the former and the latter, all politi­ abandon slavery and the dream of and foreign academics argued that cal power and social order would building a “white” society in the Afro-Brazilians of different colors crumble before a servile revolt.” Americas. Like their contempo­ experienced markedly different Persistent fear of such a revolt and raries in other Latin American socioeconomic realities. Lighter­ recognition of the usefulness (to countries, Brazilian intellectuals of skinned blacks, they claimed, held elite dominance) of inter-black the early twentieth century sought a status intermediate between their rivalries contributed to the devel­ to redeem their nation’s image. disadvantaged darker-skinned com­ opment of a “mulatto myth” as a They searched for an ideology that patriots (pretos) and more privi­ key component of twentieth-centu­ would boost confidence in their leged whites. This situation was ry Brazilian racial identity. largely nonwhite population with­ said to contrast with the United According to this myth, because of out disturbing the balance of States, where anyone with a trace their phenotypic and cultural power. The ingenious result was of African heritage was assigned to approximation to whites, pardos “racial democracy”—the notion the dispossessed “black” group. hold themselves jealously above that, unlike other societies founded Thus far, the campaign to chal­ darker-skinned blacks and are able on race-based slavery, Brazil had lenge these notions has met with to secure for themselves a special almost magically escaped the grip limited success. Despite occasional place within Brazil’s racial hierar­ of prejudice. bursts of unity, significant color- chy. The mulatto myth was a critical based cleavages continue to hinder The mulatto myth has been component of this ideology. pan-black mobilization in Brazil. repeated so often that it may now Pardos—hitherto despised—sud­ Some observers cite the earlier be impossible to determine its denly became treasured symbols of arguments and attribute the divi­ exact origins, although the writings national identity. Brazilian intel­ sions to socioeconomic gaps among of Gilberto Freyre, Arthur Ramos lectuals pointed to them as evi­ blacks themselves. According to

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Brazil

Historical lessons for contemporary Afro-Brazilian identity

dence that, despite considerable ed and reformulated by, among indebted” to Freyre s Sabrados e differences, Europeans and Africans others, US sociologist Donald Mucambas, one of the founding (and, less crucially by now, indige­ Pierson, Swedish anthropologist works on racial democracy. nous peoples) had blended to form Magnus Morner, Dutch historian a nation perfectly suited to a Harmannus Hoetink and US T h e H i s t o r ic a l E v id e n c e unique, tropical, European civiliza­ anthropologist Marvin Harris. In In reality, aside from a handful of tion. This world view included no their writings, it became the critical exceptional cases, white Brazilians proposals to improve blacks’ social factor for understanding differences made few real distinctions between condition; instead, it was assumed in race relations between Brazil and pardos and pretos during the that the liberal Luso-Brazilian atti­ the United States. Ironically, even nation’s early history. It is true that tude toward race had already scholars who attacked the notion during the slave era pardos com­ brought many improvements—at of racial democracy supported the prised a large portion of the free least for those blacks who were myth. In the 1970s, US historian colored population, but freedom light-skinned and well-behaved Carl Degler published one of the was often tenuous for blacks. In enough. Because of racial amalga­ most celebrated comparative works many cases, the law mandated sim­ mation and pardo mobility, Freyre on Brazilian racial classification, in ilar restrictions for all people of argued, “perhaps in no other coun­ which he argued that “the presence African descent—whether slave or try is it possible to rise so quickly of a separate place for the mulatto free. Whatever their skin tone, free from one social class to another.” in Brazil and its absence in the blacks were popularly referred to as Mulatto women were an essential United States define remarkably escravos forms, or free slaves. element of the myth. A corner­ well the heart of the difference.” The vast majority of pardos lived stone of the ideology of racial Degler maintained that Brazilian humble lives. Judging from the democracy was their attractiveness pardos were engaged in a “flight repeated complaints of observers to white males. Supposedly pos­ from blackness,” abandoning black and officials, even those born to sessing stronger libidos and weaker causes and ascending the socioeco­ wealthy slaveholders were routinely racial prejudices than other nomic hierarchy by bleaching their abandoned by their white fathers. European men, Luso-Brazilian family lines through procreation Left to fend for themselves in a males were said to idealize mulatas with light-complexioned partners. harsh economic environment, as sexual partners. Even today, Little evidence was available to many subsisted through risky, popular books and movies rein­ support these assertions. Many irregular and unrewarding toil or force these images, as does the authors relied for proof on the very resorted to begging and theft. annual Carnaval jubilation, attract­ architects of racial democracy. For Perhaps because so many pardos ing hordes of sex-seeking tourists instance, in Negroes in Brazil— were forced to live outside the law, from Europe and elsewhere. which many later writers cited as a slave-era reports regularly con­ Miscegenation—preferably classic—Pierson noted that his demned them in harsher terms between white men and black chapter on pardos was “greatly than pretos themselves. Pardos women—thus became the pre­ scribed route to socioeconomic ascent, condemning Afro-Brazilians The “mulatto myth” argued that Europeans, to a deceptively inclusive but fiercely patriarchal, sexist and racist Africans and indigenous peoples had blend­ doctrine. Comparative scholars from ed to form a nation perfectly suited to a abroad embraced the mulatto myth. Over decades, it was restat­ unique, tropical, European civilization.

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Brazil

were often denounced as immoral, disease and low birth rates. mal advantages over pretos. As a lazy drunks who—unless Through miscegenation, they group, blacks are considerably enslaved—contributed nothing to argued, blacks who reproduced worse off than whites. society but a string of social ills. with lighter-skinned partners In light of these findings, many Alternatively, they were depicted in allowed “stronger” white genes to researchers have chosen to examine popular literature as presumptuous dominate in their mixed-race off­ Brazilian racial conditions along and vain, involved in ridiculous spring. In part to bolster the white versus nonwhite lines. schemes to escape their cursed whitening effort, Brazil’s leaders Major Brazilian institutes, includ­ black blood. actively recruited European immi­ ing the Instituto Brasileiro de In contrast to their mythical grants. Until the nationalistic Geografia e Estadi'sticas (equivalent haughtiness, at least some pardos regime changes of the 1930s, white to the US Census Bureau), have identified with pretos and dedicat­ immigrants routinely enjoyed hir­ also opted for bimodal classifica­ ed themselves to black causes. Joao ing and pay advantages over blacks tions when dealing with socioeco­ Fernandes Vieira and Vicente with comparable skills. Whatever nomic data on race. This trend Ferreira de Paula are but two exam­ tenuous positions some pardos had supports the efforts of many Afro- ples of pardos who led black rebel­ enjoyed as free workers during the Brazilian activist groups, such as lions against white domination. slave era were sharply undermined the Movimento Negro Unificado, Among the free pardos who played during this period. to redefine as negro “all those who a prominent role in the struggle to Some pardos continued to fight possess in the color of their skins, end slavery was Luis Gama, who for black dignity after abolition. in their faces or in their hair, fea­ was sold into slavery by his white Manoel Querino (1851-1923) was tures characteristic of that race.” father. Eventually securing his the first Brazilian of any color to But the task of transforming freedom, Gama worked as a lawyer undertake a serious study of Afro- racial identity in Brazil will take for escaped slaves, preaching the Brazilian history. He set out to more than the statistical union of “right of insurrection.” Other par­ prove that blacks were essential pardos and pretos in textbooks and dos active in the anti-slavery strug­ members of Brazilian society, not government records. An important gles included Jose do Patricfnio, only as laborers, but also as defend­ first step is the deconstruction of who has been called “the heart and ers and architects of national unity. the myths that scholars have soul of the entire abolitionist cam­ Other middle-class pardos estab­ helped create. Many academics in paign,” and Andre Rebou9as, lished so-called “mulatto presses,” the past perceived racial classifica­ whose earnings as one of Brazil’s producing periodicals whose chief tions as the politically neutral top engineers helped fund aboli­ aim was to foster pan-black unity. products of cultural, demographic tionist publications and societies. Employing all-encompassing terms or historical circumstances. Afro- The abolition of slavery in 1888 such as gente de cor—people of Brazilian activists, by contrast, are proved a bitter disappointment, color—they protested white dis­ painfully aware that these defini­ even for the Afro-Brazilians who crimination against blacks of all tions can be manipulated by the had fought hardest to secure it. colors. powerful to reinforce their posi­ With the fall of the Brazilian tions of dominance. Equally monarchy the following year, the T a c k l i n g t h e S t e r e o t y p e s important is the realization that former slave-owners secured their More scholars have begun to racial identities can be embraced hold on national policy making. question the mulatto myth. As by the subjugated to strengthen They displayed little regard for for­ more studies are completed, it is their political positions. ■ mer slaves, seeing them as inca­ increasingly obvious that Brazilians pable of an unchained existence. who classify themselves as pardo From the 1890s through the share much in economic terms Andrew J. de Groot Fernandes is a 1920s, certain prominent Brazilian with those who prefer the label Ph.D. candidate in the Flistory intellectuals promoted “whitening” preto. Studies by Brazilian and Department at Tulane University. as the solution to the nation’s per­ foreign researchers, including ceived inferiority. They enthused Nelson do Valle Silva, Carlos that Brazil was becoming steadily Hasenbalg, George Reid Andrews whiter as the black population fell and Peggy Webster, suggest that, if victim to its own social discord, anything, pardos enjoy only mini­

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Dominican Republic

Coloring the Nation by David Howard

he Dominican Dominicans describe race with color-coded Republic holds an important position in terms ranging from coffee, chocolate, cin­ today’s Caribbean. Increasingly linked to namon and wheat to indio, nomenclature the United States via the transna­ Ttional flow of people, capital and which avoids using mulato or negro. culture, Dominican society faces many challenges: adaptation to the changing demands of external cul­ resignified and reinvented to create former colonial power, as la Madre tural, economic and political rela­ a sense of the past appropriate to Patria, and cited Europe as the tions, and recognition of the inter­ the social and political present. source of Dominican culture and nal tensions produced by a conflic- The majority of Dominicans civility. In the twentieth century, tive civil history and contested could be described as mulato, but a this European bias was replaced in social identities. variety of racial identities exist with­ many respects by a dependency on Dominican nationalism has often in this broad category. As S. Torres- the United States. To this day, a been colored by a pervasive racism, Saillant has argued, African light aesthetic remains fundamental centered on a rejection of African Dominicans do not see blackness as to any consideration of contempo­ ancestry and negritud. European central to their racial awareness; rary social relations. and indigenous heritages in the other racial terms are employed Given the ambiguities involved in Dominican Republic have been cel­ instead to describe racial identity. the definition and ascription of ebrated at the expense of an African Indio is by far the most common race, strict racial categories become past. In particular, the notion of and adaptable. Flexible descriptions meaningless, confusing or blatantly dominicanidad has been constructed of color and phenotype allow famil­ inaccurate, depending on the view­ vis-a-vis Haiti, which shares the ial and social variations of race to point of the observer or statistician. island of Hispaniola with its be incorporated in a society where a The 1940 Dominican census Dominican neighbor. A racially light racial aesthetic is paramount. counted mulatos as 77% of the constructed fault-line has arisen Despite the malleable nature of population; negros, 1 2 %; and blan- from this territorial and historical racial definition, however, everyday cos, 11%. In 1960, census takers association. instances of prejudice and discrimi­ were instructed to avoid registering The history and physical location nation are evident and often overt. Dominicans as negro where feasi­ of the Dominican Republic heavily ble. Less than a tenth of the popu­ influence its citizens’ perception of R a c e , R a c i s m a n d I d e n t it y lation was classified as black. race. Three groups formed the The term mulato itself demon­ More recently, researchers have cal­ demographic basis for colonial soci­ strates the subjectivity of race in the culated the Dominican population ety in the Dominican Republic: the Dominican Republic. Whereas as 65% mulato, 15% bianco and indigenous population, Spanish set­ outsiders may view most 15% negro, with the remaining 5 % tlers and African slaves. By the Dominicans as mulato, Dominicans of the population belonging to middle of the sixteenth century themselves seldom use the term, for other ethnic groups, such as only a minute fraction of the it implies the negatively perceived Chinese or Lebanese. indigenous population remained, image of African ancestry. These figures are fairly meaning­ but the notion of lo indio has Historically, Dominican elites less. The continuum of skin color become an integral part of contem­ have emphasized their strong and phenotype does not fall into porary Dominican identity. European heritage and ‘purity of neat categories; what one person History has been renegotiated, blood.’ They celebrated Spain, the considers mulato will be negro to

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Dominican Republic

Acutely aware of his own nonelite ethnic and toward Haitians, and especially their presence in the Dominican social origins, Trujillo chose to deny his Republic, is often bluntly discrimi­ natory. The number of Haitians country’s Haitian and African ancestry, even living in the Dominican Republic is a highly contentious issue. resorting to lightening his own skin with Estimates vary widely; some suggest up to 1.5 million, but there are cosmetic powders. probably around 500,000 Haitians and Dominicans of recent Haitian descent in Dominican territory. another. Racial terms are highly neighbor and African heritage. The size of this population is said specific to person and place. The bias toward lighter skin color to have doubled in the past 10 to Dominicans describe race with in the Dominican Republic is often 15 years. Particularly since the color-coded terms ranging from cof­ expressed in terms of aesthetics. 1920s, Haitians have migrated to fee, chocolate, cinnamon and wheat Racial descriptions frequently focus work in the Dominican sugar to indio, nomenclature which on perceptions of ugliness and industry and have established rural avoids using mulato or negro. beauty. Job advertisements that call communities, often under condi­ Indio is an ambiguous term, not for employees of ‘good appearance,’ tions that have provoked concern least because the entire indigenous for example, may use a coded term among international human rights population of Hispaniola died or for race. Color prejudice is often organizations. Many Haitians now was killed within 50 years of seen in Dominican banks, as well. work in urban areas as retailers and Columbus’s arrival. Historically, Until recently it was rare for the domestic workers or in the con­ the term has been used to describe public spaces of major banks to be struction industry. brown skin color. It was not until staffed by dark-skinned cashiers. Significant numbers of Haitians the dictatorship of Rafael Leonidas The aesthetics of racism were also stay on in the Dominican Republic Trujillo (1930 to 1961) that it was evident in a study of university stu­ after their seasonal contracts expire. popularized as an official descrip­ dents who were asked if they would Their continuing residence in the tion of Dominican ethnicity. The marry a darker-skinned partner. country, the indeterminate nation­ use of indio is another instance of Fifty-five percent replied that they ality of their offspring (who have denial of African ancestry and rejec­ would not, expressing concern for neither Dominican nor Haitian citi­ tion of Haiti. It creates a racial cat­ the ‘corruption’ of physical appear­ zenship) and the scale of undocu­ egory that cannot claim to be ance through ‘race mixing.’ mented Haitian immigration are white, but distances itself from A range of terms used in everyday emotive issues. Despite a history of blackness. speech avoid the implication of annual labor contracts between the Acutely aware of his own nonelite African ancestry. Trigueno, rosadito, two countries, the Dominican mili­ ethnic and social origins, Trujillo destehido, rubio and cenizo respec­ tary regularly deports Haitian work­ chose to deny his country’s Haitian tively refer to skin color as wheat- ers, often without regard for their and African ancestry, even resorting colored, rosy, faded, blond/fair and legal status. Proposed changes to to lightening his own skin with cos­ dark/ashen. These terms are regu­ the current migration law may metic powders. Trujillo’s grandpar­ larly applied to the slightest varia­ remove the longstanding right to ents were dark-skinned, but com­ tion of color and tend to be wholly citizenship for those born in missioned biographies declared his inconsistent and variable in their Dominican territory, further mar­ parentage to be ‘pure’ European and usage. The latter two, rubio and ginalizing the Haitian-Dominican traced his bloodlines to a Spanish cenizo, are located at opposite ends population. Even those who can officer and a French marquis. The of the color spectrum, but differen­ claim Dominican citizenship face massacre of 1937, during which the tiation may be slight according to strict documentation requirements Dominican military murdered over the context of their usage. or the threat of harassment. 12,000 dark-skinned Haitians and Dominicans have traditionally Dominicans, was part of Trujillo’s H a it ia n s a n d D o m in ic a n s scorned work in the cane fields, ‘lightening’ project to distance the In contrast to this great variation which is seen almost exclusively as Dominican nation from its Haitian of color terminology, the attitude Haitian labor. The rural Haitian

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Dominican Republic

population is segregated physically often excuse their anti-Haitian sen­ origin. The perception and aware­ as a racial labor enclave, and socially timent as harmless, or refer to it as ness of race, however, are among by racism and popular opposition ‘common sense’ traditional rivalry. the few aspects yet to be trans­ to assimilation. Dominicans recog­ Yet, although Haitians bear the formed by transnational develop­ nize their need for Haitians as units brunt of Dominican aggression, ments. of labor, but condemn them to con­ dark-skinned Dominicans suffer Dominicans living in the US face ditions of marginalization and infe­ similar racist insults or are treated as different challenges of racial and riority. lower-status citizens, somatically ethnic determination. Those born Is prejudice against Haiti func­ sidelined from authentic domini- outside the island relate less to tional to the Dominican state? canidad. racialized concepts of domini- Haitian migrants provide low-cost, Racist ideology portrays Haitians canidad as they grow up in a society essentially malleable labor. It could and dark-skinned Dominicans as that promotes more abrupt notions be argued that wages are depressed victims of their own racial fate; of black, white or Hispanic. Even and conditions worsened for both are trapped by the color of the well-worn antagonism toward Dominican workers, who then vili­ their skin and their genetic history. Haiti confronts problems of legiti­ fy the darker-skinned Haitian labor­ Sympathy for the victim is muted macy on the streets of upper ers. Even restrictions on immigra­ by the racist argument that Haitians Manhattan. Several writers have tion and residency, imposed by the induce antipathy towards them­ suggested that the discrimination Dominican government, deliberate­ selves via allegedly innate cultural experienced by Dominicans in New ly place Haitian labor in a vulnera­ practices, such as vodoun, which York has the potential to change ble, servile position of illegality in are incompatible with Dominican perceptions of race in the the context of widespread racial society. The concept of la raza Dominican Republic. Yet, the very prejudice. dominicana unites Dominicans success of the Dominican regenera­ Anti-Haitian sentiment extends against Haitians, but when per­ tive experience has to some extent well beyond the workplace to com­ ceived in terms of race, the same reproduced racial norms rather than mon derogatory slurs on the street idea relegates dark-skinned dispelled them. Dominicans born and in presidential campaign rheto­ Dominicans to the margins of an in the United States, although less ric. Dominican electioneering dur­ imaginary racial heartland. La raza attached to the traditional, highly ing the 1990s was a hotbed of racist inclusively combines race and racialized concept of dominicanidad, politics. In the 1994 elections, nation, and the prejudices of overt continue to use terms such as indio, defamatory campaigns against dark- and inferential racism. trigueno or rubio. In the 1990 cen­ skinned presidential candidate Jose sus, only 26% of New York’s Francisco Pena Gomez concentrated M ig r a t in g I d e n t it ie s a n d R a c e Dominicans classified themselves as on his suspected Haitian parentage. The Dominican Republic has black. Most listed themselves as Videos broadcast on Dominican changed dramatically during the white or ‘other.’ US society at large television portrayed the late Pena last four decades, when the end of was not made privy to the ‘other’ Gomez as hot-headed and irra­ the trujillato opened the island to category of indio. tional, shouting and arguing at external cultural and economic Dominicans both in and outside political meetings—connoting neg­ influences. The reality or hope of of the Dominican Republic are hav­ ative stereotypes of Haitians as sav­ international migration has become ing to constantly readdress their age and uncivilized. The media part of many Dominicans’ lives. attitudes toward race. The chal­ linked him closely with vodoun, and The vast reach of international rela­ lenge of this adjustment will take one video showed him attending a tions, through migration, telecom­ time to unfold. Meanwhile, the ceremony with a Brazilian faith munications, travel, business links, impact of migratory experience on healer. Political opponents faxed mass media and the arts, provides la raza dominicana remains uncer­ cartoons depicting the supposed an intense and frequent interchange tain. ■ threat of Pena Gomez’s Haitian of economic and cultural experi­ ancestry to the Dominican people ences. Dominican migrants share to all numbers in Santo Domingo. family, friends and business contacts David Howard is a lecturer in the The potency of racism lies in its between two or more countries, Department o f Geography at the embeddedness as a perceived natu­ while maintaining strong social and University o f Edinburgh. ral phenomenon. Dominicans cultural links with their country of

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Mexico

Ethnicity and Nationhood by Ileana Schmidt-Diaz de Leon

ince the Mexican V' Revolution, the Mexican government has encouraged an educational policy designed to assimilate SIndians into national life. Assimilation has implied the loss of Indian identity as a condition of the process of forging Mexican national identity. For the last 20 years, how­ ever, the Mexican educational sys­ tem has offered specialized teaching materials in Indian languages. These materials include free textbooks cre­ ated especially for Indian children by Indian teachers, emphasizing indige­ nous cultural values. The textbooks are a new tool for Indian teachers to promote ethnic identity within for­ mal institutions, contributing an UA6 added dimension to the struggle of indigenous peoples to defend and redefine their identity within the Mexican national context. They have empowered Indian teachers and promoted the use of Indian lan­ guages, changing the techniques used for Indian education. This study is based on an analyti­ cal description of first- and second- grade textbooks in the Nahuatl lan­ guage, used in the Huasteca region of Mexico (which includes portions of the states of Veracruz, Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosf, Hidalgo and Queretaro) and the northern highlands of Puebla. It analyzes the discourse of texts and images to identify elements that pro­ mote ethnic and national identity among Indian children. As an insti­ Page from the 1549Mendoza Codex showing the different tasks taught to children by tutional program, indigenous free gender. Boys are taught to carry loads, row and fish, while girls cook, weave and textbooks are an element of national sweep. In the upper panels, children are disciplined with such punishments as breath­ educational policy. The participa­ ing the fumes o f burning chiles. The indigenous free textbooks reinforce gender roles tion of indigenous teachers in their along with other traditional values.

Hemisphere Volume 9 Number 3 Features: Mexico

Mexico’s indigenous free textbooks

creation suggests that Indians in Spanish by first making them liter­ I n d ig e n o u s F r e e T e x t b o o k s a n d Mexico are not simply engaged in a ate in their own languages. In 1979, E t h n ic I d e n t it y process of acculturation. Using state the First National Seminar of Mexico’s indigenous free textbooks institutions to redefine ethnic identi­ Bilingual-Bicultural Education in are saturated with cultural values. ty, Indians participate in the mestizo Oaxtepec, Morelos produced the They express the way of life, beliefs world not only to be changed, but idea of providing free textbooks to and customs of Mexico’s indigenous also to continue being themselves. Indian children. The seminar was groups. Many of these values are organized by the Alianza Nacional expressed in the way men, women M e x ic o ’s F r e e T e x t b o o k s de Profesionales Indfgenas Bilingiies and children are depicted conduct­ At the heart of the curriculum in A.C. (ANPIBAC), members of ing their daily life and work. Mexican schools are government- which went on to work at the newly Through these activities, indigenous issued textbooks, the use of which is formed Direccion General de people preserve and redefine their mandatory in all of the country’s Educacion Indfgena (DGEI) at the ethnic identity in terms of their rela­ classrooms. Free textbooks have Ministry of Public Education. The tionships within the community and been an element of state educational DGEI was incorporated as a formal with the national society. Each gen­ policy since a special commission to branch of the ministry, replacing the der and age group is shown per­ organize their production was creat­ former Direccion General de forming specific tasks appropriate to ed in 1959. The books’ content Educacion Extraescolar en el Medio Indian cultural values. reflected a new emphasis on national Indfgena. In contrast to its prede­ In the Indian free textbooks, these unity, in contrast to the revolution’s cessor, the DGEI was not relegated values include family, community, emphasis on class struggle. In the to extracurricular or “special” educa­ collective work, land, corn and context of education, national unity tion; instead, Indian education was knowledge. The extended family is meant cultural homogeneity as the legally recognized as an integral part the preferred kinship structure, and ultimate expression of mexicanidad. of the Mexican educational system. membership in it is emblematic of Mexico could only become a nation Through the DGEI and the belonging to the wider social group. when every Mexican was united by a Ministry of Public Education, the Individual life is subjected to social set of common values and feelings. Indian teachers of ANPIBAC nego­ life and family maintenance; the fail­ The national free textbooks have tiated and defined the goals, means ure of an individual to carry out his been reviewed and changed several and orientation of formal Indian or her responsibilities affects the times. The most recent revision was education. The ministry issued the entire family nucleus. in 1992, when the curriculum was first free textbooks for Indian chil­ In the books, the family and the reformed and special textbooks dren in 1980, and to date it has pro­ home are strongly linked. The man introduced for regional history and duced editions in 56 different is the provider and the woman is the geography. Each state now has its indigenous languages. These text­ housekeeper. Among children, too, own history and geography text­ books are part of a national program many activities are distributed by books in addition to the national and their general content is directed gender, typically according to the surveys of these topics. by a common national objective; physical space in which the children Mexico’s Indian communities have however, they are not mere “transla­ carry them out. Usually, boys per­ always represented a challenge to tions” or “copies” of the national form their tasks outside the home, national educators. Modern educa­ Spanish-language textbooks. In gen­ while girls perform them inside, tional materials for teaching Indian eral, the indigenous free textbooks although the activities may in fact be children to read and write trace back focus on content related to Indian the same. The family’s equilibrium at least to 1936, when cartillas de cultures, whereas the national text­ appears to reside in the relationship alfabetizacion (literacy primers) books focus on mestizo national between it and the home. The indi­ sought to teach Indian children ideals. vidual, the family and the home are

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Mexico

integrated elements of nature, and the community. The two are linked knowledge that is both a product of nature is an integrated element of through specific ways of life, lan­ experience and a legacy passed on life. Each family member has a guage, land and commerce. The from generation to generation. responsibility to fulfill in order to family’s relationship to the commu­ The textbooks present two kinds maintain this equilibrium. nity is like the individual’s relation­ of knowledge: traditional knowledge The Nahuatl textbooks present ship to the family; neither can be and school knowledge. The elders the family as a patriarchal structure conceived of as separate from the are the source of the former and in which the man has clearly defined other. Ethnic identity is transmitted teachers of the latter. Teachers are social functions. Women’s functions to the community through rites, cer­ portrayed as organizers and guides, are sometimes ambiguous; at times emonies and the fulfillment of cul­ with the peculiarity of being able to women are portrayed as advisors to tural values supported by the family. fail at the performance of tradition. their children, but this capacity is Land links families and is an ele­ Older men are presented as sages often obscured by the grandfather’s ment of spatial and cultural belong­ because they have traditional knowl­ role as the main transmitter of cul­ ing. Images in the textbooks of men edge and speak the native language. tural values. He ensures that family sowing the land in the traditional Reading and writing are related only members carry out their responsibil­ manner imply possession of the to school; these are the school­ ities and maintain the people’s cus­ knowledge needed to cultivate and teacher’s tasks and knowledge. toms. The grandfather is responsi­ harvest food, including mastering When the school is involved in ble for transmitting tradition and the agricultural calendar, tools, ritu­ the relation between the individual history, whereas the mother teaches als and the organization of labor. and the community, gender- and children how to behave and perform Corn itself is the staple source of age-based activities are modified by certain tasks. The mother advises nourishment for Indian peoples, and values ascribed only to the school. only her own children, while the is linked to identity through its pro­ This is the only place where women grandfather teaches all children in duction and transformation as food. are shown performing nontradition- the community. In the Nahuatl textbooks, corn pro­ al activities, characterized as being Thus, the grandfather guides the duction is associated with male performed outside the home, that performance of tradition, the moth­ labor, whereas corn transformation is include teaching children to read er runs the household and the father associated with female work. Maize and write. The school is a kind of provides food. Women give life, is presented as the legacy of the neutral ground where boys and girls and men work to maintain and pre­ ancestors and Centeotl, the god of acquire the universal student ethos. serve it in a certain way. These roles corn. It is an element of tradition School plays a dual role in cultural are presented in the context of an and the life cycle, providing suste­ change and continuity. On the one overall image of the Indian as a nance and the reason to work. hand, it gives Indian children oppor­ poor, hard-working peasant, a pro­ Moreover, working the family’s tunities that their parents did not ducer and consumer of maize who milpa, or corn plot, requires the par­ have before. On the other hand, it from childhood on is responsible for ticipation of several people. Corn teaches Indian language, history, cul­ the family’s sustenance. thus brings individuals together in tural values and traditions. School The poor Indian is a constant in the collective responsibility to work also plays a role in adult gender the textbooks, in which the routine for the survival of family and com­ dynamics, representing a space of daily activities is presented as nec­ munity. where men and women can change essary for survival. In this context, Work helps define relationships their relationship with the commu­ any change in women’s roles could among family members and between nity and their social role within it. jeopardize the family and the larger them and the community. Women A woman may make tortillas at community. The main value the relate to the family primarily home, but she can also teach the textbooks teach is that the family is through food processing and prepa­ alphabet at school. the nucleus of community and the ration, while men relate to the com­ central element in defining ethnicity. munity through collective work and T h e I n d ig e n o u s F ree T e x t b o o k Questioning this order implies a rituals. In turn, all community a n d N a t io n a l I d e n t it y threat to the organization of survival members are linked to each other The Mexican free textbook is an and Indian identity itself. through a common history originat­ agent of socialization. Its contents The family may be the center of ing in Aztec times. The textbooks are intended to become part of a survival, but it cannot exist outside express these values as traditional student’s values and beliefs. Topics

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Mexico

included in the textbooks are set by are not necessarily associated with The presence of individuals with a the Ministry of Public Education schools or other state institutions. recognized ethnic identity in nation­ and involve not only educational Schools in the Nahuatl textbooks are al institutions does not necessarily goals, but also the orientation of associated more with the process of mean a loss of identity; rather, it can national educational policy. Because learning to read and write than with be a strategy to achieve protection the main interest of Mexican educa­ a sense of nationhood. Although and benefits from the state. Indians tional policy is the promotion of the official role of the Indian schools in Mexico are struggling within the nationality via the education of all is to promote national identity, in boundaries of the state to influence citizens, learning the values included practice they serve as a formal means political decisions that affect their in the free textbooks is necessary for of ethnic redefinition. The indige­ sense of identity. The indigenous maintaining the national society. nous free textbooks do not deny free textbooks offer a world view in The indigenous free textbooks, national identity; rather, they pro­ which the principal desire is to con­ therefore, are official educational mote respect for law and portray the tinue being Indian. The books tools for promoting both nationality state as an abstract authority from teach children to preserve a way of and Indianness. which Indians receive protection. life without questioning the status The Nahuatl free textbooks pres­ The books give a sense of Indians quo of either Indian or national ent three levels of identity: Indian, attempting not only to be tolerated society; even rural poverty is justified Nahuatl and Mexican. Being Indian by non-Indians, but also to have as a condition for preserving Indian means being poor, rural, a producer their differences recognized and culture. Nevertheless, the books and consumer of corn, technologi­ accepted. themselves have made Indians par­ cally unsophisticated, a hard worker ticipants in the national educational responsible for the family’s survival, B e l o n g in g a n d D iffe r e n c e program. Indian teachers have a preserver of ethnic identity, and a Can Indians be part of the nation defined the content of the textbooks possessor of values that should be while maintaining their unique cul­ based on their own cultural values, preserved. Nahuatl identity is con­ tures and ethnic identities? The making the books a forum for veyed primarily through language, experience of the indigenous free Indians to manifest their inclusion community and regional origin. textbooks suggests that Indians can within the Mexican nation. National identity is represented by work within the state’s institutions The indigenous free textbooks also national symbols and the Mexican to influence indigenista policy-mak­ empower Indians to be literate in Constitution. ing; that is, they can live according their own languages. Indians now One way in which national identi­ to the rules of the mestizo while have not only a written language, ty is related to Nahuatl identity is protecting Indian culture. Indian but also the means to learn it in an through Mexico’s national symbols, teachers have accomplished this institutionalized framework. This many of which originate in the duality by using institutionalized situation benefits Indians as well as Aztec past. The symbols represent educational material that promotes the state: The former gain a politi­ the history of the Nahuatl people Indian identity and culture in cal forum from which they cannot transformed into national mytholo­ Indian languages. be excluded, and the latter is legit­ gy. For example, the Mexican flag, The existence of free textbooks for imized by including Indians in its which shows an eagle standing on a Indian children in their own lan­ development programs. cactus and devouring a serpent, bor­ guages has a special meaning. It Indians want to be recognized and rows an image from Aztec history. implies conscious action by Indian respected for their cultural differ­ Citizenship is therefore not an teachers and communities to direct ences while participating actively in assigned condition, but belongs to the formal education of Indian the modern state. In other words, the Nahuatl people for historic rea­ youth. Indian teachers have gained they seek recognition as members of sons. The sense one gets from the an arena in formal education to pro­ the nation and actors in the national textbooks is that being Mexican does mote their cultural objectives. Their program. After all, Mexico was not mean living according to the role is protected by the acceptance founded on the land of their ances­ values of the national society; rather, of Indian languages as legitimate tors. ■ it is a state acquired naturally by routes of learning. The textbooks virtue of history. are an example of Indian participa­ Ileana Schmidt-Dlaz de Leon is a doc­ From a Nahuatl point of view, tion in institutions that directly toral candidate in the Latin American therefore, Mexican national symbols pressure Indian cultures. Studies program at Tulane University.

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Nunavut

Our Land by Andre Legare

n April 1, 1999, the Canadian govern­ ment officially pro­ claimed the Nunavut Territory and govern­ ment. Nunavut, an Inuktitut word which means “our land,” was carved out of the Northwest Territories to become the most recent member of the Canadian federation. It is also Canadas largest political unit, cover­ ing one-fifth of the country’s land mass (2.1 million square km). This vast geographic area is inhabited by only 25,000 people, more than 80% of whom are Inuit. The Nunavut territorial govern­ ment enjoys the same political pow­ ers as other territorial governments in Canada. These powers and juris­ dictions are similar to those held by Canadian provinces, except that the Canadian federal government owns and manages public crown lands in Nunavut, the Yukon and North­ west Territories. Like the other terri­ tories, Nunavut is a non-ethnic pub­ lic jurisdiction; however, since Inuit comprise the majority population, Nunavut has become a de facto Inuit government. Coat o f arms o f Nunavut. The caribou and narwahl represent the land and sea animals that are part o f Nunavut’s rich natural heritage and provide sustenance B a c k g r o u n d The idea of creating a new politi­ to its people. The motto in Inuktitut reads, Nunavut, our strength. cal jurisdiction in Canada’s north stemmed from a proposal submitted the central and eastern Canadian by Inuit Tapirisat of Canada (a pan- Inuit values and perspectives than Arctic), a final land claims agree­ Canadian Inuit organization) to the was the case in the Northwest ment was approved by the federal federal government in February Territories. 1976. The Nunavut Proposal was After 15 years of arduous negotia­ government in June 1993. This agreement recognized the need to put forth as part of federal policy on tions between the Canadian govern­ establish a new territorial govern­ native comprehensive land claims. ment, the Northwest Territories and ment in the central and eastern The basic idea of the proposal was Tungavik Federation of Nunavut (an Canadian Arctic, a goal realized in to create a territory with a majority umbrella group of organizations rep­ Inuit population to better reflect resenting the interests of the Inuit of 1999.

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Nunavut

The challenges of an Inuit government in Nunavut

For the Canadian government, the Economic reliance on the federal govern­ reasons for establishing the new ter­ ritory were largely political. The ment, low education rates and linguistic measure attracted favorable media coverage and represented an oppor­ assimilation are among the challenges facing tunity to improve Canada’s standing in the international community. It the Nunavut Territory. was also an effective means of rein­ forcing Canadian sovereignty over the waters of the Arctic archipelago, of whom are Inuit, to evolve a posi­ didates, those who are hired will an issue the United States has been tive feeling of identity with Nunavut most likely continue to occupy sub­ reluctant to recognize. political institutions, it would be ordinate positions within Nunavut’s The Nunavut Territory gives the important for Inuit not only to con­ administration. Inuit control over 353,610 square trol the legislative assembly (15 of A second essential challenge facing km, with mineral rights in a 36,257 the 19 members are Inuit), but also the new territory is language policy. square km area. Co-management public sector administration. To Today, about 85% of the Inuit pop­ agencies, equally composed of Inuit reach this crucial goal it is imperative ulation in Nunavut speaks Inuktitut. and federal government representa­ to have a representative proportion However, the risk of linguistic assim­ tives, manage land resources. of Inuit civil servants (i.e., approxi­ ilation in favor of the English lan­ Federal funds in the amount of 1.15 mately 80% of public employees) in guage remains high, particularly billion Canadian dollars will be dis­ the territorial government. among the younger Inuit generation. bursed in Nunavut over a 14-year The Nunavut Implementation Already, close to half of Inuit under period, and the Inuit are entitled to Commission has predicted that the the age of 15 cannot speak Inuktitut. a percentage of royalties from territory’s public sector will employ In its role as protector of Inuit cul­ resource development projects. 1200 people by January 1, 2002. ture and language, the territorial Before Nunavut was established, 550 government must enact a language P o l it ic a l Q u e st io n s civil servants in the Northwest policy aimed at safeguarding and Despite these gains, however, Territories administration lived in promoting the Inuit language in political administration of the the Nunavut region. About half of Nunavut. Nunavut Territory faces important these employees (300) were Inuit. A third concern facing Nunavut’s challenges. Six areas seem likely to They generally filled subordinate political leaders is financial. have an impact on Nunavut’s politi­ positions, and all were transferred to Nunavut’s weak tax base, the fact cal future: (1) Inuit employment the new Nunavut government. that its natural resources are mostly and the Nunavut public sector; (2) With only 300 Inuit currently in the owned by the federal government, language policy; (3) the territory’s Nunavut public sector, is it realistic and the territory’s remoteness from finances; (4) traditional knowledge to believe that the goal of 1000 Inuit southern markets make it almost and Nunavut government policies; civil servants will be met in the next entirely dependent on federal funds. (5 ) coexistence between co-manage- two years? This question is even The annual budget of the Nunavut ment agencies and government insti­ more acute when one considers that government was fixed at 640 million tutions; and (6 ) the inherent Inuit less than 200 Inuit in Nunavut have Canadian dollars, (fiscal year right to self-government. completed a high school education 2 0 0 0 /2 0 0 1 ), of which $580 million Among the most pressing of these and only 10 have a university degree will be provided by Ottawa. This problems is Inuit representation in (one of them is the Premier of economic reliance on the federal public sector employment. For Nunavut, Paul Okalik). In view of government may limit Nunavut’s Nunavut residents, the vast majority the lack of training of Inuit job can­ political autonomy.

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Nunavut

NORTHWEST TERRITORIES YUKON IQALUIT

TERRITOIRES OU NORD-OUEST

BRITISH COLUMBIA NEWFOUNDLAND TERRF-NEUVE ALBERTA COLOMBIE - BRITANNIQUE MANITOBA

ONTARIO

Fourth, Nunavut’s government making process. Among Nunavut’s ment agencies, equally composed of faces the challenge of incorporating 10 government ministries, however, native and non-native representa­ Inuit traditional knowledge into the the Department of Culture, Elders tives, have a mandate to protect the territory’s administration. The Inuit and Youth, which is responsible for environment and manage the devel­ people have roots firmly anchored in the implementation of a traditional opment of natural resources within the Arctic landscape and a world knowledge policy, was allocated the the Nunavut settlement area. These view that encompasses particular lowest annual budget ($4 million). responsibilities overlap with those of relationships with the natural and Under these circumstances, can the Nunavut Department of spirit worlds. Most Inuit, and in Nunavut’s legislators be expected to Sustainable Development. To avoid particular the community’s elders, formulate and enact an Inuit tradi­ potential conflict, it will be impor­ believe that government laws, insti­ tional knowledge policy? tant to implement close cooperation tutions and programs should reflect The implementation of the between the co-management agen­ Inuit traditional knowledge. They Nunavut Land Claims Agreement cies and this government depart­ want to see Nunavut government created five co-management agen­ ment. policies incorporate some Inuit val­ cies, leading to another area of con­ Finally, unresolved issues remain ues and customs into the decision­ flict in Nunavut. The co-manage­ with regard to the Inuit right to self-

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Nunavut

government. For Ottawa, the estab­ today’s Inuit society; at best, the al accord that could affect Inuit har­ lishment of the Nunavut Territory new territorial government will vesting rights in the Arctic without answers the traditional demands of allow Inuit to take into their own prior consultations with the Inuit leaders. The federal govern­ hands their social, economic and Nunavut government. ment argues that the Inuit of political destinies, enabling them to Finally, the regional political Nunavut, through their majority better stand up to tomorrow’s chal­ autonomy enjoyed by the citizens of ratio, enjoy de facto self-govern­ lenges. Nunavut could inspire other Inuit ment. By this logic, there is no The establishment of the Nunavut groups to seek similar political pow­ need for official legislation regarding Territory gives the Inuit of the cen­ ers. Like today’s Greenland, Inuit self-government since, for all tral and eastern Canadian Arctic a Nunavut could come to symbolize a practical purposes, this goal has unique opportunity to create poli­ form of Inuit government arrange­ already been attained. In addition, cies and institutions based on Inuit ment within nation-states that may as we have seen, Ottawa has com­ traditions and customs. The territo­ serve as a political model for other mitted a considerable amount of ry also gives the Inuit a greater voice Inuit groups in Russia and in money to create the new territory within the broader Canadian agen­ Alaska, as well as minority ethnic and contributes largely to its yearly da, especially in cases in which groups in other countries. budget. The federal government is Canada is involved in negotiating not interested in investing additional international conventions that Andre Legare is completing his Ph.D. sums of money to create some sort might affect Inuit interests. For in the Department o f Geography at of as yet undefined Inuit self-gov- example, Canada would be hard Queen’s University in Kingston, ernment in Nunavut. pressed to negotiate any internation­ Ontario. For Inuit leaders, however, the establishment of Nunavut has noth­ ing to do with Inuit self-govern­ THE AMERICAN Published by the Association for Canadian Studies in the ment. Without defining precisely REVIEW OF United States (ACSUS), The American Review o f Canadian what shape Inuit self-government CANADIAN Studies seeks to examine Canada and the Canadian point of would take in the context of STUDIES view from a decidedly American perspective. Its analysis- Nunavut, Inuit are adamant on the both interdisciplinary and disciplinary-strives to define fact that one must distinguish Canada’s arts, culture, economics, politics, history, and soci­ between a non-ethnic public govern­ ety from without, breaking away from the insularity of the ment such as the one presently Canadian academy, recognizing Canada’s objective position administering the territory and a in the world. Recent theme issues have included “The system of Inuit self-government Thomas O. Enders Issue on the State of the Canada-United based on ethnicity, in which only States Relationship,” “Red, White, and Green: Canada-U.S. Inuit could vote and be represented. Environmental Relations,” and “The Present State of THE ASSOCIATION For now, the Inuit feel confident FOR CANADIAN STUDIES Canada-U.S. Agricultural Issues”; as well, there will be gen­ that, because of their demographic IN THE UNITED STATES eral issues featuring essays, review essays, and book reviews. majority, they will control Nunavut’s economic, social and political agen­ DIRECT SUBMISSIONS The R eview is distributed free of charge to all members of da. However, what would happen if AND EDITORIAL ACSUS. Back issues are available, as are back runs for new in the future Inuit were to become a ENQUIRIES TO: institutional members minority within Nunavut? Robert Thacker, Editor For a complete list Base Membership Rates One Year The American Review of income-based Individual $ 60 A M o d e l f o r A u t o n o m y o f Canadian Studies Nunavut’s legislators must come dues categories and Student/retired 30 Canadian Studies Program multi-year options, to terms with these and other issues Institution 110 St. Lawrence University contact: Contributing 125 in the months and years ahead. Canton, NY 13617 Nunavut has marked nearly two (315) 229-5970 The Association for Canadian Studies in the United States years of existence, but the questions Fax: (315) 229-5802 1317 F Street NW, Suite 920, Washington, DC 20004-1105 raised here remain unanswered. Phone: (202) 393-2580 Fax: (202) 393-2582 Nunavut will not be a panacea for E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] Website: http://www.acsus.org the socioeconomic malaise affecting

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Nunavut

Northern Jurisdiction by Ailsa Henderson

he Nunavut Act and Nunavut Land Claims Agreement of 1993 was the largest land claim settlement in Canadian history. Along with the TNunavut Political Accord, it marked the beginning of the development of Canadas third territory, Nunavut, officially established in April 1999. These events are remarkable not only for the quanti­ ties of land they involve and the flexibility they allow within the political organization of the Canadian federation, but also for the lessons they provide for other culturally distinct regions seeking to obtain greater political autonomy. The creation of new institutions allows for attempts to correct the biases and unpopular practices of former structures and rebuild the often negative relationship between citizens and the state. The approach toward political develop­ ment in Nunavut is an example of how one federation has attempted to adapt to the diverse cultural pop­ ulations within its borders. The Nunavut Territory does not offer aboriginal self-government in strict terms, but to many observers, it adds up to de facto self-determi­ nation for the Inuit population. The Land Claim Agreement and the Political Accord, and the institu­ tions established to ensure their implementation, must come to terms with the particular demands of political life in a northern, geo­ graphically extended region. They must also take into account Inuit An inukshuk adorns Nunavut’s landscape. These stone cairns, in the form o f a cultural demands, which may con­ human being, are built by the Inuit as landmarks on a treeless landscape. Photo: flict with the interests of other resi- Andre Legare.

32 Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Nunavut

Government structures in Nunavut

the Nunavut Act, which establishes the structure of government in the new territory. The structure of the Nunavut * government does not differ signifi­ cantly from that of the Yukon and Northwest Territories, and constitu­ tionally the division of power is similar. This resemblance is not surprising, given that the Nunavut Act was modeled on the Northwest Territories Act. Despite the resem­ blance, however, Nunavut, by virtue of its origins as a land claims settle­ ment, occupies a unique place in the Canadian federation. Through the Land Claims Agreement, The flag o f Nunavut feautures the inukshuk and the North Star. Nunavut gained decision-making capacity in areas of jurisdiction nor­ mally reserved for the federal gov­ dents of Nunavut. The resulting proportion of Inuit inhabitants, ernment. tensions will dictate much of the Inuktitut is one of the official lan­ Ottawa began to heed demands future success of the territorial gov­ guages of the new territory, along for self determination and develop ernment and of Nunavut itself. with English and French. strategies for dealing with the vast According to the 1996 Canadian distances within the Northwest A s s ig n in g J urisdiction census, the rate of population Territories in the 1970s. Efforts to Situated in the eastern portion of growth in Nunavut far outstrips address the issues of aboriginal land Canada’s north, Nunavut represents that of the Northwest Territories titles and cultural and linguistic approximately 20% of Canada’s and the rest of Canada. At the protection for the Inuit sparked an land mass and 60% of the former same time, education levels are sig­ interest in resolving the land dis­ Northwest Territories. It contains nificantly lower. Well over half the putes in the area. The Nunavut two-thirds of Canada’s coastline and Nunavut population is under 25 Land Claims Agreement was the four time zones (although only and lacks a high school diploma. product of decades of negotiations. three are used). These vast reaches High levels of unemployment and Among other provisions, it recog­ are home to less than 30,000 inhab­ demand for services for younger nized Inuit title to approximately itants, more than 80% of whom are people were a persistent obstacle to 350,000 square km of land and ear­ Inuit. The territory is defined by development in the Yellowknife- marked close to US$1.5 billion in three regions—Qikiqtaaluk-Baffin centered Northwest Territories. federal money for the area over a (east and north), Kivalliq-Keewatin Such demographic demands, in period of 14 years. It also granted (south and central, near Hudson addition to the geographic expanse the Inuit royalties from oil, gas and Bay) and Kitikmeot (central and of the region and the cultural par­ mineral development on Crown western)—which in turn contain 28 ticularity of the Inuit, dictated land, hunting and fishing rights, communities. The largest of these many of the provisions of the and a role in environmental protec­ is the capital, Iqaluit, with a popula­ Nunavut Land Claim Agreement, tion. The deal acknowledged the tion of 4,500. Due to the large which covers Inuit title to land, and goal of greater participation of Inuit

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Nunavut

islature, the licensing and importing of intoxicants, local and municipal matters, direct taxation, language, hospitals, land, property and agri­ culture, and justice (both civil and criminal), including courts and pris­ ons. The territory is not permitted to restrict the rights of First Nations peoples or Inuit with respect to hunting or trapping. Nothing with­ in the act is to be interpreted as granting the legislature greater pow­ ers than those provided in the Canadian Constitution. By virtue of its role as a territory and former shared jurisdiction with the Northwest Territories, Nunavut displays a considerable overlap of institutions. Some bodies, such as the Water Management Board, con­ tain members from both territories. In other cases, membership is Nunavut parliament building, Iqaluit. Photo: Andre Legare. shared among three different territo­ ries. For example, members of the Supreme Court of the Yukon and firms in the Nunavut economy and eled Nunavut Tunngavik Northwest Territories are automati­ the need for training and education Incorporated (NTI). Granted the cally members of the Nunavut of Inuit peoples, as well as hiring power to make by-laws and tem­ Supreme Court. There is also a practices that would reflect the porarily in charge of the Nunavut degree of overlap with the Canadian majority Inuit proportion of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, the government. The Auditor General population. In exchange, the Inuit NIC eased the transition phase of Canada, for example, is also the signed away future claims to rights between the political agreement and Auditor General of Nunavut. But it and title on the land. the first elected government. The is the way in which the areas of The Land Claims Agreement, NTI has a slightly different mission; jurisdiction and limitations have which contains limited provisions a private corporation designed to been interpreted in Nunavut that for the future political development ensure that the land claims agree­ stands as a testament to the NIC’s of the territory, was created in con­ ment is carried out in a manner that efforts to respond to the cultural junction with the Nunavut Act, a best represents the interests of the and geographic demands of the ter­ political accord which governs all Inuit, it attempts to protect com­ ritory. A new, “single-level trial individuals within the boundaries of munity principles of self-reliance court system” will affect the admin­ Nunavut, not just the Inuit. In and cultural and social well-being. istration and dispensing of justice in addition to the goal of proportional The distinction between the NIC the territory. The government also representation within the civil serv­ and NTI is between a public body boasts streamlined structures that ice, the Nunavut Act included rep­ and an ethnic one, mirroring the eliminate the regional councils of resentation for the Inuit, territorial distinction between the political education and Board of Health. and federal governments in institu­ accord and the land claims agree­ These structural influences co­ tions dealing with federal jurisdic­ ment. exist within the broader political tion in the territories. culture of the north. The current The legislation further provided P o l it ic a l P r o v is io n s Nunavut legislature, and its previ­ for the creation of two bodies, the Under the Nunavut Act, the terri­ ous incarnation as the Northwest Nunavut Implementation tory maintains control over matters Territories legislature, are the only Commission (NIC) and a remod­ that relate to the working of the leg­ assemblies without political parties.

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Features: Nunavut

Candidates run as independents, a diverse territory, departments and Among the major areas of con­ fact with significant ramifications agencies of the government will be cern, and one highlighted consis­ not only for cost and ease of cam­ established throughout Nunavut in tently by the NTI, is protection of paigning, but also for the degree of addition to occupying offices in the cornerstones of Inuit identity: consensus exercised in the daily Iqaluit. In accordance with the culture and language. Recent data working culture of the assembly. principles of the Nunavut Land from Statistics Canada show that During the campaign, one of the Claims Agreement, NTI, Arctic almost half of the population has candidates for premier, Goo College, the Department of Indian engaged in what are broadly defined Arlooktoo, complained that the lack Affairs and the government of the as traditional activities, but that of political parties made it difficult Northwest Territories have all been most of this involvement is limited to distinguish political preferences involved in training personnel for to hunting. Twenty-three percent among candidates. According to the demands of government and report some participation in tradi­ the Northwest Territories govern­ business in the new territory. tional crafts, and only 7 .6 % in trap­ ment, the consensus form of gov­ ping. In addition, one-quarter of ernment is closer to traditional abo­ C h a l l e n g e s A h e a d Nunavut’s population speaks riginal ways of arriving at decisions. In its first report, entitled English at home. In an effort to It was in this institutional and cul­ Footprints in New Snow, the NIC strengthen the indigenous lan­ tural context that Nunavut voters highlighted some of the issues fac­ guage’s place in society, the legisla­ elected their new government. ing the people of Nunavut. While tive assembly voted to conduct Residents of Nunavut have been reiterating the goals that the new much of the government’s work in to the polls frequently in the last 10 government and its civil service be Inuktitut. years. Voting has decided three representative and cost efficient Self-determination and political plebiscites on the Land Claims while maintaining the territory’s autonomy are powerful goals and Agreement, the offer of twinned cultural distinctiveness, the report popular phrases. Asymmetrical fed­ constituencies to ensure gender par­ noted that popular expectations— erations such as Spain and recent ity, and the location of the territo­ whether unrealistically high or constitutional developments in ry’s capital. Elections in February low—could damage the ability of Great Britain highlight the efforts 1999 selected the 19 members of the new legislature to perform effec­ being made in many parts of the the Nunavut Legislative Assembly. tively. world to ensure that political insti­ Voter turnout was 8 8 %, and the Many key issues involve the geo­ tutions are responsive to the popu­ choice was between 71 candidates, graphic and cultural particularity of lations closest to them. These 11 of whom were women. The the new territory. Voters and candi­ examples not only suggest that the redrawing of electoral boundaries in dates in the 1999 elections identi­ goal of political renewal is a popular the neighboring Northwest fied the high unemployment rate, one, but that culturally or ethnically Territories, a formal apology for economic regeneration and oppor­ distinct populations are able to gain past injustices from the Royal tunities for youth as particular areas greater control over their political Canadian Mounted Police, and of concern. Poor housing and serv­ destinies than regions lacking mark­ plans to ensure a continued market ice infrastructure, a cost of living ers of distinction. By attempting to for the seal hunt were among the one and a half times higher than in create political institutions more political issues raised during the Canada’s southern provinces, and responsive to the needs of its Inuit campaign. Following the election, high levels of suicide and substance residents, the government of the members of the legislative abuse are also worthy of special Nunavut must balance the cultural assembly (18 men and one woman) attention. At the local level, com­ needs of the majority while meeting elected Paul Okalik as premier. plaints about poor sidewalks and lit­ the political needs of all residents. The new government has 10 ter in Iqaluit co-exist with concern The ability to navigate this dual departments that address issues over the centralization of power in mandate will determine much of ranging from sustainable develop­ Rankin Inlet and the capital. Other the future success of Nunavut. ■ ment to culture, language, elders issues presented themselves after the and youth. Seven men, including election. New commissioner Helen Ailsa Henderson is a lecturer in the the premier, share the burden of Maksagak, for example, pledged in Department o f Politics and Centre o f these portfolios. In an effort to her throne speech to make Nunavut Canadian Studies at the University o f adapt to the needs of a vast and a single time zone. Edinburgh.

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 P H O T O Image and Vision by Sarah Corona Berkin

an Miguel Huaixtita is a After one week, the film was devel­ and shrewd; they see everything in mountain village in the oped and returned to the students. panorama.” Sierra Madre Occidental, Some participated in one-on-one Unlike Western amateur photog­ in the northern part of the interviews in which they were raphers, the Huichol photogra­ Mexican state of Jalisco. asked to classify and comment on a phers do not generally use people It has a population of approximate­ selection of photographs. Their or objects as their central vantage S points. Instead, the camera is ly 710 Huichol Indians. The vil­ responses, along with observations lage has no electricity, advertising, made during the author’s extended adjusted so that people or animals billboards, newspapers or even full- stay in the community, yield some are integrated into the landscape. length mirrors. Inside and out, the clues about how the Huichol of They may appear to the left or to walls of the houses are usually left San Miguel Huaixtita view each the right of the center so as not to blank; ordinary decorations, such other and the world. obscure a house, mountain or as calendars and photographs, are As a form of communication, stone that forms part of the back­ rare. The same is true of the vil­ images reflect trends in contempo­ drop. Just as in oral communica­ lage’s schools and kaliguey, or holy rary society. We live in the era of tion, signs are not separated from places, which are unadorned by the close-up, a point of view that their origins. Whereas written and images. The only Western images privileges the human face. In electronic forms of communication San Miguel Huaixtita’s residents see Western culture, the face has send us spinning across space and are the illustrations in children’s become the locus of all drama. time, the Huichol photographs school books, photographs brought This emphasis has produced a cer­ represent an instance in which the by the occasional visitor, or the tain stereotyping of emotional body and the voice—or in this labels on the few packaged goods expression, a sentimentalism and case, the body and the eye—come for sale in the village store. an aesthetic in which images together to produce a harmonious What happens to the act of see­ manipulate our moods. In con­ whole. ing in a community where there trast, the Huichol photographs are The discovery of a symbolic rela­ are no images? Do people look at rarely close-ups. They contain a tionship between indigenous peo­ each other differently? What is the wealth of minute and varied detail. ples and the land should come as relationship between the a-iconic Their austere poses and panoramic no surprise. For centuries, land glance and the universe that sur­ views allow us to see complete and the question of its ownership rounds the Huichol? worlds instead of being made to have been the most important fac­ These were some of the ques­ feel subjective impressions. tors in the survival of indigenous tions I hoped to answer in San Another way in which the communities. Conflicts over land Miguel Huaixtita. The following Huichol photographs differ from have produced violent clashes photos are the product of a Western images is in the use they between Indians, Europeans and research project undertaken at the make of the horizon. Western cul­ mestizos. The disputes have their Tatusi Maxakwaxi (Our ture has compressed its line of root in differing concepts of the Grandfather Deer Tail) secondary vision, influenced largely by the relationship between nature and school. The school’s 100 students optical illusions and images broad­ culture. For Westerners, nature were each given a disposable cam­ cast on television. Does this new and culture are separate and exist era with enough film to take 27 perspective—up close, without a in opposition to each other; for the pictures. They were briefly horizon or depth of field—imply Huichol, the two depend on one instructed in the use of the camera, an impoverishment of our vision? another. including such tips as the impor­ Feliciano, a Huichol teacher, The Western world’s image-based tance of keeping the lens clean and offered this opinion: “The Huichol culture has produced a pathology not pointing directly at the sun. have eagle eyes__Eagles are clever of perception. In the words of

36 Hemisphere Volume 9y Number 3 ESSAY The act of seeing in a Huichol community

Paul Virilio, “sight is no longer the possibility of seeing, but the impossibility of not seeing.” Among the Huichol, this syndrome is known as nierikarriya, a state in which a person loses the ability to see and believes in a false image of him- or herself. Comparing the worlds of image and vision allows us to glimpse the intersection of different cultural constructs. To do so, we must adopt a critical theory of vision that stands apart from the trend toward globalization and cul­ tural homogenization, emphasizing instead the diversity of visual sub­ jectivities and the points at which glances converge and diverge. ■

Sarah Corona Berkin is a professor in the Department o f Communica­ tion Studies at the University o f Guadalajara, Mexico.

Among Mexican indigenous peoples, the Huichol have one o f the lowest rates o f Spanish-language proficiency. Twenty-five percent o f Huichol speak their own language exclusively. Most also practice other religions besides Christianity. Only 48% o f Huichol claim to be Christians, compared to 91 % o f other Mexican indigenous groups. The community o f San M iguel Huaixtita is organized around traditional authorities and religious rituals.

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 37 Photo Essay: Image and Vision

The photographs in the sample reveal a special handling o f the concept o f space and the human form within the pictures’ boundaries. Most o f the photos are taken straight on, with almost no close-ups (two out o f 2700). The photos make a special effort to show context; in both poses and action shots, the subjects are shown in the midst o f their surround­ ings. The focus shifts to the left or to the right as needed to accommodate a complete image.

When posing subjects in front o f their homes, the photographers take care to include the building in its entirety and afford a view o f the background scenery. The camera may be pointed upwards to capture mountains in the distance, or subjects are posed at the intersection o f walls or fences to take in both sides o f the landscape.

When the photographers are inside a dwelling, they open a window to get a view o f the outside. I f they are out­ side, they open doors to get a glimpse inside the house.

38 Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Photo Essay: Image and Vision

The posed photographs depict the sub­ ject straight on, with the arms at the sides and a serious expression or slight smile. The formal pose is far from the wide grins characteristic o f Western media and advertisements.

Most subjects are posed standing or seated on stones or the bare earth. It is no coincidence that this image— with its far more relaxed pose—is o f the only mestizo child in the commu­ nity. The boy’s father, who works as a bricklayer in coastal Nayarit, sent his son to live with relatives in San M iguel Huaixtita.

The subject almost always gazes directly into the camera. The larger sample o f photos reveals some exceptions: Men wearing mestizo clothing often place their hands in their pockets.

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Photo Essay: Image and Vision

Most shots are posed outdoors. The Huichol attach great importance to context and surroundings, which usu­ ally take precedence over the action in the foreground.

The human form is always presented as a whole, never fragmented or shot in close-up. “I don’t like bits o f skirt and pieces o f feet, ” commented one young man. Huichol textiles and handcrafts follow the same conven­ tion, except for those that depict the faces o f the gods. “This is the way you see the deer, with peyote, only its face, ” said local resident Daniel Castro, describing a wool panel he designed. The implication is that only the gods appear without form; human beings must always inhabit a body.

The geographical context, forms o f economic activity and oral methods o f communication all play a part in the messages conveyed by the photographs. This shot shows the setting fo r San M iguel Huaixtita, 2200 meters above sea level in the Sierra Madre Occidental.

40 Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Photo Essay: Image and Vision

The camera is adjusted to integrate people and animals into their surroundings. The resulting image has more weight than the subject itself, who may be posed to the left or right so as not to obscure the landscape.

For the Huichol, nature and culture are a continuum; what affects one affects the other. The community’s ancestors are the gods o f the earth. Natural phenomena depend on humans and their relationship with these gods. This may explain the care with which the Huichol photogra­ phers frame subjects in their sur­ roundings.

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 41 I T E R A T U Memory and Identity by Marian Goslinga

t a conference last year at Florida International University, noted Chilean author and human rights activist AMarjorie Agosfn discussed the con­ cept of memory in the works of Latin American women writers. Agosfn pointed out that in the fic­ tion of many of the region’s female authors, the ability to remember the past creates a sense of engagement and continuity. Their works are characterized by a sense that past experience—no matter how traumat­ ic—should be preserved with the same veneration awarded the present. As examples of this contemporary trend, she cited Claribel Alegrfa (El Salvador) and Elena Poniatowska (Mexico). In the case of Caribbean women writers, the concept of “memory” is invigorated, to a certain extent, by the issue of race. In all four major language areas of the region— English, Spanish, French and Dutch—women use memory, whether collective or individual, to trace and return to the past in search of their true identity. They go back to the era of slavery, the legacy of an African homeland, and the invisible scars of displacement, captivity and exile to tell their story. Race is a powerful ingredient that is frequently reflected in the use of Creole as the language of choice. Indeed, race and language have become close allies in the quest for cultural identity in the Caribbean.

T h e S e a r c h f o r R o o t s In the first half of the twentieth century, a group of African and

42 Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 E REV I EW The works ofMaryse Conde

Within the context of the complex and trau­ works of Maryse Conde, an author from Guadeloupe who is one of the matic West Indian heritage of slavery, colo­ Caribbean’s most prolific and com­ plex writers. As a black Caribbean nization and assimilation, Conde’s fictional woman novelist, Conde not only highlights the tensions in characters search for an identity which Caribbean culture between tradi­ tional and modern values, but also reflects that of a larger community. those existing among ethnic groups and between the sexes. She com­ bines a representative view of a Caribbean students in Paris devel­ concept of Antillanite instead. This Caribbean writer’s specific concerns oped the theory of Negritude. At theory offered another interpreta­ with a postmodern view of litera­ the core of this theory was the exal­ tion of cultural identity, one more ture as multicultural, polymor­ tation of an African cultural identi­ attuned to geographical reality and phous intersection. For Conde, the ty long repressed and despised in historical truth. Viewing the recov­ concept of memory—an integral the West Indies, where the assump­ ery of African identity as a practical part of Antillanite—is of the tion of white superiority over black impossibility due to the interven­ utmost importance as she carefully was a basic tenet of the institution ing, alienating centuries of slavery, weaves together personal experi­ of slavery. A key proponent of Glissant preferred to focus his ences and meticulous historical Negritude was Aime Cesaire, a attention not on a distant, imag­ documentation to develop plot and French Caribbean author from ined continent but on the real style in her fiction. Within the Martinique. His seminal 1939 country of his birth, Martinique. context of the complex and trau­ text, Cahier d ’un retour au pays Instead of an emotional affiliation matic West Indian heritage of slav­ natal (Return to My Native Land), with Africa, Antillanite sought to ery, colonization and assimilation, gave poetic form to the yearning incorporate the history of the her fictional characters search for for reconciliation with ancestral despised institution of slavery and an identity which reflects that of a Africa. This searing text became all its accompanying evils. larger community. From the per­ the cornerstone of modern Antillanite did not repudiate spective of a black woman in a geo­ Francophone West Indian litera­ Negritude; instead, it adapted and graphically, culturally and political­ ture, and Cesaire’s theme of black adjusted it to conform to ly marginal world, Conde selfcon­ cultural exile was embraced by writ­ Caribbean reality. For Glissant, the sciously attempts to represent the ers from all parts of the Caribbean. real issue became one of authentica­ interrelated issues of race, gender Within just a few decades, how­ tion rather than denial. In found­ and class. ever, critics challenged the privi­ ing the journal Acoma in the early Conde’s works may be divided leged position which Cesaire 1970s, he initiated a forum for live­ into three distinct stages that accorded to Africa in his works—a ly psychological and socioeconomic chronicle her trajectory from step intended as a corrective to debate about the new doctrine and Negritude to Antillanite. In the Europe’s dismissal of African civi­ its implications for the French first stage of her writing, the influ­ lization—on the grounds that it Caribbean. ence of the former clearly domi­ encouraged West Indians to bypass nates. References to Africa are their own countries in their quest C a r ib b e a n C omplexities everywhere, and the return to the for spiritual roots. In 1958, anoth­ The cultural transition from past is the main source of inspira­ er French Caribbean academic, Negritude to Antillanite can per­ tion. In Heremakhonon (which Edouard Glissant, proposed the haps be traced most clearly in the ironically means “welcome home”

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 Literature Review

in Malinke), and Une saison a and returns to Guadeloupe where, of colonialism, the concept of Rihata (A Season in Rihata), as she has stated in interviews, she alienation—and other aspects that Veronica and Marie-Helene, the comes to terms with her quest and keep the Caribbean locked in a dis­ female protagonists (both from finds peace with herself. In this crete space. In a review of the Guadeloupe), search for their stage of her development, she novel by Bettina Anna African roots. Veronica seeks in becomes convinced that being Soestwohner, Conde is quoted as Africa an elusive sense of belong­ black is no longer a historical saying that her definition of cre­ ing, but finds instead a continent appendage but an ideological con­ ativity is to wander—both in terms torn by violence, ambition, oppor­ struct. In a critique of Negritude, of geography and the exploration tunism and lost hope. Marie- she writes, “The black man does of cultural and historical heritage. Helene, married to Zek and living not exist. A Europe anxious to in the sleepy African town of legitimize its exploitation created P e r ip h e r a l V o ic e s Rihata with their six daughters, him.” La vie scelerate, based on the Marjorie Agosfn has argued that becomes involved in a variety of “memories” of Conde’s own family, women writers are often on the intrigues, corruption and power is a multicultural narrative which front line of efforts to better struggles. Mirroring the antino­ explores the historical and cultural women’s lives in Latin America. mies of their colonial backgrounds, significance of race, gender and Perhaps nowhere is this more true neither is able to define a role for class relationships in different parts than in the French Caribbean, herself on African soil or break free of the Americas—Panama, the where the island of Guadeloupe from a Western frame of reference. United States, Jamaica, Haiti—and alone has produced such authors as The quest for the African past is France. Using “memory” against Maryse Conde and Simone also the main focus of Segou the backdrop of the slave-like con­ Schwarz-Bart. Given their unique (Segu), the two-volume saga of the ditions of the building of the perspectives on questions of race, mythical eighteenth-century Panama canal, Conde raises unre­ class, gender and geography, Bambara empire. In this award- lenting questions of exile, estrange­ Caribbean women authors can pro­ winning bestseller, Conde recreates ment from the motherland, rela­ vide invaluable insights into the a high civilization in a precolonial tions to “others” in the diaspora evolution of a sense of separate Africa that practiced slavery well and to whites, and a return to identity in a historically peripheral before the Europeans and had roots. region. The documentation of a extensive contacts with the In what is perhaps her most cele­ controversial and illusionary multi­ Christian and Islamic worlds. brated novel, Traversee de la man­ disciplinary concept such as “iden­ After Segou, Conde entered the grove (Crossing the Mangrove), tity” is rife with contradictions and second stage of her writing by res­ Conde presents the reader with has not, as yet, been successfully olutely turning to the Americas another vision of her native completed for the Caribbean. and the African diaspora. Moi, Guadeloupe, marking the third Resources are especially scarce Tituba, sorciere noire de Salem (I, stage of her quest for a separate when it comes to the Caribbean Tituba, Black Witch of Salem), is identity and the culmination of her and women—both subjects tradi­ the first in a series of fictional affiliation with Antillanite. Set at a tionally neglected in US academic works set in the New World. The wake, the novel explores the diverse circles. ■ action takes place in the seven­ voices of the community and sug­ teenth century, in the puritanical gests the impossibility of retrieving society of colonial America and the a collective “memory.” The myste­ Marian Goslinga is the Latin sugarcane plantations of Barbados. rious figure of the dead man and American and Caribbean bibliogra­ The novel’s female protagonist, the solemn backdrop of the wake pher at Florida International Tituba, tells the story of her escape provide Conde with the crucial University. This article was first pre­ from colonial and patriarchal tools to formalize the quest for sented at the 1999 Seminar on the forces. Conde uses this first-person identity within a typical Caribbean Acquisition o f Latin American narrative to rewrite the history of framework. Materials (SALAM) in Nashville, the Caribbean from a woman-cen- In La colonie du nouveau monde, Tennessee. tered point of view. published in 1993, Conde returns In La vie scelerate (The Tree of to the same themes—African her­ Life), Conde goes a step further itage, the destructive consequences

Hemisphere Volume 9, Number 3 International Trade Negotiation Skills Course

JANUARY 29-FEBRUARY 9, 2001

SUMMIT OF THE AMERICAS CENTER Latin American and Caribbean Center

in association with Centro de Estudios de Integracion Economica y Comercio Internacional

The International Trade Negotiation Skills Course, organized by the Summit of the Americas Center at Florida International University and the Centro de Estudios de Integracion Economica y Comercio Internacional of Buenos Aires, Argentina, will take place from January 29-February 9, 2001 in Miami, Florida.

The two-phase practical program is taught in Spanish over an intense two-week period. The first week will be an ori­ entation to the theoretical and practical themes involved in multilateral negotiations, with special emphasis on the current Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) hemispheric trade negotiation process. During the second week, course attendees will participate in practical role-playing negotiation exercises based on a real multilateral trade case from the hemisphere.

This course was created in response to the need for greater understanding and better management of the process of hemispheric economic integration. It is designed for official government negotiators from the region, for business and private sector individuals who will be affected by this process, and for academics and other professionals interested in regional integration and international negotiations.

The course instructors are trade specialists from several countries in Latin America as well as the U.S., with extensive and direct experience in hemispheric integration, international trade negotiations and academia. This initial 2001 course will be taught in Spanish; however, given the high level of interest expressed, in the future we expect to pres­ ent the course in English, as well.

For more information please contact:

Summit of the Americas Center Centro de Estudios de Integracion Florida International University Economica y Comercio Internacional University Park, DM 353 Callao 1975 - 10° “A” Miami, Florida, 33199, USA C1024AAF Buenos Aires, Argentina Tel: 305 348 2894/Fax: 305 348 3593 Tel/Fax: 54 11 4816 6525 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.americasnet.net Web: www. f- i n tegral. co m the m o st fr eq u en tly spo t t e d BIRD THROUGHOUT LATIN AMERICA. No other airline in the world offers more travel options to Latin America than we do. Now with over 100 flights every business day to 33 cities in 18 countries throughout Mexico, Central and South America. From six major U.S. cities. ^4s always, ^Advantage® travel awards program members can earn mileage credit every time they fly. So whether you’re flying to Latin America for business or pleasure, fly the airline that's leading the way. For details, call your Travel Agent or American at 1-800-433-7300 or visit us on the web at www.aa.com Consulte a su agente de viajes ^ ^ o llame gratis a American Airlines al 1-800-633-3711 en espanol. Something special to Latin America’

ARGENTINA . BELIZE • BOLIVIA . BRAZIL • CHILE • COLOMBIA • COSTA RICA . ECUADOR • EL SALVADOR GUATEMALA • HONDURAS • MEXICO • NICARAGUA • PANAMA • PARAGUAY • PERU • URUGUAY • VENEZUELA

American Airlines and AAdvantage are registered trademarks of American Airlines, Inc. American Airlines reserves the right to change AAdvantage program rules, regulations, travel awards and special offers at any time without notice, and to end the AAdvantage program with six months notice. AAdvantage travel awards, mileage accrual and special offers are subject to government regulations. American Airlines is not responsible for products or services offered by other participating companies. Schedules subject to change without notice.