UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Santa Barbara The Pachamama Worldview in the Ecuadorian Urban Ayllu Network: Mashi Identity and Resistance in Early 21st-century Quito A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology by Cosme Francisco Caal Committee in charge: Professor John Foran, Co-Chair Professor Kum-Kum Bhavnani, Co-Chair Professor Ines Talamantez September 2014 The dissertation of Cosme Francisco Caal is approved __________________________________________________ Ines Talamantez ___________________________________________________ Kum-Kum Bhavnani, Committee Co-Chair __________________________________________________ John Foran, Committee Co-Chair June 2014 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Thank you Kenia Mendez for all of your love and support all these years. I would also like to thank the professors in my committee for their time and support, especially John Foran who oversaw my progress of this manuscript, professor Bhavnani for her insight, and professor Talamantez for her spiritual support and guidance. Thank you Dr. Noa Logan Klein for helping me get started on the manuscript. I also would like to thank Samuel Morgan, Reginald Van Apelen, Ana Rodriguez, and the rest of my LA family. iii VITA OF COSME F. CAAL June 2014 EDUCATION Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, University of California, Irvine, 2002 (cum laude) Master of Arts in Sociology, University of California, Santa Barbara, 2008 Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology, University of California, Santa Barbara, June 2012 (expected) PROFESSIONAL EMPLOYMENT 2005-12: Teaching Assistant, Sociology Department, University of California, Santa Barbara 2009: Councilmember public relations consultant, Quito, Ecuador. 2013: Council seat campaign consultant, District 13, City of Los Angeles AWARDS Rotary Ambassadorial Fellowship to Quito, Ecuador 2009 FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: indigenous political mobilization, spirituality and identity Studies in globalization and Latin America with professor William I. Robinson Comparative-historical analysis and research methods with professor John Foran Development and ethnographic studies with Professor Kum-Kum Bhavnani iv ABSTRACT The Pachamama Worldview in the Ecuadorian Urban Ayllu Network: Mashi identity and resistance in early 21st century Quito By Cosme F. Caal Political mobilization by Ecuadorian mashikuna or indigenous pueblos and nations culminated nationwide in the 1990 uprising, which overthrew the Ecuadorian president. This political maneuver was orchestrated by coalitions of different sectors of Ecuadorian society. Mashikuna national networks mobilized effectively to block transportation and commerce, backed by mestizo elite and working sectors, and military leadership, with the help of rank and file soldiers. Rising national discontent with neoliberal policy implementation in the late 1980’s fueled alliances against corrupted political leadership. Shifts in national political and cultural identity fueled popular projects of interculturalism whereby linguistic, ethnic, and ideological differences were encouraged and openly observed. As of 2007, the Ecuadorian constitution officially acknowledges the concept of mother earth (Pachamama) as a living being. It also recognizes Pachamama worldview concepts such as sumak kawsay, or well-being, as underpinnings of a sustaining and sustainable way of life. Better chances at self-determination and communal development for mashikuna became available during these social shifts in Ecuador. As their migration to v Quito and other large cities continued in this century, ayllu networks grew dramatically in predominantly mashi districts like San Roque, just south of Old Town Quito. San Roque ayllu networks have enabled mashikuna autonomous political, economic, and spiritual development. Findings in this thesis demonstrate the ability of mashikuna to achieve a high degree of sumak kawsay or well-being through communal banking, political solidarity, and spiritual development beyond the Catholic Churh. San Roque mashikuna have shown a high level of creativity to overcome a long history of prejudice and exclusion, continuing millennial practices of solidarity like Sawary Raimy whereby ayllu networks coalesce and expand. In the 21st century ayllu the practices of sumak kawsay, mashi identity, and resistance against inequality takes place within an empowered position unparalleled in recent history. Findings also show that despite migration to urban centers, outside cultural and technological influence, religious shifts, and continuing racism, Quito mashikuna live in solidarity with one another, according to the Pachamama worldview. The San Roque network in Quito is an example of how Ecuadorian urban ayllu networks acculturate while maintaining a core identity that entails complex political, economic, and spiritual ties. The complexity of sawary raimy and political mobilization is explored and analized in this thesis. Finally, findings show that to understand the practice of sumak kawsay it is essential to understand Ecuadorian indigenous identity and political mobilization in the 21st century. Sumak kawsay provides political, spiritual and economic support for ayllus that otherwise have little or no government support. The importance of sumak kawsay in the life of mashikuna explains and enables their unwavering resistance against neoliberal projects of individualism and the destruction of the environment for profit. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Mashikuna Political Mobilization in Ecuador…………………………………………..1 Mashikuna identity and mobilization at the local level………………………… Mashikuna migration and identity in the 21st century………………………….. Andean mobilization in the global context……………………………………… Towards a theoretical framework of mashikuna identity……………………….. Mashikuna identity as daily practice of Pachamama worldview……………….. Conclusion ……………………………………………………………………... Pachamama Worldview and Sumak Kawsay in the Long Andean Historical Context…. Pachamama in the long Andean history…………………………………………. Pachamama worldview during Inca expansion and rule………………………… Pachamama and sumak kawsay under Spanish domination……………………. Indios without civilization, uprooted runakuna without self-determination……... Pachamama worldview in the colonial Andean region………………………… The Pachamama worldview in the Ecuadorian nation state……………………… The Pachamama worldview in the 20th century………………………………….. Migration and the expansion of sumak kawsay in ayllukuna networks…………... Conclusion………………………………………………………………………… Andean Worldview, Mashikuna Concepts of Identity and Resistance……………………. Language, inequality and double consciousness………………………………….. Fundamentals of Pachamama……………………………………………………… Mashi/mashikuna…………………………………………………………………. Ayllu/ayllukuna…………………………………………………………………… vii Sumak kawsay…………………………………………………………………. The minga…………………………………………………………………….. Pachamama in the political realm…………………………………………….. Conclusion……………………………………………………………………. The Political and Economic Role of Sawary Raimy in the Spirituality of the Communal Individual and the Ayllukuna Network………………………………………………. The Pachamama worldview praxis in the urban context……………………… Sawary raimy and ayllu network expansion………………………………….. Wholeness and well-being through communal unity and strength…………… Sawary raimy as a minga and ayllu communal solidarity…………………….. Spiritual wellbeing in political solidarity and economic reciprocity………….. The minga necessary for material and spiritual well-being…………………… Sawary raymi as resistance in Quito………………………………………….. Creativity and resistance as part of mashikuna identity………………………. Beyond the Ayllu in the Urban Context: Mashikuna Creative Resistance in Segregated Quito in the 21st Century……………………………………………………………………… Towards a cartography of inequality in Quito………………………………….. Criminalization of the non-mestizo: a context for resistance in Quito…………. Venturing beyond San Roque to make a living………………………………… Creativity of Action: Making use of stereotypes……………………………….. Creative Resistance: Socioeconomic Success Under Disguise of Poverty……... Life in Quito influences economic success and loyalty to sumak kawsay……… Banking to the network top……………………………………………………… viii Beyond the San Roque network: perils of independence from the ayllu………… Conclusion……………………………………………………………………….. Resistance against Gender Inequality in the Runa Wasi Ayllu in the Urban Quito Context.. Progressive Mestizo Quito context……………………………………………….. Mestiza/o intellectual networks in Quito…………………………………………. Western influences on gender inequality in the Americas……………………….. Gender inequality as challenge in Runa Wasi……………………………………. In search of mashi gender equality………………………………………………... Warmi independence within the ayllukuna network……………………………… Sumak kawsay as a powerful gender bridge……………………………………… Economic equality with political and spiritual subjugation………………………. Beyond Catholicism to find mashi gender equality……………………………..... Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………… References………………………………………………………………………………… ix Chapter 1: Mashikuna Political Mobilization in Ecuador Introduction The political turmoil that enveloped the Andean region as the 20th century came to an end provoked an immense intellectual and political interest by academics, resulting in a growing literature on the subject (Becker 2008; Clark & Becker 2007; O’Neill 2005; Postero & Leon 2004; Van Cott 2000; Van Cott, 2003; Van Cott 2008; Zamosc 2003). The successful political mobilization by Ecuadorean indigenous pueblos and nations (who call themselves mashikuna), a sector