ACTIVISM OR EXTRACTIVISM: INDIGENOUS LAND STRUGGLES IN EASTERN BOLIVIA by EVAN SHENKIN A DISSERTATION Presented to the Department of Sociology and the Graduate School of the University of Oregon in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy June 2018 DISSERTATION APPROVAL PAGE Student: Evan Shenkin Title: Activism or Extractivism: Indigenous Land Struggles in Eastern Bolivia This dissertation has been accepted and approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in the Department of Sociology by: Professor Richard York Chairperson & Advisor Professor Matthew Norton Core Member Senior Instructor Galen Martin Core Member Professor Derrick Hindery Institutional Representative and Sara D. Hodges Interim Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School Original approval signatures are on file with the University of Oregon Graduate School. Degree awarded June 2018 ii © 2018 Evan Shenkin This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs (United States) License. iii DISSERTATION ABSTRACT Evan Shenkin Doctor of Philosophy Department of Sociology June 2018 Title: Activism or Extractivism: Indigenous Land Struggles in Eastern Bolivia This dissertation is a study of the tensions between the Movement Toward Socialism (MAS) political party, nongovernmental organizations (NGO), and indigenous social movement struggles for territorial autonomy. This study takes a multiscale approach by examining (1) the emergence of competing indigenous leadership organizations, (2) state repression of civil society groups, and (3) strategic indigenous-NGO alliances to preserve Native Community Lands (Tierra Comunitaria de Orígen, TCOs). At the community level, the study examines new organizations of state-aligned indigenous groups that represent extractive interests and threaten social movement cohesion. At the national level, this paper analyzes the controversial road project in the Isiboro- Sécure Indigenous Territory and National Park (TIPNIS) and similar state efforts to erode legal protections for native lands in the interests of extractivism. Analyzing the academic and public debates over indigenous politics in the Amazon, this study explores the struggle between the state and lowland indigenous groups over popular hegemony and the ability to shape international perception over indigeneity, socialism, and resource exploitation. The findings support lowland indigenous social movement claims of state repression but iv situate this criticism within a path dependent world system dominated by global capital. v CURRICULUM VITAE NAME OF AUTHOR: Evan Shenkin GRADUATE AND UNDERGRADUATE SCHOOLS ATTENDED: University of Oregon, Eugene Lane Community College, Eugene, Oregon DEGREES AWARDED: Doctor of Philosophy, Sociology, 2018, University of Oregon Master of Arts, Sociology, 2013, University of Oregon Master of Arts, 2009, International Studies, University of Oregon Bachelor of Arts, 2007, Anthropology, University of Oregon AREAS OF SPECIAL INTEREST: Latin American Studies Political Economy Social Movements Qualitative methods PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: Graduate Teaching Fellow, University of Oregon, 2010 - 2018 GRANTS, AWARDS, AND HONORS: Tinker Field Grant, Center for Latino/a & Latin American Studies Travel Awards and Grants, University of Oregon Sociology Department Thomas Thurber Awards vi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I wish to express my sincere gratitude and appreciation to the many faculty members who supported me in this project and throughout my studies at the University of Oregon. Derrick Hindery has remained a mentor from the very beginning of my graduate studies and was my traveling companion on both trips to Bolivia – opening many doors along the way. Without his guidance and encouragement, I would likely not be writing these words. Matthew Norton provided key insights into situating on-the-ground research to sociological theory. He continues to inspire academic rigor and integrity through his sincerity, patience, and humility. Richard York’s continued gentle support, guidance and trust in my abilities provided me with the encouragement to sustain the long-term vision for this project. Galen Martin has been a mentor from the early years and inspires through his diverse and rich knowledge, skills, and compassion for the conditions of others – a true renaissance man. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page I. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................... 1 II. ACTIVISM OR EXTRACTIVISM: INDIGENOUS LAND STRUGGLES IN EASTERN BOLIVIA ................ 15 1. Coalitions and the Crisis of Indigenous Territorial Autonomy ............................. 19 1.1 Theoretical Foundations .................................................................................. 23 1.2 TCO Guarayo Case Study ................................................................................ 28 1.3 Impacts of Divided Indigenous Leadership ...................................................... 34 1.4 Indigenous Responses to Territorial Threats .................................................... 37 1.5 State Repression of Lowland Indigenous-NGO Alliances ................................ 40 1.6 Concluding Remarks ....................................................................................... 52 III. INDIGENOUS SOVEREIGNTY & ANDEAN-AMAZONIAN CAPITALISM ............................................................................................ 57 2. Historical Background ......................................................................................... 59 2.1 The Great Tin Crash ........................................................................................ 62 2.2 Literature Review ............................................................................................ 68 2.3 Building Cultural Hegemony ........................................................................... 72 2.4 Gramsci and the People Without History ......................................................... 78 2.5 Contradictions ................................................................................................. 82 2.6 Civil Society Responses to State Hegemony .................................................... 87 2.7 Conclusion ...................................................................................................... 96 IV. PURITY OR PRAGMATISM? THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF BOLIVIA IN THE WORLD SYSTEM .. 99 3. Literature Review ................................................................................................ 100 3.1 Post-Shock Bolivian Reconstruction ................................................................ 102 3.2 For the MAS or the Masses? ............................................................................ 104 3.3 Sincere Political Economic Approaches ........................................................... 106 3.4 Cynical Analysis ............................................................................................. 111 3.5 Indigenous-NGO Alliances .............................................................................. 113 3.6 Conclusion ...................................................................................................... 115 REFERENCES CITED ........................................................................................... 121 viii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION After decades of struggle, indigenous peoples of the Bolivian lowlands began to receive official communal land titles to their ancestral territories. Based on earlier radical social movement organizing, these land reforms began to be officially recognized in the 1980s and 1990s under neoliberal regimes, purported to advance both conservation and social justice goals, and were expanded under Evo Morales’s Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) government (Postero 2007). The success of these Native Community Lands (Tierra Comunitaria de Orígen, TCOs) in addressing social and environmental needs has been mixed, with state and extractivist interests threatening the viability of these protected territories - most notably in the TIPNIS conflict (Webber 2012; McNeish 2013). This paper takes a case study approach to understanding the tensions between local autonomy and resource pressures. Interview data with indigenous leaders, NGO directors, and related stakeholders help to triangulated archival and peer reviewed literature to better understand the regional and international complexities of these political-economic land and resource struggles. I situate my analysis in lowland indigenous community responses to territorial threats in the Department of Santa Cruz, a frontier region of eastern Bolivia experiencing rapid deforestation and natural resource extraction (NASA 2016). By documenting the conditions within rural indigenous territories (TCOs) I provide greater understanding of the dynamic conditions emerging in these communities related to the dialectical relationships between competing 1 community visions, resource extraction, and political economic pressures within the world system. My analysis documents and explains internal political cleavages in lowland indigenous communities – conditions indicative of larger trends that threaten indigenous-left coalitions across Bolivia that struggled for generations for territory and dignity. This research highlights the complex tensions between indigenous lands vis-à-vis state and non-state actors and connects long-term human rights efforts to secure communally