Bolivian and Mexico’s Imperialism: Indigenous Peoples Under Attack from Multiple Directions

American Indian Airwaves

Part 1: Guests: Kathryn Ledebur, Executive Director of the Andean Information Network, joins us for this segment of today’s program to discuss the Jeanine Áñez, Bolivian de facto – coup president’s policies attacking Indigenous peoples, attempts to preempt, democratic elections, and systemic attacks against Indigenous peoples regarding COVID-19, plus more. Part 2: On August 22nd, 2020, Mexico’s military attacked Indigenous peoples from Chiapas in response to their opposition of the 948-Mayan Train, which will run through their traditional territories. In early June 2020, Mexico’s President López Obrador officially inaugurated the construction of the $8-billion, 948-mile Mayan Train high-speed railroad, an infrastructure project that will begin in Palenque in Chiapas, travel northeast towards to Cancun in Quintana Roo with two routes encircling the entire Yucatan Peninsula link cities, including Mexico City, and towns in five southeastern states or the entire Yucatan Peninsula for tourism, transportation, and economic purposes. The Mayan Train project commences in the heart of the traditional territories of the Mayan people in Chiapas and the “Project” is opposed by Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN). Guests: Richard Stahler-Sholk, Professor of Political Science at Eastern Michigan University, joins us for this segment of the program to provide listeners with update on Mexico’s military attacks against the Indigenous people of Chiapas and discusses how Mayan Indigenous peoples have mobilized, resisted, and responded to the proposed construction of the Mayan Train, the political and environmental devastation the “Project” will cause, the rise of the ECO-Tourism industry perpetuating greater and more romanticizing stereotypes about the Mayan peoples and Chiapas, and the political consequences and successes from resisting construction of the Mayan Train project, plus more.