A Brief Introduction

The indigenous Mayan Indians of Central America are settled in locations such as Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and Belize – extending all the way into Mexico and the Yucatan peninsula. While most of the Maya’s records have been destroyed by their Spanish colonizers, the remaining artifacts indicate that the Mayan people were not only highly advanced for their time period, but also made great leaps in many fields such as astronomy, business, and language. The Mayas were innovative in their trade systems – which mainly consisted of bartering crops, preservatives, or rocks - such as salt, cacao, and mineral obsidian. These indigenous people even developed a formal government hierarchy, allowing them the ability to invade and overthrow surrounding villages. Their hieroglyphics show us their development of linguistics, making them one of the first early people to have recorded both their speech patterns and its evolution. The Mayan people also knew how to hunt, fish, and build. The ruins found in all the aforementioned regions are testaments to a once great civilization. The mystery of the Mayas disappearance in 900-1000 A.D is something that baffles many researchers today. Our blog’s purpose is to share with the public some of the interesting facts about the lifestyles and traditions of the indigenous Mayan Indians.

Reference:

2010 Maya Civilization, Ruins and Culture In Central America. Electronic document,
http://www.globalsherpa.org/mayan-civilization-ruins-sites-culture-calendar-2012

Friday, July 12, 2013

The Modern Maya Face Discrimination


The indigenous Mayans of Central America have a rich culture and proud people. However, it is an unfortunate reality that the Mayan descendants in this region currently suffer from discrimination, and as a result are victims of poverty and health concerns. The Mayan people have a tragic history. With the Spanish colonization stripping them of their land, the Mayans were either enslaved or left with very little in their possession. Today, the new generations of these indigenous people are also facing expulsion from their land – this time, to make way for hydro-electric, mining or farming projects. In Honduras, the Mayans also have land disputes concerning the retrieval of African palm oil – a key ingredient in cosmetics and processed foods. In the country of Guatemala, ethnic Mayans experience much discrimination, and are often regarded as the outsiders in society. Because of their status in their communities, they have limited access to education, health care, and other basic services. The reason for much of the prejudice against the Mayan descendants is their inability to fully recover from past exploitation. "The indigenous population was always seen as cheap labor and this persists to this day," said Guatemalan anthropologist Alvaro Pop, a member of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. Statistics prove the poverty rates of the Maya in Central America to be unbelievably high. In Guatemala, the Maya population encompasses approximately 42 percent of the country’s 14.3 million total. Within the indigenous community, poverty rates are recorded as 80 percent. Lack of adequate health care is also a pressing issue, as six in every ten children are chronically malnourished. Perhaps most shocking, the infant mortality rate has hit an alarming rate of 40 per 1,000 live births, according to the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). The Mayans are evidently still recovering from the collapse of their once great civilization, the forced servitude of their people, and their place in modern society.

Reference:

Morales, Henry
     2012     Maya Descendants Face Discrimination And Poverty. Electronic document,
          http://www.businessinsider.com/maya-descendants-face-discrimination-2012-12
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1 comment:

  1. AnonymousJuly 22, 2013 at 5:20 PM

    After reading this article I noted that the indigenous Mayans have been regarded throughout history as rather oppressed people. Losing their land to Spanish colonizers was the beginning of the end for them, and ever since they have been struggling to find a niche in society that they belong to and can identify with. To be rejected from their homes and forced into other geographical locations is truly heartbreaking in my opinion. Not only were they stripped of their home in a physical sense, they were left with nothing but their sense of community – which disintegrated quickly as they relocated. Their limited access to education and medical attention because of this is an unfortunate occurrence. The article enlightened me to the plight of the Modern Maya, and made me more aware of the difficulties adjusting to life as a result of their past mistreatment. However, their continued practices of their customs and traditions gave me another perspective. It showed me their resilience as a culture and their determination to keep their values and practices prominent in their beliefs. We talked about ethnocentrism in the classroom, and it proves to be relevant in their discrimination as this was the primary motive of the Spanish - who invaded the Mayan’s land - and is also a factor in the social stigmas given to the indigenous Mayan people since. Despite this, I admire their strong sense of culture and their desire to impart this on their younger generations.

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