Between Class and Ethnicity
Encounters of Ecuador's Indigenous People with the Political Left
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2177920 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Tanya Korovkin (corresponding author) |
| Year | 2010 |
| Volume | 5 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 331-334 |
| Publication date | 2010-11-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Latin American and Caribbean Ethnic Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1744-2222 • E-ISSN: 1744-2230 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/17442222.2010.513831 |
| OpenAlex | W2056712873 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 5 |
The origin of Latin America’s indigenous movements is a highly contested issue. They are often seen as the new social movements, developing around cultural identity claims as opposed to socioeconomic, or class, demands. A major catalyst, in this view, was the process of democratization that made long-suppressed voices heard. The rise of transnational civic activism focused on ethnic, environmental, and gender rights is also attributed an important role (Brysk, 2000; Van Cott, 2005; Yashar, 2005). Marc Becker adopts a different perspective. His analysis draws our attention to the pervasiveness of the class agenda behind the indigenous mobilization. The book examines the history of Ecuador’s indigenous struggles, paying special attention to political activism among the bonded hacienda peasantry (huasipungueros). Most of the book deals with the period between the 1920s and the 1970s; the geographic focus is on the Andean provinces, and especially the Cayambe Province located in the vicinity of the national capital and characterized by high levels of land concentration. Building on the earlier studies of indigenous political activism (including the work by Albo, 1991; Schryer, 1990; Ibarra, 1999; Postero & Zamosc, 2004), Becker argues that ethnicity and class often appear as two aspects of the same identity. He also suggests that ethnic and class identities can be intertwined with the gender ones. One section of his book deals with the gendered nature of Ecuador’s indigenous mobilization. In Becker’s view, indigenous women were often better able to preserve their ethnic identity and the spirit of rebellion than the menfolk coopted by the hacienda system. Indeed, one of the founders of Ecuador’s indigenous movement was a Kichwa woman, Dolores Cacuango, well-known for her political radicalism. The book’s most significant contribution is its analysis of interactions between indigenous peasants and urban leftists. The main organizational venue for these interactions was the Ecuadorian Federation of Indians (FEI), created in 1944 by
Class (philosophy · Ethnic group · Ethnology · Geography · Indigenous · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Agriculture, Land Use, Rural Development · Anthropology · Demography · Gender Studies · Political and Social Dynamics in Chile and Latin America · Politics and Society in Latin America
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2025 - 2025 (1) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |