Change in Guatemala

The nation of Guatemala has undergone drastic change since the times of its civil war. Democracy has a tighter grip on government and the violence has decreased dramatically. But we still see a number of issues withing the third-world country that need to change. The income distribution is unbalanced, the infrastructure in rural Guatemala is poor, and the racial segregation is quite apparent.

The aboriginal Mayan population primarily lives in poverty, while the Ladinos live comfortably above the poverty line on average. To think that the Mayans are professionally and intellectually inferior is ignorant. These are a historically traditional people that have not had access to modern resources that we have. As a culture, they have fallen behind the times that we live in. It does not mean that they do not have the capacity to become integrated into modern society, but more so that something needs to change. The aboriginal population of Guatemala needs to be given the opportunities, such as training and education, so that they may earn a better living like their Ladino counterparts.

When talking about the infrastructure of rural Guatemala, we deal with dirt roads and poor transportation. While urban areas will always receive more attention and funding, the abysmal infrastructure in rural Guatemala has racial implications. Outside of the highly populated areas is predominantly where the aboriginal Guatemalans reside. Their location in the country is largely based off their financial situation, but it is no reason for the infrastructure being the way that it is. The Mayan population typically has insufficient electricity, water, and transportation which means they cannot do the same things that the majority in Guatemala can. They cannot live in the comforts of a modern infrastructure and instead having to do many things that we take for granted, by hand.

Tying in the two previous topics is the racial segregation in Guatemala, which is the underlying reason for their disparities. Obviously there is a divide between the two populations, one which has put the Mayans into a inferior position. They are essentially treated as second-class citizens who do not need the same treatment because they are not of Spanish decent. As the two populations have a permanent existence in Guatemala, its seems necessary for them to live together and not segregated.

In the U.S. we have seen the effects racism in our history and even recent instances such as hurricane Katrina. However we have not experienced a first hand account of distinctly superior citizen in comparison to an inferior one. While it is difficult to change peoples' ideals, perceptions, and beliefs, people can bring awareness to unequal racial circumstances in hopes to slowly bring change for the better.


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Resource Guide: Guatemala's Civil War

Here is a list of web resources that I found to be most relevant to my blog on Guatemala and its civil war.

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/guatemala.htm

1. A thorough overview of the events that led up to and turned into the civil war in Guatemala. The page comes from globalsecurity.org, which is a site that emphasizes issues and events of national and international security.

http://www.onwar.com/aced/chrono/c1900s/yr60/fguatemala1961.htm

2. A brief synopsis of the civil war, giving the reader the basic details of the war. It comes from onwar.com and I felt that the site's focus on armed conflict made it a good choice.

http://latin-american-war-revolution.suite101.com/article.cfm/history_of_the_guatemalan_war

3. A summary of the significant moments of the civil war. I felt this was a solid resource because of the site revolved around Latin American history and wars.

http://www.squidoo.com/guatwar

4. An excellent site that has a number of articles on different events in the war. It includes relevant photos and video footage.

http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1129.html

5.A country specific description from the U.S. Department of State. Lists citizenship details, criminal law, health information, etc. I find it to be a good resource to understand Guatemala's conditions and demographics.

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gt.html

6. The CIA's World Factbook site on Guatemala. I find it quite useful because it gives details of the nation's economy, government, military, and transnational issues.

http://www.holbrooktravel.com/pages/naturetours/country_info/guatemala.aspx

7.Travel site that focuses on travel in Central America. I liked this resource because it gives the reader a look into Guatemala from a traveler's perspective. Specifically it discusses various cultural details of Guatemalans.

http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Americas/Guatemala-POLITICS-GOVERNMENT-AND-TAXATION.html

8. The Encyclopedia of Nations web site features information on Guatemala's government, politics, and taxation. I believed this was a good reference because it helps to explain Guatemala's financial situation through its political decisions.

http://www.everyculture.com/Ge-It/Guatemala.html

9. A web site centered around global culture. I liked this site as a reference because it focuses on Guatemalan identity and and ethnic relations within the country.

http://gomexico.about.com/od/historyculture/p/maya.htm

10. A Mayan cultural website that summarizes Mayan history as well as Aborigine Guatemalans today. I choose this source because it gave a good summary of the Mayan culture of Guatemala.

http://lanic.utexas.edu/project/etext/llilas/portal/portal089/guatemala.pdf

11. A web article focusing on the Ladino side of the conflict in Guatemala. I liked it because it gives the reader the majority perspective and another viewpoint on the conflict in Guatemala.

http://www.un.int/guatemala/english/english.html

12. United Nations website involving Guatemala's affiliation. I felt this was a superior resource because it discusses the nation's involvement in the United Nations and its peace effort.

http://www.vanderbilt.edu/AnS/Anthro/fischer/globalistbroccoli.htmlhttp://www.un.org/depts/dpa/french/prev_dip/americas_europe/guatemala/reports/informe_indigena.pdf

13. An online report from the United Nations on the discrimination of the indigenous people of Guatemala. I choose this resource because it presents detailed accounts of discrimination as seen by U.N. investigators.

http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Americas/Guatemala-ECONOMY.html

14. Article from the Encylopedia of Nations of Guatemala's economy. I liked this reference because it explains the connection between the history of the civil war in relation to the countries current and former economic status.

http://www.vanderbilt.edu/AnS/Anthro/fischer/globalistbroccoli.html

15. Article on the global market's effect on Mayan farmers from the Vanderbilt college of Anthropology. I picked this source because it shows the indigenous minority in a global context and how they relate to the rest of the world.


I hope these multiple resources give you a good start on where to find information on the core issues in Guatemalan and the aftermath of it's civil war. While we can do massive amounts of research, we can't truly feel the pain of strict discrimination and a country that has had a government in chaos for over a thirty year period.



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The Aborigine and Ladino conflict

When we think of a Latin American nation such as Guatemala, we rarely think of the indigenous people before the settlement of the Spanish conquistadors. Recently I read an article in BBC News that highlighted the discrimination of the indigenous Mayan aborigines by the Ladinos of European descent. Here's the link:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4810566.stm

I previously knew that there was a cultural divide between the aboriginal Mayans and Ladinos. However, I did not know that there was serious racial discrimination. The United Nations development program has put pressure on the country to overcome "historically racist attitudes." The discrimination can be seen in that 50% of the population is Mayan, in which nearly all live in poverty. In fact the Ladino population makes more than twice that of the Mayans.

The discrimination can also be witnessed at the governmental level. The report from the United Nations mentioned the poor transportation infrastructure to parts of the country mostly populated by the indigenous Mayans. Also, five Guatemalan politicians were found guilty of racial discrimination against indigenous activist, Rigoberta Menchu.

It is unfortunate to see such blatant discrimination in a country. But for many second and third world countries, there is harsh racism between the majority and minority. It takes time, patience, and tolerance for people to advance their views of racial equality. While there may not be an overnight change in Guatemala, organizations like the U.N. are pushing humanitarian efforts to make life better for minorities in countries across the world.