Promises of Peace and Development: Mining and Violence in Guatemala

Citation:

Caxaj, C. Susana, Helene Berman, Jean-Paul Restoule, Colleen Varcoe, and Susan L. Ray. 2013. "Promises of Peace and Development: Mining and Violence in Guatemala." Advances in Nursing Science 36 (3): 213-28.

Authors: C. Susana Caxaj, Helene Berman, Jean-Paul Restoule, Colleen Varcoe, Susan L. Ray

Abstract:

For Indigenous peoples of Guatemala, mining is experienced within a lingering legacy of colonialism and genocide. Here, we discuss macro-level findings of a larger study, examining the lived context of a mining-affected community in Guatemala and barriers that this poses to peace. Using an anticolonial narrative methodology, guided by participatory action research principles, we interviewed 54 participants. Their accounts pointed to intersecting and ongoing forces of poverty, dispossession, gendered oppression, genocide, and global inequity were exacerbated and triggered by local mining operations. This context posed profound threats to community well-being and signals a call to action for nurses and other global actors.
 
 

Keywords: colonialism, conflict, dispossession, indigenous health, mining, peace, poverty

Topics: Coloniality/Post-Coloniality, Poverty, Extractive Industries, Gender, Genocide, Health, Indigenous, Rights, Indigenous Rights, Land Rights, Women's Rights, Violence Regions: Americas, Central America Countries: Guatemala

Year: 2013

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