MEMORIES IN DISPUTE: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES CONFRONTING DEVELOPMENTALISM FROM MEXICO CITY AND OTHER URBAN SPACES
SINCE THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE LIBERAL MODEL OF THE NATIONAL STATE AND OF URBAN SPACE AS A SOCIAL MODEL OF WELFARE, INDIGENOUS PEOPLES HAVE UNDERGONE HISTORICAL PROCESSES OF CULTURAL RECONFIGURATION, ENTAILING THE LOSS, ACQUISITION, AND NEGOTIATION OF VARIOUS ASPECTS THAT REFLECT BOTH CULTURAL CHANGES AND CONTINUITIES. ETHNOGRAPHIC RESEARCH CARRIED OUT ON THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF MEXICO CITY OVER THE PAST LITTLE MORE THAN 25 YEARS INDICATES THAT ONE OF THE AXES OF CONTINUITY IS COMMUNITY IDENTITY, WHICH ENTAILS CULTURAL SYSTEMS OF MESOAMERICAN TRADITION IN THE CASE OF THE MEXICAN CAPITAL. FROM THIS ANGLE, WE HAVE ANALYZED A SERIES OF ASPECTS AND PROBLEMS ARISING FROM THE LACK OF RECOGNITION OF THE PRESENCE OF THESE COMMUNITIES OF MESOAMERICAN TRADITION AND THEIR SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS IN THE LARGE MEXICAN METROPOLIS, AS WELL AS REGARDING THE RECOGNITION OF THEIR POLITICAL AND TERRITORIAL RIGHTS, WHICH ARE IN CONSTANT CONTRADICTION WITH OFFICIAL POLICIES OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. WE ARE INTERESTED IN BRINGING TOGETHER PRESENTATIONS THAT ADDRESS THE DIVERSITY OF CURRENT SOCIAL PRACTICES THAT HAVE A HISTORICAL-CULTURAL BACKGROUND ROOTED IN INDIGENOUS PEOPLES. WE PROPOSE TO SHARE REFLECTION ON THE INDIGENOUS CULTURES PRESENT IN TODAY’S SOCIETIES AS BEARERS OF HISTORICAL LEGACIES THAT REMAIN LIVING IN THEIR MEANINGS AND FEELINGS REGARDING SOCIAL RELATIONS AND THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SOCIETY AND THE ENVIRONMENT.
