history and culture

My favorite aspect of this week's reading is that it starts off by telling the reader not to think of Mayans solely as "relics of the past" or "inert victims" of exploitation. The sentence put me on my guard and sort of changed the way that I read the rest of the book. Even with the best intentions, I think it is just easier sometimes to see a certain group of individuals simply as 'victims.' Lovell shows that there is a much more complicated history and culture involved.

Like all people, the Mayas have the ability to make certain decisions for themselves. Even during colonialism and horrible oppression, the Mayas could have assimilated themselves into the growing ladino culture. They could have gone into the towns, converted to Catholicism, and given up their culture. However, some of the Mayans chose to live outside of European influence for as long as possible, even though this decision often led to a decrease in their living conditions. (Obviously most people would argue that they never should have had to make this decision in the first place.) The point is, that they make decisions based on what is important to them.

This concept also made me think of Professor Fischer's book, Broccoli and Desire, which I read part of for my Ethics discussion group last year. A very broad comment about the book's subject is: today many Mayans have stopped growing corn and traditional crops that are culturally important in order to grow and sell broccoli. This is a risky decision, and the Mayan's incomes are based on consumption patterns in the United States, where nobody really cares about how their decisions impact the impoverished farmers. The Mayans could continue with more traditional and 'safe' work. However, many choose to farm broccoli in order to have the chance of making a greater profit and having more freedom. A very simple view of the situation is: that the Mayans who farm broccoli are victims of a rough economic system, but at the same time they have the ability to choose another option and don't.

In this way, using the word 'victim' as a blanket term to describe their situation is not very accurate. Lovell makes this point as well, and it is important to view a specific group's situation through their choices and decisions, and not just by what they are denied.