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41
RECENT HISTORY OF
THE MAPUCHE MOVEMENT
culturalreproductionmeantthatsupportingwomen's trainingandparticipa-
tion was particularlyimportantto the defense of the Mapuche.And, when
asked how Mapuche women's gender discourse differed from that of non-
Mapuche women, Elisa Avendaio answered:"The principaldifference is
thatwe women struggleas a People, we have a vision de pueblo. We women
assertas a People thatwe have to be recognized,we want autonomy,and we
arenot going to achieve autonomyas women, we aregoing to achieve it as a
People"(quotedin Calfio, 1997). Understandingthis visionde pueblo, which
incorporateselements of "non-fairness"and "non-sameness,"is essential to
understandingMapuche women activists, their goals, and their frustration
with SERNAM's ethnocentricportrayalof genderinterests.
I view this perspectiveas an importanttheoreticalcontribution,in some
ways similar to "multiracialfeminism"in the United States, on the partof
Mapuchewomen. One importantdifference,however,is thatmost Mapuche
women leadersdo not identify themselves as feminists. Anotheris thatZinn
and Dill privilege race while for Mapuchewomen the privilegedconcept is
clearly indigenous identity.
The social divisions, hierarchies,and differentialaccess to power that
exist on the basis of race also exist among indigenous and nonindigenous
women. Indeed, "being indigenous" involves elements of race: many
Mapuche women are distinct in skin color and body shape from Chilean
women with more "European"characteristicsand sufferdiscriminationas a
result.In addition,though,place is essentialto an understandingof vision de
pueblo. Wade(1997) contendsthatin LatinAmerica,indigenouspeople are
ideologically located outside of dominantsociety. They are constructedas
separatefrom "modern"society (and thus, when they leave theircommuni-
ties and migrateto the city, are often constructedas no longer indigenous).
Indigenouspeople may also constructthemselvesas outside dominantsoci-
ety, as in historicallybased claims for autonomousterritory.
Place is essentialto understandingthe vision de pueblo becauseMapuche
demandsarerootedin a worldviewthatcentralizesit. Indeed,"Mapuche"is
often translatedas "peopleof the land."The ChileanhistorianJose Bengoa
(1992: 135) points out, however,thatthe meaningof mapugoes beyond that
of "land.""Mapuis the territoryin which the men who formthe people, who
form the lineage, or group of lineages relatedby marriage,live. Mapuche
wouldbe the peoplewho live, hunt,wandertheseterritories,andas such,have
been born, and are from there."And ultimately,of course, most Mapuche
demandsarerelatedto the invasionandappropriationof Mapucheterritory.
By addingthe element of place to the tenets of multiracialfeminism, we
can begin to understandthe vision de pueblo upon which Mapuchewomen
base their activism. This explanationgoes beyond arguing that Mapuche
involve suggesting that their access (along with that of other vulnerable
groups) to particularresources and programsneeds to be improved.While
this is true,it is a completely additiveapproachto incorporatingdifference.
By not moving the experiencesof indigenouswomen fromthe marginto the
center,Plan 2 perpetuatesSERNAM'sexclusionarygenderdiscourse.
While Plan 2 tacks on ethnicityat key points, it fails to incorporateit as a
"basicsocial division and structureof power"thatresultsin inequalitiesand
differencesamong women (Zinn and Dill, 2000 [1997]). Genderequalityis
presentedas fundamentalto a moredemocraticsociety,butthe ways in which
nonindigenousChileanwomen are complicit in the oppressionof Mapuche
women are not consideredone of the inequalitiesthat should be addressed.
Nor does the planacknowledgethatMapuchewomendo not wish to be equal
in the sense of being the same as nonindigenousChileanwomen. Nowherein
the plan does SERNAMassume the responsibilityof ensuringthatthe poli-
cies it advocatesarefree of ethnicbias or, for thatmatter,thatall otherminis-
tries consider the impact of their policies not just on women but on indige-
nous women in particular.Inclusion in SERNAM's writtendiscourse gives
Mapuchewomen more of a base from which to make claims on the service,
but since no specific initiatives are outlined, their chances of having their
interestsrepresentedwill be at least partiallya functionof the goodwill of the
individualstate functionariesinvolved. Unless ethnic differenceis seen as a
principalvector by which power is distributedin society (includingamong
women) rather than as an additional barrier faced by some women,
SERNAM'sapproachwill continueto marginalizeMapuchewomen.
The Chilean state has a historicaldebt with our people for having takenfrom
us, by force of deathandarms,ourterritoryandindependence.It's obviousthat
all the publicpolicies the stategeneratesfor the Mapuchepopulationaregoing
to act vis-a-vis the "effects"of a colonialist state:poverty,illiteracy,lack of
economic, educational,etc., opportunities,but always thinkingof us as a vul-
nerableandpoor sector.... In the currentsituationof oppressionandcolonial-
ism fromthe statetowardourMapuchepeople, the pathof publicpolicies, like
the laws, has serveduntilnow to seek "integrationism" or dependency.Now, in
termsof theissueof publicpoliciesandMapuchewomen,asa doublyortriply
discriminatedsector of society, what role is there for the state?
CITIZENSHIP, DIFFERENCE,
AND MAPUCHE WOMEN'S ACTIVISM
Wearegoingto gettogetherbeforemeetingswiththestateandafterthemeet-
ourselvesasleaders-notlower-
ings... becausetheideais tokeepimproving
ing our profile, not saying, "Yes,yes, yes" to everythingthe state is saying or
offering. Because, definitely, there are always going to be crumbs.... You
know,40 million [pesos] in the areaof interculturalhealthis, to me, a laugh.Or
bilingualeducation,is also,forme,a laugh.It'sa
15millionforintercultural,
amount,andthat'swhatwehaveto tellthestate:Thereis a historical
miserable
debt here.
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