Introduction
Scholars have suggested that indigenous social mobilization in Latin America has
largely been a reaction to shifting citizenship regimes, from corporatist to neo-liberal, in
which a lack of state capacity has resulted in a loss of indigenous peoples’ rights to social
Variation in levels of indigenous mobilization among countries has then been
attributed to a country’s unique historical factors such as a lack of resources, a country’s
or an absence of political entrepreneurship to make an ethnic
identity politically salient.
Yet, the contemporary context matters. This paper argues
that the changing international context, and specifically technological change, is more
important in explaining variation in levels of indigenous mobilization. Technological
globalization—that it the spread of new information and communications technologies
(ICT), computer-mediated communications (CMC), and small media proliferation across
the globe—has played a role in increasing the capacity of indigenous peoples to mobilize
in Latin America. As one scholar of Latin America points out, “South American Indians
went from oral history to sound bites in one generation.”
I propose that the pre-existing inter-community networks and the burgeoning
transnational networks were more effective in increasing indigenous capacity for
mobilization in cases that 1) had experienced technological globalization at the time of
citizenship regime shift, and 2) where indigenous peoples were able to indigenize and
utilize these technologies for information and communication purposes, than they were in
1
Yashar, Deborah. Contesting Citizenship in Latin America: The Rise of Indigenous Movements
and the Postliberal Challenge. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005.
2
Van Cott, Donna Lee. From Movements to Parties in Latin America, Cambridge University Press:
New York 2005.
3
Posner, Daniel. “The Political Salience of Cultural Difference: Why Chewas and Tumbukas are
Allies in Zambia and Adversaries in Malawi,” American Political Science Review, 2004.
4
Brysk, Alison. “Turning Weakness into Strength: The Internationalization of Indian Rights.”
Latin American Perspectives vol. 23, no. 2 (Spring 1996) p.48.
2
Convention