The Emergence of Indigenous Movements in Latin America and Their Impact on the Latin American Political Scene

The past two decades have seen the emergence of various political actors in Latin America for whom indigenousness is their basic social identity. The appearance of indigenous movements at this time can be attributed to a change in the structure of political opportunities in response to globalization, which has created a situation in which policy making is no longer controlled by governments but increasingly the result of the interaction of a wide variety of actors. Indigenous peoples have been empowered by alliances with actors that have provided them greater capacity for applying pressure through relationships, including churches, anthropologists, and international advocacy networks. The emergence of indigenous movements has created an international regime on the rights of indigenous peoples, the adoption of a new jurisprudence with regard to indigenous peoples, and the creation of autonomous territories, though there is still no agreement on the best way to articulate these territories. Some of these movements have been more successful than others; the indigenous peoples of the lowlands have benefited from the greater participation of their movements in the international environment, but their triumphs tend to be local. While progress is tangible, the events of the past two decades indicate the limits of the permeability of Latin American polyarchies.