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Exam 1 Race And Poverty Essays

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Quiara Quinones
Dennis Stromback
Race and Poverty
March 9, 2015
Exam 1
In Guatemala the racial and class separation has to do primarily with the indigenous population and the Ladinos. The indigenous population focuses on the pure Mayan way of life, by speaking the Mayan language and following the traditional religion and village customs. The
Indigenous population suffered from discrimination and poverty, while being geographically isolated. Violence and repression not only affected the biological continuities of the indigenous lives but also the cultural. There were policies that had a sole purpose of destroying Mayan communities both physically and emotionally. The government tried to suppress their culture
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This is only a few of the issues that tribes have faced due to environmental racism, and it proves that Americans have experienced similar discrimination. For the indigenous people, in order to become a ladino one must adapt to the western clothing and speak spanish. For the Americans we must adapt to the governments
“way of life” in order to succeed, just as the indigenous people of Guatemala have to adapt to the ladino’s “way of life” in order to become successful and escape poverty. The only problem is that the indigenous and the Indian tribes are prideful people with beliefs of their own, and would not want to express the beliefs of others.
The indigenous’ fight through poverty began with colonization. Once the Spanish had conquered the indigenous people became slaves, and “capitalism cannot work without free labor” (Homeland video). The demand for wealth created barbaric ideas in order to gain power and money; which led to slavery and eventually poverty. The indigenous population do suffer

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from poverty on the governments end because not only is their country in debt but the income is unequal. The social class is based on wealth, education, and family prestige which operates as a sorting mechanism among both Indigenous and Ladinos. Race is also clearly a component, but may be less important than culture and

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