preview

The And Other Peoples Of Mexico And Their Home Countries Essay

Better Essays

Unfortunately for the Zapotecs and other indigenous peoples, migration to the US does not bring an end to the structural and symbolic violence they must face. Unlike the systemic pressure present in Mexico and their home countries, Indigenous groups face societal pressures not only from migrant mestizos but from the dominant Anglo population of the United States. From their mestizo countrymen, they generally experience a less intense form of the violence from the home country. Generally, these include shame of public displays of their languages and racial insults. From the Anglo population, Indigenous groups are often misidentified and grouped within the broader Hispanic identity, not understanding that they are a different cultural group. To fit a mold that has been pushed upon them, Indigenous peoples are pressured to adopt multiple identities. In accordance to the US system of ethnic classification, Zapotecs identify as ethnically Mexican, followed by their regional identity as Oaxaquenos (Oaxaca region of Mexico), and as lastly as Yalalag Zapotecs (Cruz-Manjarrez pg.126). But by juggling multiple identities, Zapotecs and other indigenous groups have both gained both negative and positive aspects of themselves. By being labeled as Mexicans, Zapotecs and other Mexican indigenous groups can take pride in a nationality they have been denied for so long. As Oaxaquenos, there is a recognition of a broader pan-indigenous identity in Latin America. For Yalalag Zapotecs, the

Get Access