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Picture above taken by Dave Moorer
Meeting the Mapuche on Their Land Student Reflection by Dave Moorer We have already been in Chile for
have been victims of marginalization
Mapuche nation. The word
over a week and we are having an
and severe discrimination for over
Mapuche originated centuries ago.
amazing experience. Over the past
500 years. Though this discrimination Che means people and Mapu
few days we have been traveling
remains, they successfully fought back means the land, thus the Mapuche
around to various communities but
both the Incas and the Conquistadors
are literally "the people of the
we are back in Temuco now for a
and in some manner, the economic
land." We first arrived at
couple of nights. We just attended a
policies of the past few decades. It
Lonquimay where the Mapuche in
Mapuche community meeting of the
goes without saying that they have a
this area are known as Pewenche.
at the Consejo de Todas las Tierras
history of being fierce and formidable
We met the lonko (leader) who is
where Judge Juan GuzmĂĄn spoke
warriors. We have thus far visited five
a very grounded and humble
passionately about the need for self-
local Mapuche communities
leader yet has an obvious vision
determination of the Mapuche
throughout the Araucania region in
for autonomy for both his local
people. While the Mapuche have
Southern Chile. All of them appear to
community and the larger
inhabited the area in Chile and
have their own characteristics, though Mapuche population.
Argentina for over 10,000 years, they all fit under the umbrella of the