Usos y Costumbres of Santa María Tindú Lidiana Soto Ethnic Studies / Political Science Faculty Mentor: Lynn Stephen Anthropology, Ethnic Studies, and the Center for Latino/a and Latin American Studies Introduction Indigenous migrants face a complex problem that stems from their dual character: they are indigenous peoples, and they are a people in transition (Fox, 2004). Santa María Tindú is a rural, indigenous village located in Oaxaca, a state in southwest Mexico. It was founded near two springs in an area where water is scarce. Tindúreños tell rich stories of the founding in the early 1900s, and of Tindú’s patriotic but tragic participation in the revolutionary war. People say they used to make gunpowder from the feces of bats living in the surrounding caves. The elders report that during that time, an explosion killed all the women of the village, and the men had to find new wives from neighboring villages. Another tale says that if outsiders drink the water from the spring that comes from the Sabino tree, they will leave their hearts and never again want to leave because those who drink water from the great Sabino tree are of Tindú (Martinez de Escobar 1999, 115). This legend of outsiders becoming a part of Tindú also reflects the value of Tindú’s auspicious location and its proximity to water and other important resources. Despite the presence of those resources, the
The University of Oregon McNair Research Journal [119]