Guatemala 1

August 17, 2010

Guatemala 1

Not unlike numerous other Indigenous communities in the region, the initial departure of Lote 8 residents from the rich plain below—the lands of their original milpa (subsistence plots of corn, beans and squash)—occurred long ago, a result of expansion of the US-controlled banana empire. Today it is hard to believe that these lowlands, seemingly empty and desolate save for cattle, were once the historic lands of the United Fruit Company. In the 1920s, the lands would have had rows of short banana palms stretching as far as the eye could see. Indigenous peoples lived precariously in the corners, harvesting and cleaning the spaces between the trees. By national decree Indigenous men worked the fields and bought from company stores. Those who raised their voices in dissent were quickly silenced.