Wikipedia

María Jacinta Xón Riquiac

María Jacinta X. Riquiac is a Maya Kʼicheʼ anthropologist and indigenous rights activist from Guatemala.

María Jacinta Xón Riquiak
María Jacinta Xón at the Festival of Indigenous Cultures, Peoples and Original Neighborhoods in 2018.
Born
Chichicastenango, Guatemala
Other namesMaría Jacinta Xón

Biography

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Xón Riquiac studied antropologie at the University of San Carlos of Guatemala and with the support of the Ford Foundation received a master's degree in the history of science from the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo.[1]

She has served as a representative of Guatemala's indigenous peoples at some international events.[1] Xon Riquiac was featured as one of fifty Guatemalan women "writing history" profiled in the book Entre Chapinas (2020).[2]

Activism and research

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Described as a "Mayan feminist,"[3] Xón Riquiac researches contemporary Guatemalan culture from an intersectional, anti-capitalist, feminist point of view.

Her 2004 thesis was titled "The Maya as a Political Identity in Indigenous Women," and this has remained a key research interest.[4] Xón Riquiac has stressed the importance of clothing to Mayan communities, particularly how traditional designs are both preserved and modernized; she posits that these garments provide a stable sense of identity, especially for women.[1] Xón Riquiac wears huipil and corte (a traditional skirt).[5] Her interest in contemporary textiles has also led her to become an art critic for contemporary art related to indigenous textiles and weaving, such as the work of Tz’utujil artist Antonio Pichillá.[6] She has also participated in art exhibitions.[7][8]

Xón Riquiac has written about the damage of "othering" and stereotyping in contemporary Guatemalan culture that persist despite the promises of respect for indigenous persons established in the Peace Accords of 1996; she argues that indigenous women suffer the most because they have limited educational and economic opportunities.[5]

Another of her research interests is the complex relationship between the state, dominant cultural groups and norms, and indigenous culture and beliefs. Reporting on a 2014 conflict in which a Tz’utijil/K’iche’ community wanted to remove a Haredi Jewish community from San Juan la Laguna, Xón Riquiac argues that government actions and accusations of racism, antisemitism, and religious intolerance, failed to take into account the specific circumstances of this conflict, perpetuated racist, anti-indigenous stereotypes, and privileged the rights of the Haredi community over those of the indigenous community.[9][10] Her historical report on the Lenca was submitted as evidence in the trial about the construction of the Agua Zarca dam, in which she also served as an expert witness.[11][12]

Xón Riquiac challenges perceived notions of empiricism in anthropology, which traditionally situated outsiders as more knowledgeable and scientific observers than members of the culture under observation.[5][13][14] She also studies the academic field of indigenous studies itself.[15][16]

Tourism

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Xón Riquiac has established "El Proyecto Tux Cocina Gourmet de Origen," an ethical tourism program, academic research project, and restaurant that promotes pre-Hispanic, pre-industrial Mayan food.[17][18][19][20] In a 2020 interview, she said, "Our goal is to strengthen indigenous epistemology through [recognizing] the science of indigenous women [in food preparation] and both their oppression and resistance in domestic spaces."[21]

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "La antropóloga guatemalteca María Jacinta Xón llega a la V Fiesta de las Culturas Indígenas". Secretaría de Cultura de la Ciudad de México (in Spanish). 1 September 2018. Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  2. ^ Entre Chapinas (2 ed.). Guatemala: Look. 2020.
  3. ^ Bastos, Santiago (2004). "Ser maya en el siglo XXI" (PDF). 9th European Mayan Conference: 8.
  4. ^ Xón Riquiac, María Jacinta (2004). Lo Maya como Identidad Política en Mujeres Indígenas (PDF). Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala.
  5. ^ a b c Xón Riquiac, María Jacinta (23 August 2012). "Guatemala, entre otredades, diferencias y resistencias". Plaza Pública (in Spanish). Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  6. ^ Xón Riquiac, María Jacinta (2018-08-18). "Antonio Pichillá: San B'eey (Camino Blanco)". Artishock Revista (in Spanish). Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  7. ^ "Exposición de arte revisa la historia del país". Prensa Libre (in Spanish). 2 September 2015. Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  8. ^ "Exposición Guatemala Después". Hipermedula (in Spanish). September 2015. Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  9. ^ Bastos, Santiago (2017-05-14). "El derecho del Pueblo de San Juan La Laguna a la libre determinación en su territorio". Prensa Comunitaria (in Spanish). Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  10. ^ María Jacinta, Xón Riquiac (30 November 2016). "Las perspectivas culturales y sociales específicas del Pueblo Tz'utujil y K'iche' de San Juan La Laguna para el ejercicio de la libre determinación en su territorio" (PDF). Antropóloga Social, No. De Colegiado: 10,251. Peritaje Cultural Antropológico: 1–63.
  11. ^ COPINH (2018-04-13). "Un retoño en la lucha por la justicia". COPINH (in Mexican Spanish). Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  12. ^ Lakhani, Nina (2020-06-02). Who Killed Berta Caceres?: The Murder of an Indigenous Defender and the Race to Save the Planet. New York: Verso Books. p. 223. ISBN 978-1-78873-308-3.
  13. ^ Xón Riquiac, María Jacinta (2018). La lejanía de la frontera metodológica (in Spanish). Claudia Dary et. al. Guatemala, Guatemala. ISBN 978-9929-700-42-0. OCLC 1048461679. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  14. ^ López, Ligia (Licho) (2017-10-06). The Making of Indigeneity, Curriculum History, and the Limits of Diversity. New York: Routledge. p. 121. ISBN 978-1-315-39240-0.
  15. ^ "Projeto de Pesquisa 1 – Núcleo de Pesquisa História da Ciência e Ensino" (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  16. ^ Xón Riquiac, María Jacinta (2011). "La emancipación del objeto. La reivindicación de los sistemas de conocimientos de los pueblos indígenas por medio del diálogo de saberes". Miradas diversas: Aportes de becados Programa Internacional de Becas Fundación Ford/Cirma (in Spanish). ISBN 978-9929-8083-2-4.
  17. ^ "Descubriendo la comida ancestral". NAO Viatges (in European Spanish). Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  18. ^ "Voyage au Guatemala: Tikal, Antigua, Atitlan, Livingstone". Voyageurs du Monde (in French). Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  19. ^ "Abuelita de 105 años inspira nuevo proyecto que resalta la gastronomía local de Quiché". Guatemala.com (in European Spanish). Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  20. ^ "Restaurante". Centro de Investigación Científica y Cultural (in European Spanish). Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  21. ^ María Jacinta Xón Riquiac, interview with Miguel A. López. San José/Chichicastenango, Guatemala. May 14, 2020. In Spanish. Teoretica.
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