A growing body of personal narratives translated from Spanish and Portuguese into English exists for the study of Latin America. The following is a narrative in the the voice of Rigoberta Menchú.

"What I treasure most in life is being able to dream. During my most difficult moments and complex situations I have been able to dream of a more beautiful future." -- Rigoberta Menchú

How to protect indigenous peoples' rights to freely practice their own cultural traditions, to use their own native languages, rights to own their land, and to promote their own history, has been a dilemma for many world leaders. To understand the struggles of the indigenous peoples of Latin America, a good place to start is the case of Rigoberta Menchú. Rigoberta Menchú is an indigenous woman who grew up in Chimel, Guatemala, a community continuing the millennium-old Maya-Quiché culture.

At twenty years of age, Ms. Menchú had already lost her father, her mother and a brother as a result of the indiscriminate violence exercised by the armed forces of Guatemala in their attempts to control and suppress the indigenous people.

After growing up amid this violence and repression, Ms. Menchú decided to learn Spanish, using the language of her oppressors to fight for the rights of her people. Since then, words have been her weapon in her untiring defense of the human rights of all indigenous peoples.

Ms. Menchú states that, "We have seen repeated occupations of our land, long lines of colonists have arrived, and they remain today. In the case of my country, 65 percent of the inhabitants are indigenous. The constitution speaks of protection for the indigenous. Who authorized a minority to protect an immense majority?"

Ms. Menchú also states, "Racism in our countries is a fact in that the Indian is not allowed to be a politician or aspire to being head of state. It has reached the point that 99 percent of the indigenous women have not gone to school. The indigenous are condemned to live in a situation designed to exterminate them. They receive a pittance of a salary, they neither speak nor write the language, politics dictates their situation. Is this slavery? I don't know what it's called. It is not the same as before because we are in modern times."

In 1992, at the age of 33, Ms. Menchú won the Nobel Peace Prize, becoming the youngest , as well as the first indigenous person to ever win the prize.

1. What is an indigenous person? Brainstorm some characteristics you would use to define an indigenous person. Which indigenous groups do you know?
2. What recurring issues appear between indigenous and non-indigenous groups? What can we infer from these issues?
3. Many people assume indigenous people in Latin America were always victims, that they did not form social movements to protect their rights. How does the case of Ms. Menchú help to dispel this myth?
4. Rigoberta Menchú learned Spanish to fight her oppressors. What conclusions can you draw on the connections between language and oppression?
5. In what ways has language become a political issue in the U.S. today?

1. Pretend you belong to an indigenous group. Your people are the majority and have lived on the same land for many generations. Eventually, the minority, a people of another race, come to your city and take over all government, make all the rules and laws, and prevent you from defending your rights because you do not understand the language of the people in power. Ask the class to discuss how this would make them feel? What would they do? Present this dilemma: "If you did not understand the language of your oppressors, how could you oppose them and claim your rights?"

2. Write a dialogue. In the dialogue you should include Ms. Menchú and at least one other person. The other person could be an ancient Mayan god, a current-day Guatemalan bureaucrat, a Guatemalan farmer, a Guatemalan businessman, an uneducated indigenous woman. In the dialogue have these people discuss the importance of language, land, or culture.

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