AWASQA

  • Women of the Rainforest: Voices Against Violence

    Women of the Rainforest: Voices Against Violence

    In the heart of the Ecuadorian Amazon, where the rainforest is our mother and refuge, indigenous women sustain life, memory, and resistance. They are the guardians of our territories, of traditional medicine, and of the word. That resistance, however, faces silent and brutal violence every day; a violence interwoven with patriarchy, structural discrimination, and neglect…

  • Mujeres amazónicas denuncian violencia

    Women of the Rainforest: Voices Against Violence

    In the heart of the Ecuadorian Amazon, where the rainforest is our mother and refuge, indigenous women sustain life, memory, and resistance. They are the guardians of our territories, of traditional medicine, and of the word. That resistance, however, faces silent and brutal violence every day; a violence interwoven with patriarchy, structural discrimination, and neglect…

  • Fuente: COIAB

    From the Amazon: Letter to Mother Earth

    We share a beautiful letter from indigenous people in the Amazon in celebration of Mother Earth Day. This letter was read live by a representative of the youth network during a panel organized by the Coordination of Indigenous Organizations of the Brazilian Amazon (COIAB), broadcast live thanks to Mídia Ninja. You can access the original…

  • Photo: New York Communities for Change

    On Earth Day: The Fight Against Climate Disaster Investors

    As we celebrate Earth Day and world leaders prepare to meet virtually for the Summit on Climate, advocates have fast-tracked their efforts to tackle investors who continue to pour billions into climate disaster. This strategy is proving to be effective as the culprits on fueling human rights and environmental violations are identified and targeted with…

  • Indigenous Women Walk More Than 1000 Miles to Protect Mother Earth

    The Movimiento de Mujeres Indígenas por el Buen Vivir [Indigenous Women Movement for “Well-Being”] have been walking in the Southern Cone since March 14 to defend Mother Earth. Traveling north for 1200 kilometers (746 miles) and south for 1900 kilometers (1180 miles), women representing 36 indigenous nations in Argentina organized to walk across the country…

  • OFRANEH

    Honduras: 224 Years of Resistance of the Garifuna People

    FROM THE EDITORS: The state’s offensive against indigenous communities in Honduras has been particularly cruel against the Lenca and Garifuna peoples. During the pandemic, these communities organized to help those in need and took steps to self-isolate to protect their loved ones. The state, meanwhile, ignored pleas for urgent aid and pushed forward “tourism” development…

  • Ecuador: Indigenous Party and Organizations Call to Boycott Presidential Elections

    FROM THE EDITORS: Ecuador is again in turmoil. The only indigenous party, Plurinational Unity Movement Pachakutik (MUPP) List 18, born from popular resistance in the 1990s, and most national indigenous organizations have publicly called people to void their vote, “Vote Null,” in the next round of presidential elections set for April 11. (Voting is compulsory…

  • Fanesca as a Symbol of Resistance and Community Relations

    Easter week is here, and it’s that time of the year when families in Ecuador and Ecuadorian immigrants in the US, Canada, and Europe prepare fanesca, one of the most intricate dishes I’ve had the pleasure to prepare and eat. It is so complex that people often gather their extended families to help in the…

  • Fundación Colectivo Epew

    Colectivo Epew Premiered Radio Teatro Mapuche to Rescue Oral Traditions

    FROM THE EDITORS: The Epew Collective is a theater group with Mapuche and Chilean members, that works in “defense of native peoples, community art, and interculturality.” Below we reproduce an article about a new bilingual project, Radio Teatro Mapuche, which was made for children without access to internet in Mapuche territory, who have been taking…

  • Deb Haaland as a symbol of indigenous millennial victory in the U.S.

    The new U.S. Secretary of the Interior, Deb Haaland, is the first indigenous person to hold that position and the first to serve in a U.S. presidential cabinet. The significance of this achievement is emblematic of the mining struggle of indigenous peoples in the north and will have significant consequences in the defense of their…