Social memory and political action in the process of autonomy of the indigenous pueblo of Cherán

Abstract

This article seeks to understand the process of sociopolical transformation occurred in the indigenous “pueblo” of Cherán, belonging to the state of Michoacán, Mexico. This community conquered in 2011 the right to implement a government ruled by their “usos y costumbres”, after a series of conflicts motivated by the illegal exploitation of their communal lands by loggers, involved in drug trafficking, and also by the indifference of government authorities in face of the facts. The study of this social and political process will be conducted from an analysis of speeches and reports broadcasted in different medias, as well as bibliographic and historical research. The aim is to perceive through the speech of locals of the “pueblo” and through their collective memory the meanings to their actions, seeking to understand why the people of Cheran decided to “defend” the communal property through the confrontation with the loggers and subsequent establishment of self-government. We realize that the collective memory, in this case, provides a horizon of meanings that, in conjunction with the figuration of present time, have motivated the action of the residents of Cheran.