The Devil's Miner, Bolivia & Evo Morales...

The other day we watched the film - The Devil’s Miner - about indigenous Andean children working in the mines in Bolivia. Bolivia continues to be one of the poorest countries in Latin America and has one of the highest percentages of native peoples (indios). Here are some websites with more facts about Bolivia…

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/bl.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolivia

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/country_profiles/1210487.stm

http://www.nationmaster.com/country/bl-bolivia

http://devdata.worldbank.org/external/CPProfile.asp?SelectedCountry=BOL&CCODE=BOL&CNAME=Bolivia&PTYPE=CP

Look for some important statistics like…

Infant Mortality Rate
Life Expectancy
GDP – Per Capita
Population below the poverty line
Unemployment rate
Literacy Rate
Ethnic breakdown of the population
Export Commodities
External Debt

As I explained in class the other day, in 2006 Bolivians elected Evo Morales the first indigenous person to the presidency of Bolivia. Morales is a member of the Aymara, one of Bolivia’s largest indigenous ethnic groups. Morales become famous originally as an organizer of the Cocaleros (coca farmers) who resent U.S. foreign policy in regards to Bolivia and the U.S. attempts to eradicate coca production – a traditional crop of the indigenous people of Bolivia. Morales is a close ally of Hugo Chavez in Venezuela and Ignacio Lula da Silva in Brazil.

You can find out more about Morales here…

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evo_Morales

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/country_profiles/1210487.stm

http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/2438/

http://www.betterworldheroes.com/morales.htm

http://www.greenleft.org.au/2002/501/27822

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3SSlc0L0fg

In light of what we saw in the film, I want you to reflect on these questions throughout the remainder of this course…

1. Why is child labor common in parts of Latin America?

2. Why are the indigenous people of the Americas at the bottom of the social/economic/political hierarchy?

3. What is the source of the region’s continued poverty?

4. How have European, Indigenous and African cultures blend to produce the contemporary culture (or cultures) of Latin America?

Please respond to these questions on your own blogs.

If you want more info on the film you can check out this website...

http://www.thedevilsminer.com/index_new.html