¡Las Aventuras en Ecuador!: A Cultural Observation Trip to the North

This past week, my study abroad program took us on a 3 day trip to the north to study communities of different populations than we might see on a typical day in Quito. We spent time in an indigenous community and stayed one night with families. In the family that I stayed with, there was an adorable six year old girl named Kelin Luciana that I really bonded with. The indigenous community that we stayed in really impressed me and I really enjoyed learning about their beautiful culture. They played their traditional music for us and we even got to dress up in their traditional clothing to dance and enjoy the music. I truly was very impressed by this indigenous community; the way they respect the land and each other, the way that they live in community and care for one another, their simple yet profound way of life, and their kindness and willingness to teach us about their lives and amazing culture. In general, people who live in indigenous communities are not very accepted socially in Ecuador by those who live more modern and have lighter skin or hair. Many people consider it a shame to be of indigenous decent. Even though the majority of the people living modernly in Ecuador are of indigenous decent, they will not admit it if asked. People who are indigenous are often discriminated against and also tend to be marginalized and oppressed. The people in Ecuador who are the most poor are the women and children who live in indigenous communities. Since spending time in this community, I have thought a lot about the Native Americans in the U.S. and how they also have such a beautiful culture, yet are so marginalized, oppressed and discriminated against. It makes me feel angry that the Europeans came over to the Americas and took over the beautiful culture and land that existed before the white people came and conquered to dominate and have power.

The boys in my study abroad program dressed in indigenous clothing

The people of the indigenous community singing and dancing for us

Me in indigenous clothes!

My "little sister" and I

Kelin Luciana. My sweet "little sister" that I really bonded with!

My "mom" and "sister" cooking breakfast

My "mom" and "sister"

She is so adorable!

We also had the chance to spend time in two different afro-ecuatoriano communities. Afro-ecuatoriano is the Spanish name for Ecuadorians who are of African descent. It translates to African Ecuadorians. The slave trade occurred a long time ago here in Ecuador and because of that, there are many afro-ecuatorianos living in Ecuador. Similar to people in Ecuador who are indigenous, the afro-ecuatorianos are discriminated against and usually live in poverty. I feel like the racism that exists against the afro-ecuatorianos is much stronger than the racism that exists against people who are indigenous. Most Ecuadorians seem to be very racist against afro-ecuatorianos. Our professor had arranged for us to speak with an afro-ecuatoriana woman who lived in one of the communities that we visited on our trip and she explained to us that most afro-ecuatorianos have identity issues because they feel at a loss for who they are, the history of their people, and why they live in Ecuador. The lady we spoke with worked for an art store in which many afro-ecuatoriana women make beautiful masks out of clay. They are masks of faces of afro-ecuatorianos. I of course bought one to take home to the U.S. to remind me of this beautiful community that we had the privilege of visiting!

In college for the past three years, I have been studying human services, which prepares you to work with people who are oppressed and marginalized. This is the type of population that I want to spend my life working with and supporting so I am so glad that I had the chance to learn about these beautiful, yet marginalized and oppressed populations in Ecuador. I look forward to being in the Peace Corps in less than a year where I will be able to work with communities and populations similar to the communities that I just visited!