Via Unsplash
By Vy Tran
LOS ANGELES, CA – A preliminary report identifying the different indigenous migrant communities from Mexico and Central America established in Los Angeles County was released this past week by Comunidades Indígenas en Liderazgo (CIELO), in collaboration with USC Equity Research Institute.
The announcement said it is the first step in separating the Indigenous diaspora from being mislabeled as Hispanic or Latino by larger government surveys.
“The ongoing invisibility and misrepresentation of Indigenous Migrant communities has consequences for the community…as Indigenous migrants navigate racialized systems that often lack culturally competent services,” said CIELO, an Indigenous women-led non-profit organization that works with Indigenous communities in Los Angeles.
“Most people talk about everything Mexican, Guatemalan, Salvadoran. They talk as if we are in a bottle and that we are Latinos,” said Angel Novelo, Maya Yucateco organizer. “We have many languages here in Los Angeles.
“Many of them think that they recognize us as being Latino and that’s it, and they don’t see us as Indigenous. They see us as Latinos and that we all speak Spanish and that we all come from Guatemala. But it’s a very diverse culture. We have many cultures here.”
Often misclassified or grouped into the Latinx category, the report emphasized on Indigenous Migrant communities’ long fight for visibility in data, separate from the broad Latino umbrella.
Though some population data are available through the U.S. Census Bureau, more detailed data are fairly limited in scope, according to CIELO.
The report’s brief ultimately strives to provide this “preliminary data and insights for those seeking to better understand and serve Indigenous Migrant communities in Los Angeles County.”
According to the CIELO-USC report, while the survey has found that at least 25 distinct Indigenous communities live in Los Angeles County and speak at least 36 different languages, more than nine percent of the population surveyed struggle to pay for food and rent following the height of the pandemic.
The average household size of those Indigenous migrants surveyed was 4.5, compared to the countywide average of 2.89.
In the years following 2020, 73 percent of the Indigenous Migrants experienced reduced hours, 50 percent employment loss, and 35 percent of those surveyed said their businesses were closing, the report continued.
During the height of the pandemic in 2020, CIELO provided financial assistance to 2,500 Indigenous Migrant residents who did not qualify for aid as a part of their “Undocu-Indigenous Fund.”
However, survey data from CIELO’s aid events show that since 2020, most were struggling to pay for rent and food.
“A lot of Indigenous Migrants are still facing housing instability, having to share an apartment with two other families because they can’t access the resources to housing, either because they’re undocumented or they don’t know how to read or write,” shared Aurora Pedro, Akateco and Q’anjob’al interpreter.
“They don’t speak Spanish or English… so they’re not given interpretation… this creates a place where even though we’re not told this, by all of these barriers, we’re basically told, ‘You don’t belong here,’” Pedro added.
Los Angeles is home to the largest number of Indigenous Migrant residents statewide with 34,000 living throughout the county, according to 2020 U.S. Census data.
Maya, Zapotec and Purépecha are the three largest groups according to the Census data, CIELO’s survey data shows, noting Zapotec is the largest group reached, followed by K’iche,’ Chinanteco, Mixteco, Mixe, Maya, Q’anjob’al, Náhuatl, Mam, and Akateco, the report stated.
As noted by Pedro, these communities often do not speak Spanish or English and instead speak at least one of the many languages spoken by indigenous communities in Mexico and Central America, including Zapoteco (61 percent), K’iche’ (12 percent), Chinanteco (eight percent), Mixe (five percent), and many others.
“This report was created to bring visibility to the linguistic and cultural diversity that exists in Indigenous migrant communities and also as a tool for people and institutions that seek to understand better and serve Indigenous communities,” said Janet Martínez, CIELO’s co-founder, who championed this report alongside Joana Lee and Lupe Rentería from USC Equity Research Institute.
“Expanding immigrant inclusion policies… supporting existing organizations and networks that provide critical services including interpretation… and expanding data collection and reporting for more communities including Indigenous Migrants are some key steps toward building a more inclusive Los Angeles County,” concluded Martínez, Lee and Rentería.
The trio added, “We hope this brief, and the forthcoming report, serve as a resource to immigrant-serving organizations, including foundations, government agencies, community-based organizations, and others seeking to improve the lives of all residents across the county.”
