Between Government and Grassroots: Archaeology as Advocacy in Southern Belize

Abstract

The consolidation of archaeology as a scientific discipline reinforced the power of the nation-state as archaeologists produced material and intellectual data that was used to bolster state identities at the expense of the history and heritage of Indigenous peoples. Accordingly, there are inherent structural inequalities within the discipline that favour researchers from Western nation-states in knowledge creation about the past. In this paper I explore the political implications of advocating for an equitable archaeological practice in Belize, Central America. Though archaeological research has incorporated grassroots engagement and community-based approaches, there is a gap in the discussion about negotiations with government officials. Among the issues surrounding grassroots advocacy is walking a ‘middle ground’ between negotiating with government officials for excavation permits and working closely with disenfranchised communities. Building relationships between registers of power supports the practice of a socially just archaeology abroad and could mitigate the structural inequalities inherent in our discipline. I illustrate this ‘middle ground’ with the Aguacate Community Archaeology Project, which I conducted in collaboration with Aguacate village, Toledo district, from 2012 to 2015. I explore the role of the archaeologist as an advocate for local communities’ control over knowledge produced on their community land.