Towards Afro-Indigenous ecopolitics

Abstract

Costa Chica is home to the largest Afromexican population in Mexico most of whom are of Afro-Indigenous descent. In 2019, Afromexicans gained official state recognition as collective ethnic minority subjects which opens up new political potentialities for organising strategies. This article examines the development of Afro-Indigenous politics in response to the ecological devastation that Costa Chica of Guerrero is experiencing as a consequence of climate change. I contextualise this research project in my personal experiences researching family histories and coming into a sense of Afro-Indigenous subjectivity. A brief overview of the historical human-nature relations influenced by slavery and colonialism helps to contextualise the socio-political and ecological situation in the region. Finally, I draw from my ethnographic work to suggest various ways in which Afro-Indigenous organisers can mobilise the new political category to address environmental concerns. In the conclusion, I return to my own personal experiences with trying to understand Afro-Indigenous politics arguing that while connections need to be made with other geographic experiences of Blackness, Indigeneity, and Afro-Indigeneity, one must stay attuned to the geographic particularities that shape subjectivity.