Student Reflections: Anesio Domínguez Juan
The following is a Q&A with Anesio Domínguez Juan, who participated in the course ‘Global Risks: Biodiversity, Security and Governance in Latin America’ at Stanford’s Center for Latin American Studies during the summer of 2017. His comments have been translated from Spanish.
I am originally from Santo Domingo Tepuxtepec, Mixe, Oaxaca; I belong to the Mixe culture and am a Mixe speaker. I recently graduated from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México — UNAM) in law. I was born in a poor community, one dedicated to agriculture (sowing corn, beans, narcotic plants, and poppy), that has many health, educational and economic deficiencies; this is the principal reason why I had to leave the city (with the support of my brother) to fulfill my high school education in Mexico City. After graduating from high school, I did not have the adequate conditions to pursue an undergraduate education, this due to the economic deficiencies. The only means by which to pay my expenses, then, was to be recruited by the Mexican army, which provided me with food, a home and a salary with which I could help my family. I was in the Mexican army for three and a half years, where I obtained the rank of head of infantry. However, after meditating, and after having suffered from the crisis and difficulty that exists in my country, I realized that I had to return to school; with the small savings that I had, I left the army and enrolled in UNAM to study law. I have recently graduated with a degree in law and am in the process of being conferred as a lawyer for my academic excellence. My university has given me the support in all capacities, and I can say without hesitation that education has changed my life.
How/why did you became involved in the Global Risk course?
I became involved with the “Global Risks” course through a colleague from my university (UNAM) who, last year, was at the University of New Mexico and passed me the announcement, through which I realized I met the requirements and that is how I decided to apply for the scholarship. This scholarship is important to me because it helps me become aware about and deeply analyze the problems that afflict not only indigenous communities, but also the general Mexican population — in particular, insecurity and conflict in the form of political organization of indigenous peoples.
What was your final presentation about?
The topic is about the issue of marginalization that exists with indigenous populations from diverse states of the republic, who migrate to the city in search of better living conditions and who settle in the peripheries of the city. This results in social conditions that do not favor them, such as difficulty in accessing education, housing, and formal employment opportunities, which have ultimately created problems of insecurity, alcoholism and informal employment.
Given those conditions and the scarce support from the government of Mexico City and the state, the indigenous population has sought ways to resolve said problems. To combat such wrongs that afflict them, they have opted to get together in groups, that is to say by ethnicity. Through meeting and adopting the community of origin’s system of usos y costumbres (“customs and traditions”), they have been able to combat problems such as alcoholism and illiteracy, and have implemented savings systems to cover their expenses; they have also developed philharmonic music bands, which keeps indigenous youth from joining gangs or committing an offense that negatively impacts their life.
Along that line, my team’s proposal is to promote that type of organization in indigenous communities, since the meetings they already have are actually associations that only need to be formalized legally to become civil associations; as such, they would be eligible for a wide range of benefits granted by all three levels of the government. Through legal advising to regularize their association, they could create more civil associations where they could deal with problems only they are deeply familiar with, and as such, they can propose solutions that are executable by themselves. In addition, they can receive help in managing economic resources to carry out such work, and we as young adults can help contribute to those goals.
What were some of your favorite parts of this experience?
To get to know and exchange ways of living, sharing modalities for imparting education, but most importantly sharing points of views and experiences with the students from ITAM [the Autonomous Technological Institute of Mexico].
How has this course deepened your understanding of these issues?
This experience has been extraordinary because of the opportunity to work with students from ITAM, Stanford, and colleagues from diverse universities of the republic, joined together in our professors’ classes where they share their different points of views and their knowledge. They have nourished us and it is very productive to be able to help our communities overcome the different problems that afflict not only them, but our country.
How has this experience impacted you personally, or academically?
It would be nice if in the future, this program expanded to accept more youth, since with them, the sentiments and expressions of indigenous students would become known. The exchange of ideas and culture would be a great support to reinforce, verify and support the statistical data.
Next: Belen Sánchez Hernández →
The ‘Global Risks’ course is a joint effort between Stanford’s Center for Latin American Studies, Mexico’s Autonomous Institute of Technology (ITAM), Mexico’s National Association of Universities and Higher Education Institutions (ANUIES), and the U.S. Embassy to Mexico.
