Caroline Conzelman: Coca Leaf, Participatory Democracy, and Critical Drug Pedagogy in Bolivia

Описание: Explore the rich cultural significance of coca leaf in Bolivia with Dr. Caroline S. Conzelman, as she delves into its history, uses, and the political struggles surrounding its cultivation, challenging the narrative of the US War on Drugs. Support the McKenna Academy: https://mckenna.academy/donate

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Timestamps:
00:00 - Introduction: Coca Leaf & Bolivia Research
00:16 - Presentation Goals: Coca, Democracy, Education
01:19 - Part 1: Coca Leaf & War on Drugs History
03:04 - Research Context: 1997-2006 Bolivia
03:48 - Yungas Region: Coca's Traditional Zone
04:56 - Coca Leaf: Cultural & Economic Value
06:59 - Coca Leaf: Multifaceted & Requires Holistic Understanding
08:43 - Death Road & Yungas Landscape
09:41 - Andes Geography & Ayllu System
11:02 - Yungas History: Hacienda System to Revolution
12:36 - Coca's Central Role & Environmental Concerns
13:56 - Coca Employment & Shifting Culture
15:15 - Coca Transport & Processing
16:43 - Detallistas (Retailers): Middlemen & Control Challenges
18:27 - Coca's Legal Market & Distribution
19:25 - Coca in Community & Democracy
21:15 - Coca Prohibition Origins & Racism
23:28 - Propaganda & Demonization of Coca
25:25 - US War on Drugs: Racist Origins & Goals
28:22 - War on Drugs: Working as Designed?
31:50 - Syndicatos & Protests: Defending Coca
34:16 - Coca as Central to Resistance & Identity
37:26 - Education & Shifting Public Discourse
39:38 - Teaching the Andes & Coca Leaf
42:25 - Drug Pedagogy and Experiential Education
43:41 - Study Abroad Program and Collaboration with Bolivian Students
45:17 - Don Ignacio: Legacy & Book Presentation
47:26 - Andrew Weil's Drug Perspective & Harm Reduction
49:08 - Alberto Mamani Quote: Changing Public Opinion
49:39 - Conclusion: Call to Action & Thank You

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#LatinAmerica #SouthAmerica #Education #BolivianCoca #SacredCoca #TraditionalUseOfCoca
#WarOnDrugs #DrugProhibition #ParticipatoryDemocracy #AymaraCulture #CocaCulture #EconomicJustice

Abstract:
Coca leaf has been cultivated for a millennium on the eastern slope of the Andes in Bolivia and remains deeply embedded in the region’s cultural identity. In the highland Yungas of La Paz—where primarily Aymara campesinos organize their communities around the democratic principles of agrarian sindicalismo—coca is part of a diversified semi-subsistence rural economy and supplies most of Bolivia’s domestic markets for medicinal, nutritional, and ceremonial uses of the leaf. Historically, coca served as the central factor in Yungas social relations, belief systems, agricultural labor exchange, gender roles, and political organization. However, through a variety of “alternative development” programs facilitated by both the United Nations and the United States from the 1980s until the early 2000s, coca was targeted for eradication under the “war on drugs” paradigm that created far more harm than benefit. The symbolic force of the “sacred leaf” combined with cultural memories of Aymara heroes provided an especially potent impetus for campesino advocacy in the Yungas, placing the sindicatos at the center of civil society efforts to counterbalance the power of the neoliberal state and international bodies, eventually helping to elect President Evo Morales in 2005. Since then, Yungas sindicatos and Bolivian politics in general have become increasingly divided, and coca cultivation has spread far beyond the traditional zones.

This presentation will illustrate the unique cultural, historical, and political context of coca leaf in the highland Yungas region of Bolivia based on 25 years of ethnographic research. The Yungas is quite distinct from the more well-known Chapare coca-cultivation area in the lowlands of Cochabamba, where the “war on drugs” was much more violent and the sindicatos became more powerful. The presentation will also highlight the benefits of bringing university students on Study Abroad programs to learn about coca and the ancient indigenous cultural traditions that persist even amidst rapid political and economic changes.