Taking Care of Children, Taking Care of Territory. An Ethnographic Perspective on Mapuche and Ava-Guaraní Rural Communities in Argentina

Abstract

In recent years, care-related social studies have been growing strongly. Focusing on this process, it seems relevant to suggest that care involves broader processes, which allows us to think not only about its relationship to child-rearing, but also to the environment and the rest of the beings that live in it. Based on two ethnographic research projects carried out with Mapuche (Neuquén) and Ava-Guaraní (Salta) rural communities in Argentina, we will analyze the ways in which the forms of care are related to disputes over indigenous territories and access to natural resources. Boys and girls actively participate in household care tasks, as well as having wide margins of autonomy in rural territories. Thus, on the one hand, our observations on indigenous child care allow us to discuss childhood and family definitions that underlie child care hegemonic perspectives. On the other hand, ethnographic research on family strategies for organizing child care in these contexts shows their relationship to unequal land distribution, working conditions and gender inequalities. Finally, this article discusses the ways in which child care is linked to the territorial situation of indigenous people.