You are cordially invited to a guest lecture by Prof. Nicholas Copeland, Department of History, Virginia Tech University
2023 was a year of historic surprises in Guatemala. Everyone was expecting that the 2023 elections would consolidate the power of the corrupt elite. Instead, the social democratic candidate from the Semilla party was victorious. In the face of lawfare attacks, Indigenous authorities in Guatemala led a National Strike for 107 days to defend the electoral results, allowing the Semilla government to take power.
Nick Copeland is an anthropologist who has worked closely with water rights alliances and territorial defense movements. His talk with focus on the processes that created the conditions for this surprise electoral result and for the Indigenous uprising that defended it, and its significance for Guatemalan democracy.
Nicholas Copeland | College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences | Virginia Tech