Stolen Designs? Researching Indigenous Activism in Panama, Guatemala and the Web 2.0

Abstract

This article analyses allegations of cultural appropriation arising from the misuse of traditional designs by indigenous organisations and individuals through the media, especially on social media. Based on a multi-situated field work carried out in Panama, Guatemala and on social networks, it aims to study two cases: 1) the appropriation of Guna textile art, protected by national sui generis intellectual property laws, by Panamanian and multinational companies, and, 2) the demands for protection of Mayan textiles by the National Movement of Weavers Ruchajixik ri qana'ojbäl of Guatemala. Thanks to our online and offline fieldwork, this article reflects on the difficulties and opportunities offered by digital ethnography and classic fieldwork for understanding indigenous communication in contexts marked by conflict over the ownership of traditional knowledge and expressions.