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Temporary (im)mobility as a change factor in the gender roles and relationships of the Ngäbe women of Panamá

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No. 49 (2024): Primer Semestre
https://doi.org/10.5354/0719-1472.2024.75302

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to study the impact of (im)mobility on the gender roles and relations of Ngäbe women. The temporary mobility of the Ngäbe indigenous people from Panama to agricultural areas of Costa Rica to work in the coffee harvest means that every year thousands of women leave their communities in the company of their families, while many others remain at home during the mobility of their male counterparts. Based on a 7-month multi-sited ethnography accompanying Ngäbe families in origin and destination, this research analyzes the changes related to gender experienced by Ngäbe women as a result of their temporary mobility to Costa Rica, as well as their immobility during the absence of their male relatives. The trajectories presented show that the (im)mobility of Ngäbe women entails certain changes in their gender roles and positions, as well as in their relationships with their partner, family and community. However, the gender continuities and the transience and superficiality of the changes limits the potential of (im)mobility to generate more structuring transformations in terms of gender.

Keywords:

(im)mobility, indigenous peoples, gender, Ngäbe women, Panama and Costa Rica

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How to Cite
Peñuelas Peñarroya, A. (2024). Temporary (im)mobility as a change factor in the gender roles and relationships of the Ngäbe women of Panamá. Revista Chilena De Antropología, (49), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.5354/0719-1472.2024.75302
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Revista Chilena de Antropología
Facultad de Ciencias Sociales
Universidad de Chile
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