Yalitza Aparicio, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, participated in a reading aloud for children and teenagers and a dialogue at the Guadalajara International Book Fair (FIL). She attracted around one thousand people. This number exceeds the number of users of 12 indigenous languages in critical danger in Mexico.
Languages reach that category when their youngest speakers belong to the elderly generation and only partially remember their language or no longer use it daily, as there are few people to speak with. Therefore, it is urgent to foster curiosity about cultural and linguistic diversity without prejudice or bias and create opportunities for learning from childhood.
Thus, UNESCO and Yalitza Aparicio called for the normalization of the use of indigenous languages to counteract discrimination, hate speech, racism, and violence against indigenous and racialized people. This situation has led older generations, as a protective measure, to avoid passing on their mother tongue, while younger generations either avoid using it or do not know it at all.
The UNESCO World Atlas of Languages, which received data from public institutions and academic communities for its 2010 and 2015 editions, has classified 16 Indigenous languages in Mexico as critically endangered:
- Awakateko with only 20 speakers, according to 2020 data from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography,
- Qatok with 126 in the same year, including those who use the Mochó and Tuzanteco variants,
- Kikapú, Ayapaneco (a variant of Zoque from Tabasco), Kiliwa, Oluteco, and Teko, each with fewer than 100 speakers,
- Ixil, Kaqchikel, Cucapá, and Ixcateco, with more than 100 but fewer than 200,
- Although 231 individuals reported speaking the Paipai language, 771 Lacandon, 38,507 Mayo (Yoremnokki), and 18,827 Huave of San Francisco del Mar (Umbeyajt), they are still considered critically endangered due to their dominance among older generations.
Improving working conditions for teachers and translators of Indigenous languages through more resources, balanced training options collectively agreed upon, and providing educational and outreach materials were proposals shared to counter those trends.
One example of such materials is the book What Makes Us Human? by Victor D. O. Santos and illustrations by Anna Forlati, presented by Yalitza Aparicio. The picture book is being edited in various languages and countries with the support of UNESCO as part of the International Decade of Indigenous Languages 2022-2032. The first edition in Mexico was a Spanish and Otomi from Santiago Mexquititlán bilingual format, with funding from the Culture Secretariat of Querétaro.
"It is a pedagogical material that, there would be many more stories to tell if it were available in each of the 68 linguistic families and their respective Indigenous variants in Mexico," said Aparicio.
This way, children who felt that their language and school were very different places could, in the future, feel that they are one.
Aurelio Núñez López, linguist and member of the Hñañho College, and Ewald Hekking, linguist and Otomi specialist, translated the book into Otomi, shared a reading aloud with Yalitza Aparicio and participated in a public dialogue. This event was particularly significant due to the participation of the Mazahua, Mixtec, Otomi, Tzotzil, Wixárika, and Zapotec communities.
Increasing the representation of Indigenous Peoples, strengthening the participation of their members, and the inclusion of Indigenous languages in public spaces and media were other articulated recommendations, from signage in the cities to an intercultural and multilingual educational model that enables literacy in Indigenous languages at all levels, as well as their involvement and leadership in creative and cultural industries, such as cinema.
The goal is to recognize, promote, and include linguistic diversity in everyday life, thus fostering sustainable development and compensating Indigenous Peoples and their descendants.
Regarding this context, Yalitza launched a question: How many Indigenous persons are unjustly in prison because they did not have access to a translator?
Viridiana García, National Communication and Information Officer of UNESCO in Mexico, explained that around 80% of indigenous people were unable to defend themselves under the principle of innocence because they did not understand the process or reason for their detention, so they could not access a proper procedure.
Mexico has 68 linguistic families and 364 indigenous languages, so UNESCO remains committed to promoting and defending cultural and linguistic diversity by supporting various sectors.
When a language disappears, a worldview, a way of seeing life, and an identity disappear.
Although Otomi has existed for over 1500 years, Aurelio highlighted that it is also at risk of disappearing, along with Nahuatl and Maya, two of the most spoken languages, including their writing systems. He emphasized that translators are essential for fostering intercultural dialogue, and their "specialized work must be well compensated, just like with dominant languages".
Ewald Hekking shared that, 50 years ago, there were Nahuatl courses at the university where he studied in the Netherlands. This anecdote surprised the audience in the Juan Rulfo auditorium. "It is necessary to teach students and children about respect for different cultures and languages," he stated.
Victor D. O. Santos had a similar experience when studying linguistics in Brazil, his home country. He was surprised that many people believed indigenous languages were the simplest. "This was the beginning of showing how important, complex, and beautiful indigenous languages can be".
Being a speaker of Portuguese, married to a Russian speaker, and father of children born in the United States, he sought a way to instil in his family the interest to speak all three languages and understand the importance of linguistic diversity, which led him to create What Makes Us Human?
The book has 26 language editions. Mapuche is one of them for the Chilean edition, and its government financed the distribution of 27,000 copies in schools and institutions.
In this sense, Yalitza Aparicio emphasized the importance of providing resources for projects that promote and spread indigenous languages.
Allowing us to learn about languages is the first step in building a more inclusive and humane society.
Viridiana García also invited people to recover cultural memory by identifying words from indigenous languages incorporated into dominant languages, such as Mexican Spanish. One example is the word xocoyotita, which comes from Nahuatl xocoyotl and means the youngest child in the family, a word frequently used by her maternal grandmother.
UNESCO in Mexico continues to invite governments and the private sector to support the international project What Makes Us Human?, providing financial resources to publish more editions in more Indigenous languages and increase their distribution, with the aim that the pride of using an indigenous language becomes the norm, not the exception.
