The Phenomenon of the Denial of the Mother Tongue among Mexican Indigenous Migrants in Urban Areas. Violence and the Loss of Diversity

Abstract

In Mexico, indigenous migrants’ conditions in urban areas are particularly difficult. Too many cases exist in which they are not well versed in or are completely unfamiliar with the language spoken in the cities where they arrive. The author analyzes the kind of injustice that the lack of consideration of their linguistic difference represents, since the denial of their mother tongue limits them as active citizens in the national community. She underlines that this is an adaptive strategy in the face of discrimination and rejection and that they are not simply facing a linguistic displacement, outside the political sphere.