350 UNIT 3 MODERN MESOAMERICA
oriented global and transnational form—Mesoamericans cling to this form of agri-
cultural subsistence, in actual and symbolic ways. For example, Yucatec Mayan farm-
ers in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo plant their milpas as they have done for
centuries (Anderson 2005), as do Q’eqchi’ Mayas in the Alta Verapaz region of
Guatemala. Rural Zapotecs and Mixtecs in the state of Oaxaca (Cohen 2004) and
Nahuas living in the Huasteca region of Mexico also practice milpa agriculture. Even
for those Mesoamericans who do not engage in milpa production, maize and the
milpa itself have high symbolic value. For instance, Kaqchikel Mayas living near An-
tigua and Guatemala City are less likely to make milpas. Yet, they still grow small, more
symbolic milpas in their courtyards.
Since the time of the Spanish invasion (see Chapter 5 for an account of this), the
milpa-based agricultural system has been under assault. With growing populations,
changing ecological conditions, and the intensification of the global economy, rela-
tively few Mesoamerican households now have the land needed or the interest in
maintaining this traditional agricultural system. In order to understand why this
change has happened, it is important to keep in mind the forms of production and
labor that have shaped the Mesoamerican economy since the Spanish Colonial pe-
riod (see especially Chapter 5), as well as the many changes brought to the region
during neocolonial and modern periods (see Chapters 7 and 8).ECONOMIC LEGACIES OF COLONIALISM
In this section we will describe current economic practices engaged in by the
Mesoamerican peoples, beginning with an account of what we consider to be the
lingering legacies of colonialism.Peasants in Mesoamerica
Since the Spanish colonial period, a great portion of the population of the region
has been made up of peasants. Most people in Mesoamerica made their living by
working the land and planting crops, usually for themselves and for the market. Al-
though milpa agriculture is still close to the economic ideology of many, if not of
most, indigenous people in Mesoamerica, it is being practiced by fewer and fewer peo-
ple. One of the economic legacies of colonialism is a large peasant sector planting
milpas for their own subsistence, but also to grow crops and make products for the
dominant landowners (in colonial times, the trustees of the Spanish crown and the
Catholic church). With the increased globalization of the economy, not only are
there fewer milperos(persons who grow and subsist on maize), there are also fewer
peasants.
The concept of the peasant has become quite controversial, in part because that
term is used to describe very diverse social sectors, and for that reason, it is too broad
to be useful. Some scholars would prefer to drop the term altogether. Contemporary
scholars have tended to regard the concept of peasant in one of three ways. First, En-
roghi Mayer (2002) argued that peasants continue to persist, despite the globaliza-
tion of the economy, increased transnational movements of people and ideas, and