Can the Power of Star-Gazing be an Effective Counter to the Threat of Marginalization? Al Jazeera
go to original January 15, 2013

Can the power of star-gazing be an effective counter to the threat of marginalization in parts of Latin America?

Sofia and Yayo believe it can. They are amateur astronomers and trained sociologists from Argentina who have travelled the continent, working with disenfranchised communities to help them look upwards to the stars as well as inwards at their own cultural identity.

Their creative star-gazing workshops open up a way for stressed, indigenous communities to re-engage with their cultural heritage and better deal with their contemporary circumstances.

This film follows Sofia and Yayo on the last leg of their trans-continental journey, to the remote Chiapas/Mayan region of Mexico and the village of Acetal. People here have suffered as a consequence of being part of the Zapatista insurgency.

As the two travellers arrive at their latest destination they plunge into working with children and teachers in an abandoned school. Using an array of makeshift astronomy gadgets, we watch as they look at the stars, explore their ancient legends, write their own stories and work with the elders to create a sustainable legacy for the next generation.

Sofia and Yayo learn from these experiences as well. Their own personal story runs a second thread through the film, as Sofia prepares to give birth to their daughter in July while in Chiapas.

This is a road trip with a difference, a route through Mexico's contemporary wreckage and its mystical past via an uplifting prism of stars, stories and surprises.

• Mexico has one of the highest percentages of indigenous people in Latin America. The indigenous population of Mexico is 12.7 million who speak at least 62 different languages.

• However, indigenous rights were not recognised by the Mexican government until 1992.

• Most indigenous people in Mexico are located in the southern region of the country, predominantly in the state of Chiapas.

• In the last 20 years there have been a number of protest movements, the most notable and violent led by the Zapatistas in 1994. Their goal remains to gain further autonomy and broader self-determination of indigenous recognition and rights.

Read more at Al Jazeera

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