Conference Participation

The Use and Effect of Community-Based Structures on Inequality

Paper:  Human Rights Defenders and Democratic Practices in Mining Contexts

Abstract: Violence against human rights defenders is rapidly increasing around the world; these rates are especially alarming in Latin America. Such abuse occurs in the corporate context, in which human rights defenders are targeted by employees of the firm, armed groups, or even military or police forces. In this paper, we examine how communities engage in contestation with mining companies in a comparative study of cases in Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico. Large-scale mining projects affect the environmental and social rights of nearby communities, often violating the rights of racial and ethnic minorities. Drawing from qualitative interviews, our research explores how communities respond. We document how communities learn about legal processes and rights protections, engage in knowledge production, facilitate impact monitoring, and employ institutional procedures when possible. We find such practices can strengthen their negotiation capacity and empower them to challenge firm- or state-level decisions that are made without community participation in contexts of weak institutions and power asymmetries. Our analysis shows that, even in adverse situations, communities use their agency and facilitate action through alliances, collective mobilization, and the strategic use of legal tools. Taken together, these findings offer a more nuanced understanding of how community action sustains democratic life in contexts of inequality and extractivism. In sum, we show how communities practice democracy from below and activate existing legal frameworks to defend their territories and rights. Our research reveals how democracy is exercised and redefined in contexts of institutional fragility and limited rights enforcement.

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