The Aripae o's Landscape: Local Control Within Global Reality

The Aripae o are maroon descendants living in the Lower Caura region of Bol var state, Venezuela. A product of an earlier process of globalization that gave rise to the Atlantic slave trade, present-day Aripae o continue to resist any outside influence, intervention, or penetration that could spur sociocultural relations of inequality and (in)difference. Although they are consciously aware of the sociocultural disparities inherent in the modern world capitalist system, this does not imply that they are necessarily against the globalizing tendencies of modernity. Rather, their desire is to have direct participation and control over the resources that they consider important for their cultural production, representation, and reproduction. Through the utilization of the concept of "landscape" as an integrated and yet polysemic cultural repertoire, the aim of this article is to demonstrate that the Aripae o's commitment to their traditional way of life still incorporates their appreciation of modernity and globalization.