Tuira Kayapó brandished her machete in the face of a government official who was trying to convince indigenous leaders to accept a mega-dam project in the Amazon, 1989
“Electricity won’t give us food. We need the rivers to flow freely. Don’t talk to us about relieving our ‘poverty’ – we are the richest people in Brazil. We are Indians.”
part of kayapó’s speech during this event
also! she’s still alive! that sort of thing is always worth pointing out to show that we really aren’t too far removed from events like this! here’s a 2019 photo of her:
I just checked, she passed away in August 2024 - but not before working with a filmmaker to make an hour long movie where she explains her life and her activism. If you want to hear what she has to say for herself, here’s the opportunity.
Movie is ‘Tuire Kayapó’ (First Contact) by Pınar Yolaçan, in case the link breaks
“It is extremely difficult to stay alert and attentive, instead of getting hypnotized by the constant monologue inside your own head….learning how to think really means learning how to exercise some control over how and what you think. It means being conscious and aware enough to choose what you pay attention to and to choose how you construct meaning from experience. Because if you cannot exercise this kind of choice in adult life, you will be totally hosed. Think of the old cliché about ‘the mind being an excellent servant but a terrible master.’”