Abstract
This paper examines the state-sponsored genocide against Indigenous communities in Guatemala’s Ixil and Ixcán regions between 1980 and 1983, analyzing how geographical, ethnic, and political factors con-tributed to the multiple massacres committed in these regions. By tracing the historical trajectory from the 1954 CIA-backed coup that overthrew President Jacobo Árbenz Guzmán to the counterinsurgency op-erations under General Efraín Ríos Montt, this research highlights how Cold War geopolitics, entrenched racism, and disputes over Mayan territories converged to justify mass extermination. Drawing on de-classified military documents, historical archives, and scholarly works on Latin American conflict and mem-ory, this study challenges the “Dos Demonios” thesis, emphasizing Indigenous agency and resistance (Foss 2022). Ultimately, this paper argues that the Guatemalan genocide was not a byproduct of civil war but a deliberate campaign to eliminate Indigenous identity and autonomy in the name of “national security.”
Recommended Citation
Recinos, Barbara
(2025)
"Genocide in Guatemala: The Massacres In the Ixil Region,"
The Crown: Syracuse Honors Research Journal: Vol. 2, Article 11.
Available at:
https://surface.syr.edu/thecrown/vol2/iss1/11