History
Janitzio, Michoacán is home to the P’urépecha peoples.
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In 1522, devastation occurred when the colonizers arrived in their homelands. The P’urépecha also known as the Tarascan empire expanded from current days states of Michoacán, parts of Guerrero, Guanajuato, and Querétaro.
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As the colonizers took power away from the Indigenous peoples and into their greedy hands, they implemented a caste system, this caste system was directly related to the skin color of an individual. To this day, while the caste system has long been removed the historical implications of skin type has a strong relationship to the racism experienced among white Latinx and dark Latinx. Recognizing these systems of racism relate to the experiences that Indigenous peoples have experienced for hundreds of years of colonization by the Mexican state.
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Between 1877 and 1910 Indigenous images, artifacts, and their identity started to become part of museums and showcases, demonstrating the people of the past. Tourists started to rise as they started to look for the exotic cultures.
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As we move on forward through time we can start to see material, such as costumes, images, people, become molded as representations of Mexicaness. At the same time, different congress departments, especially in education, policies started to be implemented to colonize Indigenous peoples. The discourse of wanting the "Indian" but only "civilized" affected the ways in which folklore and costumes were practiced across the Mexico.
By the late 19th century Patzcuaro, Michoacán, Mexico and its surrounding islands started to become of special interest. Many well-known authors and people started to write about their experiences in this magical place. The Janitzio residents viewed tourists as a problem, and did not welcome non community members to visit their home. Members of congress however saw the possibility of the economic gain and started to implement policies to increase tourism to the island.
La danza de los viejitos of Jaracuaro became a nationalistic dance. It became practiced in political parties, became advertised in local and national newsletter. As the popularity increased they started to perform their dance outside their ancestral home, and with time this dance has been practiced globally.