Analysis of ex/refugee women’s bodies and Mayan indigenous clothing: the case of Los Laureles, Campeche, Mexico

Abstract

This article addresses why, among Guatemalan Mayan indigenous women, the body must be dressed in cultural dress and none other. Thus, as a case study, it discusses the situation of Guatemalan Mayan indigenous ex-refugee women living in Los Laureles, Campeche, Campeche—a community for refugees founded by the Mexican State—who still weave on backstrap looms and wear their traditional clothing, without fully integrating into the foreign culture. In this regard, and through the analysis of the sensorial and emotional aspects related to cultural dress (i.e. 'separating from the body' and 'recovering the body (through it)') which derived from their relocation to Mexico, we will approach to the relationship between the refugees' bodies and their respective typical garments. The data stems from two ethnographic fieldwork sojourns conducted in January 2022 and February 2023, respectively, and are examined under the light of the anthropology and the sociology of senses and emotions.