Identidad femenina y exclusión social : experiencias y estrategias de las mujeres shuar en contextos de vulnerabilidad. Caso comunidad Masuk Las Vegas.

Abstract

The Shuar people are one of the most representative indigenous nationalities in Ecuador. Currently, Shuar women face several challenges: limited access to economic income and a reduced capacity for decision-making regarding both their personal lives and the political matters that impact their community—issues that are further exacerbated by mining activities. This research aims to characterize how Shuar women from the Masuk Las Vegas community construct their identity by analyzing their life experiences, vulnerabilities, the barriers they encounter, and the coping strategies they develop. The study utilized a qualitative, intersectional, and descriptive-interpretative approach grounded in hermeneutics. Data were collected through an interview with the community leader and a focus group involving 10 Shuar women. The results revealed that the Shuar woman's identity is intrinsically linked to the conservation of territory and ancestral knowledge. Nowadays, the organization of labor has shifted due to men's employment in the mines, where female labor is not hired, thereby marginalizing women from the workforce and the socio-political sphere. Shuar women have developed resilience tactics based on self-affirmation and the dismantling of symbolic violence. From an intersectional perspective, this collective process produces independent successes that challenge social paternalism. Therefore, their resilience is not merely a simple adaptation but a political conflict where identity and cultural capital serve as instruments for change and social justice.