PARSIPPANY — Jaya Minhas, an Albright College senior French/Spanish major presented research at the Higher Education Council of Berks County’s 18th annual Undergraduate Research & Creativity Conference, held at Penn State Berks on April 22. She is a a graduate of Parsippany Hills High School, Class of 2012.
Minhas presented “The Condition of Indigenous Women in Bolivia.”
This year’s conference theme was sustainability.
The conference highlights undergraduate research from the five Berks County colleges and universities in the sciences, humanities, social sciences and arts. Students present papers, posters, performances and artwork.
The Higher Education Council of Berks County includes Albright College, Alvernia University, Kutztown University, Penn State Berks, and Reading Area Community College.
The Condition of Indigenous Women in Bolivia
This project explores the condition of women and their rights within the indigenous communities of the Andean Region. Within such communities, issues of domestic violence stress the presence of a patriarchal rule, contributing to the present situation of female inferiority and a lack of access to human rights. Domestic violence and sexual abuse, most commonly from male relatives and employers, is normalized for indigenous women. A gap in research in this area results in the status quo and calls for further studies to highlight injustices. Prior to the 16th century arrival of conquistadors, Andean communities were egalitarian, and women held positions of power. The present research references articles exploring the gender identity in Andean society,and patriarchy, which creates financial dependency of the victim on her abuser. Conclusions reflect the condition of indigenous women as a lasting effect of Spanish colonization. The present study analyzes and connects various resources as an impetus to positive social change impacting women’s rights in indigenous communities, as they suffer from cycles of injustice without political or social representation.
