Area of Study:  selk’nam – tierra del fuego

The project “Recuperando la memoria Selk’nam” (Revitalising Collective Selk’nam Memory) focuses on the Selk’nam community’s efforts to revive their cultural identity and reclaim their history. The process led by Hema’ny Molina Vargas and her daughter Fernanda Olivares Molina, aims to counter decades of an “extinct” narrative imposed by colonial accounts and formal education in Chile. Until 2023, the Selk’nam were legally unrecognized and widely misrepresented, despite being the original inhabitants of Tierra del Fuego. Their legal battle culminated in Chile’s National Congress recognizing them as one of the country’s 11 original peoples, a victory that, while significant, marks only the beginning of a longer fight for true cultural revitalization. The initiative led by these two Selk’nam woman combines public education, community gatherings, and trips that reconnect Selk’nam families with their ancestral lands. These efforts are aimed at healing generational trauma inflicted by historical violence, forced exile, and cultural appropriation. The community Selk’nam also works to preserve and re-learn traditional practices, language, and oral histories, challenging biased academic narratives and external misinterpretations. Through the Fundación Hach Saye, they actively reshape their history, asserting that their living culture—embodied in everyday practices and family memories—continues to thrive despite centuries of oppression