Indigenous Knowledge and Practices on Disability in Latin America

This book presents Indigenous knowledge, cultural practices, and lived experiences of disability among Indigenous peoples in Latin America. It explores worldviews, community life, and struggles for rights and recognition that shape healing, care, and social participation. Comprising twelve chapters written by eighteen authors, it brings together perspectives from history, education, health, territorial economy, communication, and social sciences. Readers will find unique insights into often overlooked topics such as access to land, preservation of Indigenous languages, Indigenous sign languages, genealogies, and community-led disability initiatives. The authors highlight how Indigenous communities create inclusive spaces, resist discrimination, and sustain cultural identity, offering both theoretical reflections and practical approaches.
By combining academic research with lived experience, this book is an essential resource for scholars in disability studies, Indigenous rights, anthropology, social policy, and anyone seeking to understand the intersection of culture, disability, and social justice in Latin America.

Michelle Lapierre is Assistant Professor in the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences at the University of La Frontera, Chile. Her research focuses on critical disability studies, disability in Indigenous people, intercultural health, and disability activism. She is part of the Critical Disability Studies Working Group in the Latin American Council of Social Sciences (CLACSO) and the Millennium Nucleus Studies on Disability and Citizenship (DISCA), Chile.