Abstract
The third episode of the series Maps towards Just Futures explores how colonial maps reshaped Abya Yala, inscribing European power onto Indigenous territories and civilizations that had long existed. Built on Indigenous knowledge yet erasing its sources, these maps often masked violence, genocide, and dispossession under the guise of science and neutrality. Decorative imagery, shifting borders, and technical signs created illusions of control over lands that resisted conquest. Maps also categorized peoples as “allies” or “enemies,” reinforcing colonial hierarchies. By the late eighteenth century, Indigenous, Afro-Indigenous, and enslaved communities rose in rebellions and revolutions, challenging colonial domination and reclaiming histories of resistance across the Americas.
Citation
Pensa, Laura, Scigliano, Federico, and Federico Scigliano. 2024. 'Maps towards Just Futures: Episode 3. Borders, Empires, and Enemies'. Dispossessions in the Americas. https://dia.upenn.edu/en/content/PensaL006/
