December 1, 2021

The Mayan Community’s Fight Against Industrial Pig Farms in the Yucatán

Description

On October 11, 2021, the US’ first official Indigenous Peoples Day, hundreds of protestors, led by Indigenous activists and community leaders, descended on the White House to demand more effective action to combat the climate crisis. The right to a healthy environment is central to the issues facing Indigenous Peoples across the globe, and to the global population. Join the ABA International Law Section Animal Law Committee and the ABA TIPS’ Animal Law Committee for a close link at the call of the Mayan People to address environmental hazards to humans and local ecosystems posed by industrial pig farms in the Yucatán.

This important discussion will highlight the struggles of Mayan communities in Yucatán, Mexico, against factory farms that threaten indigenous sovereignty, human health, animal welfare, and environmental quality. We’ll hear about this multifaceted issue from a grassroots Yucatán advocate, an attorney representing Mayan communities, a researcher and organizer who lead advocacy in the Yucatán, and an attorney from a broad environmental coalition opposing factory farms in Yucatán.

Panelists

• Lourdes Guadalupe Medina Carrillo, Indignación
• José Celmente May Echeverría, Kanaán Ts'ono't (a grassroots organization defending the Cenotes)
• Karen Hudlet Vazquez, Clark University Ph.D. Student (Geography)
• Alexis Andiman, Earthjustice (Sustainable Food and Farming Program)

Moderator

• Viridiana Lazaro, Greenpeace Mexico