Nam e: ______________________________
Anthr opology 273: Discoverin g Dom in ga Discu ssion Question s
©Am y Todd, UMass B oston
Handw r itten notes due W ednesday 11/12 an d again Fr iday 11/14
Film Summary: Discovering Dominga, a POV documentary, premiered in 2003: “When 29-year-old
Iowa housewife Denese Becker decides to return to the Guatemalan village where she was born, she
begins a journey towards finding her roots, but one filled with harrowing revelations… On March 13,
1982, Denese Becker was a nine-year-old Maya girl named Dominga living in the Maya highlands, when
the Guatemalan army entered the village of Rio Negro. By the time the soldiers left, hundreds of people,
including 70 women and 107 children, had been massacred and dumped in a mass grave. They became
part of the estimated 4,000 to 5,000 men, women and children killed in the Rio Negro area by military
forces from 1980 to 1983.” http://archive.pov.org/discoveringdominga/film-description/
You may access the documentary with transcript via Canvas in the folder on Guatemalan Post-Colonial
History. Please be prepared for some disturbing content, including images and descriptions of violence
and war crimes. Please contact me if you have concerns about viewing the documentary.
K now these ter m s, people & places m en tion ed in the docum en tar y:
Rio Negro (original village); Rabinal (resettlement community) – find on google maps- A Maya
Achí village in Guatemala that was destroyed in 1982 during Guatemala’s civil conflict, linked
to violence connected to the Chixoy Dam construction.
Algona Iowa – find on google maps- A small city in Iowa, USA, where Denese Becker (a Rio
Negro survivor adopted by an American family) grew up. (Google Maps coordinates: 43.0697°
N, 94.2330° W)
Achí- An indigenous Maya ethnic group of Guatemala, primarily inhabiting Baja Verapaz, with
their own language (Maya Achí).
Campesinos- Rural peasants or farmers, typically small-scale agricultural workers in Latin
America.
Chixoy Dam- A hydroelectric dam in Guatemala completed in 1985; its construction displaced
Maya Achí communities and was linked to mass killings.
Denese Becker- A survivor of the Rio Negro massacre, originally known as Dominga Sic Ruiz,
adopted into the U.S. after losing her family.
Mary Purvis- Adoptive mother of Denese Becker, living in Algona, Iowa.
Fredy Peccerelli- A Guatemalan forensic anthropologist, founder of the Forensic Anthropology
Foundation of Guatemala (FAFG), known for exhumations of mass grave sites.
Exhumation- The process of digging up buried bodies, often for forensic investigation and
identification of victims of atrocities.
, Civil Defense Patrols (Spanish: Patrullas de Autodefensa Civil, PAC)- Patrullas de
Autodefensa Civil, PAC) – Paramilitary groups organized by the Guatemalan government
during its civil war, often involved in violence against civilians.
Leftist insurgents/guerrillas (Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity organization (URNG))-
Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity; a coalition of leftist guerrilla groups fighting against
military regimes during the civil war.
Crimes Against Humanity/War Crimes- International legal terms describing severe acts
committed against civilians during conflict, such as murder, torture, and persecution.
Genocide- The deliberate killing of a large group of people, especially those of a particular
ethnic group or nation; in Guatemala, applied to acts against the Maya population during the civil
war.
K now these ter m s, people & places m en tion ed in the lectur e and other r esour ces:
UFCO- A powerful U.S. corporation that dominated banana production in Central America;
heavily influenced politics and economies, often accused of exploiting workers and colluding
with governments.
“Banana Republic” (the original meaning, see article posted on Smithsonian.org)- Coined by
writer O. Henry, describing politically unstable countries dependent on a single crop export (like
bananas) and dominated by foreign corporations.
Agrarian Reform- Government policy redistributing agricultural land from wealthy elites or
corporations to landless farmers to promote equality and productivity.
Jacobo Árbenz Guzmán (Arbenz)- Democratically elected president of Guatemala (1951–1954)
who implemented agrarian reform, ultimately overthrown in a U.S.-backed coup.
Expropriation- Government seizure of private property (often with compensation) for public use;
in Guatemala, Arbenz expropriated unused UFCO lands for redistribution.
The Cold War- The political, ideological, and military rivalry (1947–1991) between the U.S. and
Soviet Union, marked by proxy wars, espionage, and competition for global influence.
Covert operation- Secret military or political activities intended to influence events abroad
without public acknowledgment or overt military force.
Overthrow- Forcible removal of a government from power, often via coup d’état.
CIA- The U.S. agency responsible for foreign intelligence gathering and covert operations,
including interventions in other nations.
School of the Americas (renamed Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation
(WHINSEC)- U.S. military training center in Latin America, criticized for training soldiers and
officers who committed human rights abuses.
Anthr opology 273: Discoverin g Dom in ga Discu ssion Question s
©Am y Todd, UMass B oston
Handw r itten notes due W ednesday 11/12 an d again Fr iday 11/14
Film Summary: Discovering Dominga, a POV documentary, premiered in 2003: “When 29-year-old
Iowa housewife Denese Becker decides to return to the Guatemalan village where she was born, she
begins a journey towards finding her roots, but one filled with harrowing revelations… On March 13,
1982, Denese Becker was a nine-year-old Maya girl named Dominga living in the Maya highlands, when
the Guatemalan army entered the village of Rio Negro. By the time the soldiers left, hundreds of people,
including 70 women and 107 children, had been massacred and dumped in a mass grave. They became
part of the estimated 4,000 to 5,000 men, women and children killed in the Rio Negro area by military
forces from 1980 to 1983.” http://archive.pov.org/discoveringdominga/film-description/
You may access the documentary with transcript via Canvas in the folder on Guatemalan Post-Colonial
History. Please be prepared for some disturbing content, including images and descriptions of violence
and war crimes. Please contact me if you have concerns about viewing the documentary.
K now these ter m s, people & places m en tion ed in the docum en tar y:
Rio Negro (original village); Rabinal (resettlement community) – find on google maps- A Maya
Achí village in Guatemala that was destroyed in 1982 during Guatemala’s civil conflict, linked
to violence connected to the Chixoy Dam construction.
Algona Iowa – find on google maps- A small city in Iowa, USA, where Denese Becker (a Rio
Negro survivor adopted by an American family) grew up. (Google Maps coordinates: 43.0697°
N, 94.2330° W)
Achí- An indigenous Maya ethnic group of Guatemala, primarily inhabiting Baja Verapaz, with
their own language (Maya Achí).
Campesinos- Rural peasants or farmers, typically small-scale agricultural workers in Latin
America.
Chixoy Dam- A hydroelectric dam in Guatemala completed in 1985; its construction displaced
Maya Achí communities and was linked to mass killings.
Denese Becker- A survivor of the Rio Negro massacre, originally known as Dominga Sic Ruiz,
adopted into the U.S. after losing her family.
Mary Purvis- Adoptive mother of Denese Becker, living in Algona, Iowa.
Fredy Peccerelli- A Guatemalan forensic anthropologist, founder of the Forensic Anthropology
Foundation of Guatemala (FAFG), known for exhumations of mass grave sites.
Exhumation- The process of digging up buried bodies, often for forensic investigation and
identification of victims of atrocities.
, Civil Defense Patrols (Spanish: Patrullas de Autodefensa Civil, PAC)- Patrullas de
Autodefensa Civil, PAC) – Paramilitary groups organized by the Guatemalan government
during its civil war, often involved in violence against civilians.
Leftist insurgents/guerrillas (Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity organization (URNG))-
Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity; a coalition of leftist guerrilla groups fighting against
military regimes during the civil war.
Crimes Against Humanity/War Crimes- International legal terms describing severe acts
committed against civilians during conflict, such as murder, torture, and persecution.
Genocide- The deliberate killing of a large group of people, especially those of a particular
ethnic group or nation; in Guatemala, applied to acts against the Maya population during the civil
war.
K now these ter m s, people & places m en tion ed in the lectur e and other r esour ces:
UFCO- A powerful U.S. corporation that dominated banana production in Central America;
heavily influenced politics and economies, often accused of exploiting workers and colluding
with governments.
“Banana Republic” (the original meaning, see article posted on Smithsonian.org)- Coined by
writer O. Henry, describing politically unstable countries dependent on a single crop export (like
bananas) and dominated by foreign corporations.
Agrarian Reform- Government policy redistributing agricultural land from wealthy elites or
corporations to landless farmers to promote equality and productivity.
Jacobo Árbenz Guzmán (Arbenz)- Democratically elected president of Guatemala (1951–1954)
who implemented agrarian reform, ultimately overthrown in a U.S.-backed coup.
Expropriation- Government seizure of private property (often with compensation) for public use;
in Guatemala, Arbenz expropriated unused UFCO lands for redistribution.
The Cold War- The political, ideological, and military rivalry (1947–1991) between the U.S. and
Soviet Union, marked by proxy wars, espionage, and competition for global influence.
Covert operation- Secret military or political activities intended to influence events abroad
without public acknowledgment or overt military force.
Overthrow- Forcible removal of a government from power, often via coup d’état.
CIA- The U.S. agency responsible for foreign intelligence gathering and covert operations,
including interventions in other nations.
School of the Americas (renamed Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation
(WHINSEC)- U.S. military training center in Latin America, criticized for training soldiers and
officers who committed human rights abuses.
