Extractivism and the Pandemic in Latin America and the Caribbean: reading through cinematic lenses

Abstract

The struggle against extractive processes in Latin America and the Caribbean has its roots in colonial processes, which decimated several peoples by exploiting their territories and exterminating ancient cultures. The current health, economic and political crisis reveals that although the impacts of a pandemic affect everyone, certain territories are more vulnerable than others. Likewise, the effects of extractivism are not limited to extractive sites and underlying areas. This article seeks, based on the analysis of concrete examples of extractivism and resistance, found in the documentary and fictional filmography analyzed, to draw parallels between extractivism and the covid-19 pandemic, understanding both processes as interconnected, urgent and with inevitable repercussions. We note that the activities of extractive industries have a transnational character and count on solid support from States, which challenges the classic division between industrialized and extractive countries. We also see an intrinsic connection between rural and urban spaces needed to make extractive projects viable through the urbanization process and the presence of agents circulating between production and circulation spaces. Finally, based on the analysis of tactics to resist extraction, we reflect on the different forms of resistance to large-scale extractive projects and the redefinition of this struggle throughout the pandemic.