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Rigoberta Menchu

Rigoberta Menchú has been a passionate spokesperson for the rights of indigenous peoples. She won a Nobel Peace Prize in 1992 for her work on behalf of the indigenous groups of Guatemala, her native country. However, her work has made her a leading voice for the rights of indigenous peoples throughout the Western Hemisphere.

Rigoberta Menchú was born on January 9, 1959, in Chimel, a village in the Quiché province in the mountainous northwest region of Guatemala. Menchú started working on southern coastal cotton and coffee plantations when she was eight, and at age 13, she experienced her first close contact with people of Spanish culture when she worked as a maid for a wealthy family in Guatemala City. At this time, Menchú also experienced discrimination against Indians practiced by Latinos. Her employers made her sleep on the floor, on a mat next to the family dog.

Menchú's political beliefs were shaped by Guatemala's troubled history. In 1954, a left-wing civilian president was removed from power by a coup d'état that was supported by the U.S. Central Int

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Menchú, Rigoberta (1959—)

Mayan indigenous-rights activist who won the 1992 Nobel Peace Prize.Name variations: Rigoberta Menchu; Rigoberta Menchú Tum or Menchú-Tum. Pronunciation: Ree-go-BER-ta Men-CHU. Born on January 9, 1959, in Chimel, Guatemala; daughter of Vicente Menchú (a peasant and political organizer) and Juana Tum (a peasant midwife and healer); married Ángel Canil also seen as Angel Camile, in January 1998; children: Mash Nahual J'a.

Overthrow of Arbenz government (1954); birth of Rigoberta Menchú (1959); great earthquake (February 1976); organization of CUC (1976–78); Panzós massacre (May 1978); torture and murder of Petrocinio Menchú Tum (September 1979); massacre at the Spanish embassy and death of Vicente Menchú (January 1980); torture and murder of Juana Tum (April 1980); Menchú's escape to Mexico (1980); first publication of Me llamo Rigoberta Menchú (I, Rigoberta Menchú, 1983); brief arrest of Menchú on her return to Guatemala (1988); Menchú awarded the Nobel Peace Prize (October 16, 1992); Peace Prize conferred (December 10, 1992); Menchú heads Un

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Born into poverty and repression, human rights speaker Rigoberta Menchu-Tum leads a continuing effort to secure indigenous rights. A riveting public speaker, Rigoberta Menchu-Tum delivers her message of courage, dignity and also perseverance to audiences around the world.

Born to Resistance

As a child, Rigoberta Menchu-Tum picked coffee beans with her family on plantations across Guatemala. Members of the Quiche branch of the Mayan culture, the Menchu-Tums were subject to harassment both from plantation owners and from government officials. Menchu-Tum’s parents refused to accept their fate, as did Rigoberta.

As a teenager, Menchu-Tum was active in the women’s rights movement, and also joined social-reform efforts sponsored by the Catholic Church. After her father was imprisoned and tortured on suspicion of guerrilla activities, he joined the Committee of the Peasant Union. The CUC, as it was commonly known, was Guatemala’s most effective indigenous resistance organization, and Rigoberta soon joined as well.

Within two years, her father and brother were each killed by governmen