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Plot
“Voices of the Sierra Madre Tarahumara” is a documentary film about the environmental struggles and political plight the Rarámuri indigenous community of the Sierra Madre Occidental located in the northern state of Chihuahua, Mexico have encountered for the past two decades. Directed by Robert Brewster and Felix Gehm, the documentary film depicts how the Rarámuri have faced many political disputes with the Mexican government as well as the infamous drug cartels of Mexico. Issues encompassing the Mexican government’s allowance of the World Bank’s Re-forestry Project have pinnacled the Rarámuri community’s frustration. With the support and education provided by non-governmental organization leaders, the documentary describes the ways in which NGO’s have tailored to not only the deforestation issue which has contributed to the death of many Rarámuri members due to starvation and resistance to drug traffickers agricultural interests, but also depicts the oppression of Rarámuri indigenous cultural preservation against the drug cartels from stealing Rarámuri native lands for mass marijuana and opium farming in areas in the Sierra Madre Occidental- home to the Raramuri People. Throughout the documentary both environmentalists and human rights activists have organized to bring justice to the many injustices of the Rarámuri community. In a collective effort with the community, Edwin Bustillos, a former World Bank official and current founder of Consejo Asesor de la Sierra Madre Tarahumara, as well as Guadalupe Rivas, a human rights worker in Mexico, and Randy Gingrich, a member of the Sierra Madre Alliance, to name a few have carved a path for the Raramuri to gain voice in the political arenas of Mexican politics.

Background History of the Rarámuri
The Rarámuri native community’s traditionally believe that since “we” (humans) were not the first to be created, we are the ones created to take care of, respect and contribute to the cycle of the given world we live in. Erasmos Palma, a Rarámuri poet, tells at the beginning of the film “Voices of the Sierra Madre Tarahumara”, “In the beginning, the water, the earth, the fire and the air created all that dwell on the earth. Like the trees and animals, people were planted.” In the midst of colonization and modern industrialization, Rarámuri culture has become a precious and endangered way of traditional life without the commodities of urban society. Although there are a few versions of Rarámuri creation stories, it has been said that the Raramuri were created through their “god” known as Repá betéame (he who lives above/ our grandfather and grandmother) or Onorúame. Other stories describe the use of tesqüino, a corn-based tequila, thrown into the air by Repá betéame or Onorúame and landed in four directions where Rarámuri pueblas were created; Hence why Rarámuri communities are dispersed throughout the Sierra Madre region and not secluded to one concentrated area. Although stories have been re-told and re-invented especially during the long-lasted Catholicism invasion with the missionaries during the Mexican conquest in the 19th and 20th century, these pueblas distinguish the different bands of the Rarámuri People which some such as those that live in Pino Gordo are also depicted in the documentary film. Additionally, Tesqüino is an essential part of Rarámuri tradition in both life and sacred ritual ceremonies that has never left Rarámuri religious practices even when the Jesuit priests, specifically Luis G. Verplancken, harnessed much Rarámuri religious control over traditional Uto-Aztecan Rarámuri religion. Because of 150 years of Jesuit and Spaniard captivity, Rarámuri religious cosmology has experienced altering features implementing Roman Catholic beliefs and symbols. Ultimately, Rarámuri history has been a struggle to yield simplicity and respect for the land and those that dwell on it for the continuing generations to follow. Living in a remote region far from roads and urbanization, Rarámuri do not use motorized vehicles as a means to commute but instead use their feet, which has been not only been their symbolic trademark to show chabochi society (outsiders), but for chabochi  to recognize that we need to de-construct modern ways of living because it is not sustainable. Even though Rarámuri lifestyle has made us famous around the world to stereotype what it is to look and live “indigenous”, till this day Rarámuri have continued to fight against westernized ways of living. But amidst a severely harsh drought, environmental injustice due to deforestation, and political marginalization above all has made it tremendously difficult to maintain indigenous livelihood.

Cast and Crew
Robert Brewster and Felix Gehm- Directors

Peter Coyote- Narrator

Erasmo Palma- Rarámuri Poet/Musician

Edwin Bustillos- Former World Bank official/ Founder of Consejo de Asesor de la Sierra Madre

Bruce Rich- expert on the World Bank/ Lawyer for Environmental Defense Fund

Randy Gingrich- Environmentalist-- Sierra Madre Alliance

Libraro Cruz- Gobernador-- Traditional Leader

Esteban Ayala- Murder Victim 1999

Gomerchindo Torres- Rarámuri Human Rights Worker

Josefa Chapparo Borges- Murder Witness

Andelina Fontes Medina- Murder Witness

Teresa Jardi- Former Federal Attorney General of the State of Chihuahua

Augustin Fontes- Convicted Murderer (charged with ten murders)

Guadelupe Rivas- Human Rights Worker

Maria Teresa Guerrero- Human Rights Activist

Pablino Loya- Rarámuri now living near Chihuahua City

Robert Brewster and Felix Gehm- Writers

Robert Brewster and Felix Gehm- Producers

Octavio Gasca and John Ruebartsch- Co-Producers

Joeseph Chase- Associate Producer

Robert Brewster and Felix Gehm- Editors

John Ruebartsch- Assistant Editor

John Deborde- Music Composer

Jim Bayes- Guitar

Robert Brewster- Camera

Felix Gehm- Sound

Key Themes in film
Voices of the Sierra Madre Tarahumara illustrates three main dilemmas the native raramuri group faces to the present day: deforestation, illicit drug cultivation, and migration. Pino Gordo, Colorados De La Virgen, and Baborigame are the applied to the last remaining areas in Northern Mexico that contain old growth pine oak woodlands. These old growth woodlands are key to the Raramuri culture since they provide diverse medicinal plants to the community. The film introduces Edwin Bustillos as a strong advocate who started fighting for the indigenous rights of the Raramuri. Formerly a World Bank official who was appointed to supervise the Re-Forestry Project in Chihuahua, Edwin Bustillos recognized the criminal activities being employed to the lands of the Raramuri community. Because of the severity the deforestation has brought to the lives of the Sierra Madre Occidental, Edwin Bustillo became the Founder of Consejo de Asesor de la Sierra Madre, a non-governmental organization for the. Through the use of lobbying, Bustillo aims to protect indigenous rights and reservations from wealthy landowners and timber companies.

The film portrays the struggles the Tarahumara’s natives face with logging companies. There have been multiple times in which privatized companies disregard the indigenous territorial rights and destroy the homes of many Raramuri people forcing them to migrate to the city. The film further shows how many indigenous families from the Tarahumara are offered and coerced into accepting bribes from developers  for their land which perpetuates migration to the city. Randall Gingrich argues that the migration from the rural lands to the urban cities is how the loss of culture and traditions diminishes (Gingrich, Ref. 1). He further elaborates on how privatization affects conservations since companies will just sell the land to developers.With the deforestation of natural resources in the Sierra Madre, 26 threatened and endangered species only found in the area will go extinct (Gingrich, Ref. 1), and many either flee deeper into the Copper Canyon and forest or into urban cities of Chihuahua.

Along with logging companies offering brides to the Raramuri community, drug cartels also try to bribe families into selling their land so that they can cultivate massive amounts of marijuana and opium yields. Voices of Sierra Madre Tarahumara portrays how the Mexican government officials also involve themselves with the exploitation of the Raramuri people in forcing them out of their homes and then cultivating illegal drug plants such as marijuana within the lands of the Raramuri. The film suggests that local authorities accept the bribes drugs cartels offer them in exchange for their support in cultural oppression, human right violations, and environmental degradation. People who would resist or stand up to the drug guerilla farmers would ultimately pay the price. Luis Torres, a famous Raramuri leader, was murdered by AK 47 bullet wounds. Although there was no one convicted of Torre’s death, many suspicions have circulated tying his death to Artemio Fontes, a powerful drug lord within northern Mexico. Fontes is known for conducting numerous crimes against the Raramuri people leading to the death of several families. The film describes how there have been 63 eyewitness accounts by the Raramuri people in which Fontes has killed 43 people in order to cultivate his marijuana and opium onto fields. Voices of Sierra Madre Tarahumara later mentions how Fontes was granted permanent immunity from the state of Chihuahua from ever being prosecuted from these crimes as a result of having strong ties with local authorities. To this day, Fontes has not been prosecuted or convicted of any crimes.