People of African descent in Latin America and the Caribbean: An exploration of social and territorial realities in the rural world

The content of this document provides an analytical framework on the socioeconomic, political, legal situation of hundreds of Afro-descendant populations in rural areas in Latin America and the Caribbean, focused on the analysis of three key areas: territories, natural resources, and productivity. Contemporary demographic studies generally describe Afro-descendants as an urban phenomenon, a product of the rural-urban migrations that took place from the second half of the 19th century onwards, when the abolition of slavery began. However, there is a lack of discourse on Afro-descendant life in rural areas, in the agricultural, mining, coastal, forest, savannah, desert, and plains areas where hundreds of families of African descent remain or have migrated. For this reason, this report seeks to give visibility to Afro-descendant life in rural areas in terms of their right to development, their claims and historical reparations.