The Return of the Epidemics: Health and Society in Peru during the Twentieth Century (review)
and concentrated in several smaller reserves. Even during repressive military rule, the Xavante were able to make their case to the media, civil society, and the international community, using communication tools learned from their missionary education. At first, it was a lonely struggle against seemingly overwhelming odds: a repressive military government committed to expanding ranching, mining, and farming in the Amazon, and local authorities representing the interests of the frontier settlers. As the military government sought to improve its image abroad, however, the Xavante lobbied federal and state officials and used a combination of public threats and moral appeals in front of the media. Xavante leaders learned to be effective lobbyists both in Brazil and at international indigenous rights and environmental conferences, building coalitions to pressure state and local authorities for their rights. The Xavante reinvented themselves as patriotic “Brazilindians” without giving up their Xavante roots. Confronted with these modern tools of resistance, even the powerful the Brazilian state had to accommodate and reform its Indian policies. Missing from this insightful study of the Xavante’s successful struggle against state dominance are comparisons with strategies used by other Brazilian indigenous groups. Although Garfield’s notes refer to works on the Kayapó Indians by Marianne Schmink and Charles H. Wood, Linda Rabben, and Terence Turner, he leaves the task of a comparative analysis to future scholarship. Still, this book is a valuable source for graduate students in Latin American history, anthropology, and political science, as well as for practitioners working on indigenous issues. Garfield’s impressive integration of Xavante history with national policies and frontier dynamics derives from his thorough research and is enriched by the voices of Xavante leaders.