Intercultural citizenship. Debate and conceptualization from the viewpoint of the academic community and Mapuche organizations in the Metropolitan Region

Abstract

The following article presents the main results of a thesis to opt for a masters' degree in Latin American Social and Political Studies from Alberto Hurtado University in Santiago, Chile. The project was based on the premise that the characteristics of the modern State, imported from Europe, are not pertinent to Chilean reality and its multicultural condition, and although it led to the complete disappearance of some indigenous groups and a dramatic reduction of others, it is still fundamental in order to review its political organization based on an intercultural perspective.In this context, based on research of a qualitative and descriptive nature, we called into question our own hypothesis, which stated that the definition of intercultural citizenship, as a political-ethical project, would tend to move towards a more organic relationship between the Chilean State and the Mapuche people.There were several conclusions, however, in a general way we may state that there is broad agreement that moving towards the exercise of intercultural citizenship would contribute to correct what we have called the State's “historical debt” against the Mapuche people, beginning with the recognition of the multinational nature of the Chilean State.