The University of the Yaqui People is paving the way and is part of the justice plan

As part of the Yaqui People’s Justice Plan, the Yaqui People’s University was recently inaugurated, seeking to promote respect for the culture, language, ancestral knowledge, and education of indigenous peoples. The Yaqui People’s University was inaugurated by President Claudia Sheinbaum, and this pioneering project opened its doors to the first generation of young Yaquis and other indigenous peoples from this region of the Sonoran Desert.

The first rector of this indigenous higher education center, Maestro Crescencio Buitimea Valenzuela, talks about the vision behind this educational project.

Rector Crescencio Buitimea Valenzuela explains that the project was born in the eight villages of the Yaqui nation in Vicam to preserve the language, traditions, and ancestral knowledge and to resolve historical issues, health, and human rights.

Maestro Crescencio Buitimea Valenzuela, Rector of the University of the Yaqui People, Vícam Pueblo, municipality of Guaymas in Sonora, shares how this project came about and emerged from the peace and justice agreement for the Yaqui people.

In addition, more projects are being considered for the villages, one of which is a high school, but that plan is still in the works.

Professor Crescencio Buitimea Valenzuela, Rector of the University of the Yaqui People, Vícam Pueblo, talks about his commitment to ensuring that the community develops with a vision of its own culture.

Professor Crescencio Buitimea Valenzuela, Rector of the University of the Yaqui People, Vícam Pueblo, believes that there is no conflict between universal knowledge and ancestral knowledge.

Maestro Crescencio Buitimea Valenzuela, Rector of the University of the Yaqui People, Vícam Pueblo, sees the Yaqui language being heard in public areas and media such as radio and TV as a close possibility.

Crescencio Buitimea Valenzuela, Rector of the University of the Yaqui People, Vícam Pueblo, says that now, with recognition in the constitution, the Yaqui justice plan can begin.

Finally, Crescencio Buitimea Valenzuela, Rector of the University of the Yaqui People, Vícam Pueblo, comments that the campus is adapted to the nature of the area and even has native and medicinal plants.

This report is part of Latino Heritage Month and our series “Thirty Years, Thirty Voices.”