Ethnic Politics and Land

Land and ethnic politics are closely interlinked. This chapter explores the dynamics in which ethnic politics and the politics of land shape one another, especially in multiethnic societies. It examines case studies from the global South to explore ethnic politics in relation to land grabbing, emerging patterns of informal wage labor and migration, the role of the state, and struggles from below amid the reconfiguration of land and labor regimes across time and space. The chapter argues that contestations and struggles with respect to land are never only about land. On the contrary, claims over land access and control are permanently traversed by ethnicity, race, and citizenship rights, and by class relations. By paying attention to the intersections between ethnicity and class, and by examining how these have mediated land and labor relations, the chapter offers important insights into the complexities around the questions of ethnic politics and land.