ABSTRACT
Because the Guatemalan government wanted to establish biomedicine as the primary health care system, Germana Catú's (1879 [1889]?–1966) decision to become a midwife in 1931 set her on a collision course with the state. At stake were not only her vocation but also her people's culture, traditions, and authority. The state's attempt to control midwives and further imbue their communities with Western ideologies was in part predicated on a social structure that privileged Ladinos and denigrated Maya. Even though (or perhaps because) Germana Catú overcame these obstacles, defended Mayan epistemologies, culture, and ethnicity, and attracted Ladino doctors and patients to her practice, Kaqchikel men have excluded her from their community's historical discourse. The gendered nature of Kaqchikel oral histories starkly manifests itself in women's vigilant defense and perpetuation of the historical memory of this Catholic lay leader. Elder females preserve histories such as Germana's as a reminder of past female accomplishments and challenges and to guide and inspire their female progeny in their contemporary lives. 1 One woman, who was not even alive at the time of Germana's death, asserts, “Germana Catú did excellent work and she was of top character.” 2 As an individual, Germana challenged Mayan gender norms and Ladino perceptions of “indios” (Indians). 3 As an historical figure, she deconstructs the sexual division of public and private spheres and the Ladino versus Maya dichotomy. Germana Catú's tale repositions women not just in history but as history.
