Language, Signs, and the Performance of Power: The Discursive Struggle over Decolonization in the Bolivia of Evo Morales

The spread of the term "decolonization" in Bolivian political discourse since the coming to power of Evo Morales is an example of the ways in which shifts in the use of language may constitute the processes of change of which they are part. Opposing ideologies are being expressed through various channels (language, dress, symbolism, and ritual) in the struggle for dominance in the public sphere. The mass media play a dual role, both providing illustrations of the discursive processes at work and discursively countering decolonization. Despite media opposition, Morales and the Movimiento al Socialismo are developing the structural conditions necessary for previously marginalized voices to be heard.