Violence and resistance: Bananeros workers’ struggle of Urabá 1990-2010

Abstract

Banana companies have been establishing themselves in the Urabá region since the 1960s. The workers had to fight to achieve
decent working conditions. They went from depressing camps to decent housing in municipalities like Apartadó. They managed to
establish collective agreements with basic rights. However, the strength of the union was threatened by paramilitary violence, which
through massacres of workers gained control of the region, forcing the withdrawal of the guerrillas in the region. To confront this
violence, the workers had to deploy repertoires of resistance which included symbolic and indirect actions, but mainly direct pressure actions, legal support actions and international pressure actions. Thus, they carried out stoppages, strikes and mass burials to express their repudiation of the murders and massacres carried out against the workers. Likewise, they filed complaints and lawsuits against the institutions to demand justice. Also, they sought solidarity and support by publicizing the problem before international organizations and NGOs. Faced with terror, they used silent drama, painting and forms that allowed them to express their pain and continue fighting for their labor rights.