This denial has been part of prolonged persecution and state violence against Miya people.

Miya people are systematically denied the right to create and own their sociocultural and political histories.

Key Themes from the Miya Community Research Collective’s Work Finally, by uplifting Miya stories of resistance and hope, we sought to restore, reclaim, and rehumanize Miya people’s histories and identities. We also used storytelling to recognize the knowledges and knowledge producing capacities of Miya people. Through these stories, we challenged different kinds of logic used to justify persecution and violence against Miya people. We take these stories to academic outlets, creative spaces, popular media, educational spaces, and public conversations. We used storytelling as a tool for disrupting dehumanizing narratives of Miya people perpetuated by those in positions of political and cultural power.

The MCRC is a collaborative space for Miya people to tell their own stories about their history and ecologies – stories that are otherwise distorted or absent from the public sphere. We highlight the role of community centered counter storytelling by the Miya Community Research Collective (MCRC). In these contexts, counterstorytelling serves a powerful tool of resistance and a source of radical hope. In contexts of state sanctioned violence, persecuted people have very limited power. Counterstorytelling involves the creation and dissemination of stories, poetry, narratives, and imagery based on the lived experieneces of marginalized people. Miya people and the Miya Community Research Collective use counterstoryelling to reclaim their voices. Method of Community Resistance: Counterstorytelling We use counterstorytelling to “center the margins” - narrating experiences, articulating critical analyses, and raising questions that offer powerful alternatives to dehumanizing narratives generally legitimized in the academy and wider society.” (p.4) “Counterstorytelling is a crucial point of resistance for Miya people. These newer policies unfairly impact the Miya people in many of the same ways. In response, Miya people are actively trying to reclaim their identity, dignity, and fight for their rights.

These forms of violence are not new for Miya communities who have a long history of dispossession and struggle, dating back to the early 19th century where they first experienced forced displacement by British colonial rulers. The Miya people have been among the most impacted by these policies. These policies seek to differentiate “foreigners” from “genuine citizens” and specifically target religious minorities such as Muslims. Examples of these policies include the National Register of Citizens and D-voter (or doubtful voters) statuses. In the Northeast Indian state of Assam, close to two million people were recently disenfranchised through an intricate and unjust system of state policies and procedures. This work is relevant for other communities confronted with colonial and cultural violence. The Miya Community Research Collective supports counterstorytelling making space for the Miya people to claim their identities and assert their rights. Miya people in Northeast India are actively resisting state violence.

I resist by telling my story