| |

Imilla

ByLuisa Dörr
Miriam Estefanny Morales M. 23 (Tefy) For Teffy skateboarding is not only a sport, it is also a lifestyle. “Even though the discrimination against the indigenous people in Bolívia is huge, I believe that wearing a Pollera to skateboard identifies myself with my roots, showing that in spite of all, anyone is capable to do whatever, independently of what they wear or where they come from, what counts is who you are as a person.” She says. “This stunning view is located on the hill of “Cristo de La Concordia”, a touristic place. When you look at this view, you understand how admirable my beautiful Cochabamba is. You see that nature thrives there and that not all is lost because of technological developments and population growth, and the most important of all: I’m proud of being K’ochala.”
Luisa Zurita wearing her grandmother’s Pollera Luisa’s grandmother was raised in the Pollera culture. She had 7 children, 5women and 2 men. Her mother and her aunts didn’t wear the polleras in their upbringingIn 2016, Luisa started skateboarding but her family didn’t approve her passion for the sport and forbade her from practicing. She had to fight her own family to be able to continue skateboarding. ImillaSkate were invited to a local popular tv show, that was when her grandmother found out that she continued practicing. Finally, after the tv show appearance, her grandmother gave her the blessing to follow her dream and passed on to her one of her favorite Polleras, the one she chose to wear to skateboard.
Pairumani Park Entrance This is one of the girls’ preferred spots for skateboarding for its beauty. It is a little downhill located in Quillacollo on a road that goes to the Ecotourism Park of Pairumani, in the outskirts of Cochabamba. “We have a wide variety of plants and trees here, that’s why Cochabamba is called “Ciudad Jardín” which translates to Garden City, says Dani. ImillaSkate wanted to share places that represent their town and the nature that is always present. The road is filled with iconic trees from Cochabamba’s flora and it is also the area of plantation fields that are responsible for many agricultural workplaces for many people in the community.
Deysi Tacuri Lopez (27) She started skateboarding at around 20 years old. Even though she had hard falls, she decided to continue practicing anyway. She says that skateboarding is an inner happiness for her, not only a sport but an activity that changed her lifestyle and helps her everyday on her struggles. The Pollera outfit is seen by her as an authentic and unique expression – “I wear what I like. My mother has a saying – I was born wearing a Pollera and I will die wearing one – and I carry on her belief. I feel comfortable as I am, wearing a Pollera.” Deyse has the intention to popularize the skate culture in Bolivia, creating more opportunities for the new generation without losing the focus on their roots. “It’s not only about wearing the pollera outfit, it’s also about getting better in the sport, making new manuvreus. We started as regular skateboarders, with time we had this idea about dressing up like cholitas because it identifies us, nowadays it is a fusion of both things. Skateboarding for me is about progress in my life” says Deysi. Deysi won several medals in Chile and Bolivia, some of them the 1first place.
Joselin Brenda Mamani tinta (27) and Lucia Rosmeri tinta Quispe (46) Brenda and her mother are considered Pollera women from a different ethny called Aymara from La Paz. Brenda started skateboarding 6 years ago and felt that this activity could give her direction, something to learn that would stimulate her to drop her fears and get out of her comfort zone. She says – “It makes me feel capable because I can break my own limits and I can dare to do things that I have never thought about, and like this I can get over my daily fear. For her skateboarding in Pollera outfits means a challenge by itself because it is very hard to skateboard wearing a voluminous skirt but she knows that perseverance and practice will help and she has been improving her skills. For her this activity represents her roots, the place she comes from and who she is.

The Bolivian ‘polleras’, bulky skirts commonly associated with the indigenous women from the highlands, were for decades a symbol of uniqueness but also an object of discrimination. Now, a new generation of women skateboarders in Cochabamba, the country’s third largest city, wears them as a piece of resistance. The voluminous attire has its origins in the Spanish conquest, in the 16th century. It was imposed on the native population, but through centuries the garment became part of the local identity. Since it symbolizes authenticity and stigmatization, dusting off the polleras that once belonged to aunts and grandmothers seemed the obvious choice for Dani Santiváñez, 26, a young Bolivian skater who wanted to reclaim her roots. She and two friends created in 2018 the female collective “ImillaSkate” “as a cry for inclusion”. ‘Imilla’ means ‘young girl’ in Aymara and Quechua, the two most widely spoken languages in Bolivia, a country where more than half of the population has indigenous roots. “We are no different, we all are indigenous descendants”, says Santiváñez referring to the nine women who are currently part of the group. They don’t wear the polleras on a day-to-day basis, but only for skating. Knee-length and paired with sneakers, as it happened in the past, the polleras adapted again and became a symbol. The imillas, who practice to compete in local tournaments, use this presence and their skateboards as a natural vehicle to empower women and push their message of inclusion and acceptance of diversity.

Luisa Dörr