The Social Work of the Society of Friends in the Seri Community of Desemboque (1948–1957)

Introduction

The present study examines the role played by the Society of Friends (Quakers) in the development of rural education in the Comcáac (Seri) indigenous community of Desemboque, Sonora, during the 1950s. It highlights the different levels at which state institutions operated and the multiple actors involved in the negotiation of government policies and programs. I argue that the influence of the religious association known as the Society of Friends compelled regional government authorities and other sectors of Sonoran society to address the major issues and struggles affecting the Comcáac in the post–World War II era.

The Seri at the Dawn of the 20th Century

Until the 20th century, the Seri were considered nomads for their seasonal mobility, following the life cycles of endemic flora and fauna of the desert and the sea.¹ Their primary communities, Desemboque and Punta Chueca, are in the municipalities of Pitiquito and Hermosillo, respectively. In 1942, they settled in Desemboque on a more "permanent" basis after creating a fishing co-op to commercially exploit the fisheries in the Sea of Cortez (Gulf of California). However, while their settlement in Desemboque temporarily alleviated the market competition they faced for fish, the arrival of mestizo (non-indigenous) fishermen in the region was an ongoing challenge.

Government-built housing allowed them to settle in Desemboque. The services that local intermediaries and government agencies introduced into the area—including a cold storehouse, a water well, and a public school—also fostered their more permanent settlement. Nevertheless, the Seri continued to move within their territory, albeit in smaller groups and for shorter periods, based on marine resource exploitation.²

The Seri ethnic group is currently estimated at near 754 native speakers of Cmiique Iitom (the Seri language) above three years of age. However, in the 1920s its total population was fewer than 200 inhabitants.³ Government agents and others thus began to develop various programs to reverse what appeared to be the ethnic group's extinction.⁴

In the 1920s, this indigenous community underwent several cultural changes as a result of diverse processes affecting the region, which included the political consolidation of the Mexican state as well as the global demand for marine products during both world wars. Economically, the fisheries in the Gulf of California thrived first by exploiting the totoaba fish (1935) and, later, by producing shark oil, which, due to its richness in vitamin D, was in high demand during World War II. The Seri people thus began to compete for marine resources with the mestizo population of fishermen that increasingly arrived at the coastal fishing communities around the gulf.⁵

This economic scenario, however, pushed the Seris' integration into the broader regional economy. Fishing became more than a livelihood for them, and they also began to exchange goods which previously were not generally consumed—alcohol and marijuana use became more common during this time. Forced to increase their yield, the Seri also acquired new equipment and technology including outboard motors and fishing nets.⁶ The Seri fishing co-op received a special concession from the federal government to commercially exploit certain marine species. Government agents then began to regulate the fishing season, determining the appropriate fishing gear and even defining fishing sites for the co-op. The stated objective of such interventions was to equitably increase fishermen's income, ensure their employment, and facilitate federal financial credit for the acquisition of equipment and infrastructure.⁷

The co-op, founded in 1939 as Fishers of the Seri Tribe Cooperative Society Ltd. (Pescadores de la Tribu Seri S.C.L.) at Bahía de Kino, later moved its main office to Desemboque to avoid competition with other fisheries. The Seri cooperative society was mostly operated by indigenous people,⁸ though 10% of its members could be non-Seri. The administrative board was thus composed of 59 Seri and 5 mestizos holding member positions. Although the co-op allowed the Comcáac to improve...