About 50% of Guatemalans are Indians, descendants of the founders of the Mayan civilization. Culture and language distinguish them from "ladino," or non-Indian, groups. "Ladinos" include a white elite, a large mixed-race group, and now also Indians who have rejected traditional dress and language to escape oppression and marginalization. Political power and 65% of land are in the hands of a few "ladino" families. Indians mainly live in the highlands, by subsistence farming. Women are legally as well as traditionally discriminated against.
