Abyssal Ideology and the Amerindians of Guyana: An Eco-Crimes Analysis of Power, Discourse and Cognitive Injustice

Cognitive injustice- that is, the failure to recognize the plurality of epistemologies and the manner in which people across the globe provide meaning to their existence- should be the subject of critical criminological inquiry because it is directly linked to both environmental and social injustice. This dissertation presents a comparative and critical analysis of the discourses surrounding the indigenous peoples of Guyana, the Amerindians. Massaging the parameters of green criminology and the eco-crimes framework, I synthesize Norman Faircloughs methodology known as critical discourse analysis (CDA) and Boaventura de Sousa Santos theoretical framework of Abyssal Thinking in order to capture the Amerindian experience from the dawn of colonialism to recent conservation efforts, such as the countrys very first community-owned conservation area (C.O.C.A.). In my attempt to unmask cognitive injustice via discourse, I also demonstrate how the experiences and speech of the Amerindians can challenge this injustice by exercising what Santos refers to as Post-Abyssal Thinking.