Multiculturalism in Colombia: Twenty-Five Years of Experience

Colombia’s constitutional reform process is an important example of a changed conversation about diversity. Indigenous peoples were actively involved in the drafting of the 1991 Constitution, which led to a new level of visibility, legitimacy, and empowerment for these groups. At this critical moment, why did Colombia seek to forge a more pluralistic national identity? What actors, both inside and outside government, championed this change? Lastly, what were the limits of the constitutional reform process and its effects on indigenous lives, their treatment in public institutions, and inter-ethnic relations within civil society?

This paper was originally published in January 2018 in the Global Centre for Pluralism’s website.