Mapuche means "people of the land".

The Mapuche have lived in Patagonia since before the arrival of Columbus. They survived the genocide caused by the Spanish invasion in the 16th century and the expansion of the states of Chile and Argentina at the end of the 19th century.
Today, in the face of the advance of the oil, forestry, hydroelectric and mining industries, Mapuche communities on both sides of the Andes are resisting to defend water and land. In some cases they have succeeded in stopping and delaying these projects. That is why they are being pursued.
In southern Chile, a 1974 decree by then-dictator Augusto Pinochet granted land and privileges to the forestry industry. Pine and eucalyptus plantations have devastated the native forest. Two of the largest forestry companies own more than 2 million hectares in territory claimed by the Mapuche people. In this region, which has been under a state of emergency with military control for more than three years, the conflict is permanent. Since 2011, more than 150 Mapuche children have been attacked by police forces. These are the cases that have been brought to justice. There are many more who are afraid to report for fear of reprisals. In this context, some communities and organizations have begun to carry out acts of sabotage, defending themselves against the constant violations of human rights committed by the Chilean state and armed groups. In the prisons of southern Chile, there are special wards for Mapuche political prisoners.
In Patagonia, Argentina, more than 30 Mapuche communities are facing the socio-environmental disasters caused by fracking in Vaca Muerta, the world's second largest unconventional gas reserve and fourth largest unconventional oil reserve: contamination of land, water and air, greenhouse gas emissions, disease, drought, earthquakes and radioactive waste, among other serious problems.
In different parts of the Wallmapu, as the Mapuche ancestral territory is known, a phenomenon is growing: the recovery of the land by communities, along with the recovery of ancient knowledge related to medicine with native plants. Spirituality, the relationship with nature and the connection with the ancestors are the basis of the weichán, as the Mapuche people call the struggle for the defense of water and land.
The response of the Chilean and Argentinean governments has been the militarization of the territories and a political, judicial and media persecution of Mapuche leaders that has been denounced by international organizations but has received little attention from the world press.