History

Todd Antony Chronicles the ‘Cholitas Escaladoras’ Summiting the Highest Peak in the Americas

17 August 2024253 Views

A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin, and culture is like a tree without roots.
Marcus Garvey

For generations, Indigenous Bolivian women were barred from freely walking in the affluent or central areas of La Paz, the nation’s capital. They were seen as lower-class and expected to remain at home or work in servitude. However, this attitude has shifted in recent years as Aymara and Quechua women have reclaimed their rights, expressing themselves with confidence through their distinctive tall bowler hats, long braids, and vibrant shawls, skirts, and petticoats. Once used as a derogatory term, “cholita” has been embraced by Aymara and Quechua women as a symbol of pride. Photographer Todd Antony captured this transformation in his breathtaking series Cholitas Escaladoras, which features a group of women known as the “Climbing Cholitas.”

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Equipped with ice picks, boots, ropes, and their traditional shawls—used in place of rucksacks—five Aymara women scaled Argentina’s Mt. Aconcagua, the tallest peak outside of Asia, in January 2019. While they wore helmets for safety, they kept their bowler hats on as they summited the 22,841-foot mountain, all while dressed in their traditional polleras, or flowing skirts. You might also enjoy Antony’s series Flying Cholitas, which showcases Bolivian luchadoras, or wrestlers, as well as Celia D. Luna’s series on Bolivian women skateboarders.