I, Rigoberta Menchú

work by Menchú

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

June 29, 2026

Quick Summary

I, Rigoberta Menchú is a 1983 book that recounts the life of Rigoberta Menchú, a Guatemalan indigenous rights activist. The work details her impoverished childhood among the Quiché Maya people and the brutal violence her family endured during Guatemala's civil war, including the torture and murder of her brother and mother by the military. Menchú fled to Mexico and became a prominent international advocate for social justice and reconciliation in Guatemala. She was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1992 for her activism. While the book's veracity was later questioned, it brought significant international attention to the human rights abuses in Guatemala.1

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

2 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

Rigoberta Menchú
…with her widely translated book I, Rigoberta Menchú, in which she tells the story of her impoverished youth and recounts in horrifying detail the torture-murders of her brother and mother. She received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1992 for her continuing efforts to achieve social justice and mutual reconciliation in…
Read More
…with her widely translated book I, Rigoberta Menchú, in which she tells the story of her impoverished youth and recounts in horrifying detail the torture-murders of her brother and mother. She received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1992 for her continuing efforts to achieve social justice and mutual reconciliation in…
Read More