Indian youth in the Bolivian city of El Alto have turned to hip-hop to express their pride, speak out against discrimination and vent about their treatment by the government.

Rapping in Aymara, their traditional language, and Spanish, the youth take on topics like racism, poverty and revolution. They compare themselves to African-Americans in the U.S.

"We're also discriminated against for being dark, for not having money," Rodolfo Quisbert, 19, tells The New York Times. "That's why we like hip-hop."

The youth reflect the current unrest among the 800,000 Indians who live in El Alto. Indian leaders from the city have been leading protests in the nearby capital of La Paz.

Get the Story:
Young Bolivians Adopt Urban U.S. Pose, Hip-Hop and All (The New York Times 5/26)
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