In “Eariki”, Chonon Bensho exposes a fundamental problem: the lack of recognition, by the modern States of the region, of the indigenous nations as linguistic groups, and culturally different from the projects of nationalism. Chonon’s gesture, however, should not be read as a rejection of modernity or as a radical “decolonization”; rather, from the moment a person litigates against the state through institutional means, they are accepting and assimilating its dynamics of negotiation. Chonon’s political proposal, therefore, is not a dream of returning to the way of life of her ancestors, nor is it a denial of the transformations brought about by the expansion of modernity. Rather, it is about finding a way to participate in modernity and to be recognized as a citizen with full rights, without losing her indigenous roots and her cultural differences with national and global society.