In the mountains of southwestern China, a minority wrestles with its future
A Nuosu woman climbs the ladder up to Atulie’er, the clifftop village that has become a symbol of poverty alleviation in Liangshan. Many villagers are still struggling with poverty despite vast changes in the Chinese region.
(Bowen Liu / For The Times)
May 20, 2021 3 AM PT
MEIGU, China
Aku Wuwu spoke in an ancient tongue, his eyes closed and head lowered, one arm outstretched as he summoned the soul of a mythic hero.
“
OH … LA!!” he cried in Nuosu, the language his people had spoken for centuries deep in the mountains of southwestern China. “COME BACK!”