La Semana del Migrante - Zacualpa

:: Day 100 in Guatemala ::

ONE HUNDRED DAYS IN GUATEMALA. That was worth repeating. That is a long time to be in a foreign country by yourself. I’m trying to think back at what this experience has been… but I’m not ready for that blog entry just yet. First I have to get through what this week has been. 

:: Lonely Convent ::

Last Monday night I went back to the convent.  I thought this week would be horrible because upon my arrival I realized everyone was gone! Only Sor Toribia, who is about 60 years old, and Sor Ana Maria, the mother superior, were in the convent this week. Everyone else wouldn’t be back until Friday.

To be honest, this week with them was actually quite nice. Without the younger nuns around she doesn’t seem as strict – maybe because no one is peering around the corner to make sure she’s not coming before starting a really silly conversation.

:: Workshops, Workshops, Workshops ::

I was scheduled to do a ton of workshops this week with the local teens. I made some minimal changes to my powerpoint from last time when Ana Maria sprung a surprise workshop on me and finished picking out the scenes from video I was going to show – Which Way Home – cutting it down to just Kevin’s story.

When I left last time I left a number of tasks for Jose Daniel and Victor, the two who work in the office, to prepare for the workshops and the Expo we had planned for Sunday May 1^st. Let’s just say… I just deleted about seven paragraphs of me complaining about them. I mean, I’m pretty patient, but they really pushed it this week - Jose Daniel more than Victor. Unfortunately I spent a lot of time trying really hard not to roll my eyes or slap him across the face and scream “What were you thinking!?!?”  But, let’s focus on the positive parts of this week:

The workshops went well, although each day had its challenge. (1) The first day was exhausting because I did three workshops back to back at one school (it was a space issue). The first workshop happened to be at the same time as the Barcelona v. Real Madrid semi-final game. So the front half of the room was paying attention and asking questions, and the boys in the back had headphones on listening to the game. When the game ended there were fireworks outside and suddenly the back two rows of boys jumped in their seats! I just rolled with it – what are you gonna do?  (2) The second day it was a really small group, which was great because I could respond directly to all of them. But, the three girls in the room were really shy about sharing. (3) The third day was a HUGE group (110+), and we were on the basketball court, and the audiovisual set up was not ideal (Yes, I blame Jose Daniel and Victor – if I get into it I’ll just get mad – so I’ll leave it at that). However, this was probably the workshop I enjoyed the most. I was forced to be more interactive with them because they couldn’t really see the screen (plus I had made changes to the workshop because I knew it was a bigger group). At the end their responses were really good. One of the questions I had them answer in groups was: If someone told you that they were thinking of migrating to the U.S. as an undocumented immigrant, what advice would you give them? There were basically three types of answers (I collected their written answers after we shared as a big group): (1) I would tell them not to go because it is dangerous and they could get seriously hurt or die. (2) I would tell them that there are lots of risks, and that they should find out more information so that they can make informed decisions and be safe. (3) I would tell them that they should focus on school and getting a good career here because we have more opportunities as professionals in our own country.

I promise I only talked about this chart for 2 seconds.

At least they are all paying attention!

You can't even see the other half of the kids!!!

Saturday I also did a presentation with more teens from the church and their teachers. Totally different vibe with adults in the room because they dominate the conversation.

:: May Day Expo para la Oficina del Migrante ::

Sunday we had planned the Expo for the Oficinia del Migrante. Unfortunately, Victor had a conflict with a mandatory event from his university. (I’m not mad at him for going to the school event – I just think the date of the Expo could have been changed so that he could be there as one of the two people who actually work in the office.) So that left me and Jose Daniel to finish up all the planning and set up. While his organizational skills are a disaster – we managed to pull it off thanks to great team work on the part of the Franciscan Sisters from the convent.

The nuns helped distribute information, I love them.

We put out art work the local teens had done to represent the migrant’s experience; information on the risks of migrating through Mexico and the desert, human trafficking, Boston College’s Center for Human Rights and International Justice and the PDHRP, the Oficinia del Migrante, and other materials I had gotten from PCS mapping out organizations and shelters that provide services to migrants in Mesoamerica. We also showed Which Way Home – the whole hour-and-a-half of it. I was really surprised and happy to see that even though we didn’t have chairs, and we had some issues with lighting because it was outdoors (included in the things I argued with scolded Jose Daniel about) people were willing to stand and watch the whole hour and a half of the documentary! At the end I got several requests for copies of the movie. I promised to leave a copy with Hermana Ana Maria. People also came up and looked at everything we had put up, and took copies of the brochures. 

Men, Women, Children - decent audience, and all standing!

Here they're looking at the comp screen instead of projector.

It was very clearly a very valuable experience for the community, and it was also well timed. May 1^st is El Dia del Trabajador (Day of the Laborer) in Guatemala, and since about 2006, May Day has been a day of demonstrations to show solidarity with immigrants in the fight for just immigration reform in the U.S.

Of course, since Jose Daniel is not comfortable with public speaking, it was up to me and Ana Maria (mostly Ana Maria) to take the mic and talk to the community about our event. Of course, she and I have different approaches. I had put Spanish subtitles for the few parts of the documentary that were subtitled in English. At the end of the documentary when it is giving a recap of the different people interviewed and where they are now – Ana Maria just started making things up. She’d start to read it and then add her own spin on the end to make it sound like they had been so traumatized from their experience that they decided to never migrate again and instead try to build a better life in their own country. The truth is, most of them did reattempt the trip again. I think she even said that one of them tried again and died or was lost along the way and was never heard from again. Clearly, her message is – don’t migrate because it can get you killed. While my message is – migration to the US has many risks, so if you choose to migrate, make sure you inform yourself about the risks and the resources available along the way to ensure that you protect yourself as much as possible. So while I’m trying to stay balanced – she’s taking the “scare them out of migrating” approach.

So this was my last week in Zacualpa. It was also Giulia’s last week. So there were a lot of good-byes. This morning Ana Maria brought us all to the city. I’ve got one more full day in Guatemala. I’m almost home. 

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Date: Monday May 2, 2011

Days in Guatemala: 100

Date of Return to Los Angeles: May 4, 2011 

Date of Return to Boston: May 18, 2011

Barbri Bar Prep Start Date: May 19, 2011

Graduation Date: May 27, 2011

California Bar Exam: July 26-28, 2011

Mariposas - Butterflies

Day 4 in Guatemala City.

This week I started work at MTM. Everyone there is really nice. It is a team of four women, they’ve got one guy who does administrative work, and if they ever need anything else - they seem to have built partnerships with several psychologists, doctors, lawyers, and other human rights activists. On Monday I was given the grand tour of the office, which isn’t big. Its basically a home that has been converted into office space. It was abandoned, so the owner agreed to let them lease it for a reduced price if they fixed it up. But like most of the homes around here, it is only partially indoors. Its a good thing Guatemala City has really mild weather - except of course for the three months a year where it rains nonstop.

Table set for traditional Mayan invocation prayer.

My experience at nonprofits in the US should have prepared me for the chaos of working for a small NGO. They are always running around with a million things on their To Do lists. The good thing is that whole MTM team is just that - a team. They each have their area of responsibility, but in reality they are all working together on all of their projects.

The last two days have been really educational for me. In the office I was doing a lot of reading on the Guatemalan judicial system and responses to violence against women, or more accurately their lack of response. But I also had the opportunity to attend two events that really helped put the human side into the story of the Armed Conflict, i.e. the Guatemalan Civil War.

(1) On Tuesday afternoon we attended an event commemorating the Burning of the Spanish Embassy in Guatemala on January 31, 1980 and promoting women‘s rights. The panelists discussed the cultural and institutional obstacles faced by women, particularly indigenous (Mayan) women, as they attempt to exercise their political rights and pass legislation in favor of women and their indigenous communities. It became strikingly clear just how patriarchal and machista Guatemalan society is.

Women at the workshop.

(2) Today I attended a workshop that was hosted by MTM and three other women’s rights organizations. The women taking part in the workshop were mostly Mayan women, a group of probably about 35, all of whom were working towards a certificate issued by the University for 200 hours of training in women’s human rights. Today’s topic was Violence Against Women (surprise surprise). Remember, I was once a domestic violence advocate, so much of this was very familiar. Among their many scheduled activities we watched a documentary titled “Mariposas” or “Butterflies”. It was about the Mirabal sisters who were assassinated by Dictator Trujillo in the Dominican Republic. There was a movie about them a few years back called “In the Time of the Butterflies” starring Salma Hayek. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, I recommend finding the movie or another documentary about it - there are a few. But, as much as I enjoyed the video, the thing that had the greatest impact on me, lo mas impresionante, was the stories of the women who had lived through the Armed Conflict and had lost loved ones. Even the younger women who were too young to remember still carry their community’s pain and relate the current problems in Guatemala, including the violence against women, to the history of war and violence in their country.

So, needless to say, every day I learn something new. And it is only going to continue, especially because I came away with THREE BOOKS! One of them includes the stories of the women who suffered sexual and physical violence during the Armed Conflict.

Next week I will be traveling with the MTM team to some court hearings that are out in other departments (think: states). I believe that on Thursday we have to be in Quiche, and Friday in San Marcos. After two days of rest I will be joining the Zacualpa PDHRP team as they tour some of the NGO’s in northern Guatemala and southern Mexico. At least, that’s what I think we are doing. So, up until this point I have not yet done anything “touristy” (perhaps this weekend?). I will definitely be getting a much different view of Guatemala than I would have if I had come here on vacation.

But so far so good. Especially the prices of the food!!! Each of my meals has cost between $0.75 - $2.75, that gives me absolutely no incentive to cook for myself while I’m here. One of these days I will remember to whip out a camera at the dinner table / food stands and dedicate a posting to the joys of Guatemalan food.

Esta foto está dedicada a Tomás para que él vea que la gente puede tener una imagen de Jesús que coincide con su propio tono de piel  ;)