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ORGANIZATIONS
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They
shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war
any more. - Isaiah 2: 4 Agricultural Missions, Inc (AMI), the Beehive Collective,
and the Presbyterian Hunger Program of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
joined together to organize two touring teams speaking to issues of food
economy and human rights struggles in Central America and the U.S. heartland,
toured in the Northeast and Midwest from November 2-17, and then converged on
the annual vigil at the School of the Americas Watch at Ft. Benning in GA,
Nov 18-20. Other sponsors included
School of the Americas Watch New England, Oxfam America and Grassroots
International. Many joined us in fellowship to make connections between economic justice and peacemaking through popular education and stories of people from Guatemala and the fields of the United States!
Selfa Sándoval of
SITRABI, a banana workers union from Morales, Guatemala and Isabel Díaz-Ubillús
a Peruvian organizer and educator for rural women, among water workers and
member of the progressive Andean youth organization (JUNANDINA). These voices from Guatemala and Peru joined by
U.S. farmer and farm worker spokespersons, was complimented with multimedia
presentations by popular educator/ artists from the Beehive Collective. We explored the contemporary meaning
of James 5: 3-4: You have laid up
treasure for the last days. Behold,
the wages of the farm laborers, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and
the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. Northeast Tour: Event
Windows Nov 2-5, Events
in the Boston, MA-Providence, RI area Nov 6, Worcester
MA area Nov 7, New
Hampshire Nov 8-12
Vermont, Western Mass Nov 13-16 New
York State, New York City, Maryland, Virginia Nov 17- North
Carolina, northern Georgia) Nov 18-20 School of the Americas, Georgia Nov 2-5 Kentuckiana Nov 6-8 Ohio,
Indiana, southern Wisconsin Nov 9-11 Iowa Nov 12-14
Missouri Nov 15-17
Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia Nov 18-20 School of the Americas, Georgia Context and Backgrounds on Participating
Organizations:
Guatemalan history: Rural peoples in Mesoamerica (southern
Mexico and Central America), those peoples who domesticated maize and
invented nixtamal for Tortillas and Tamales millenia ago, have experienced
510 years of conquest and oppression.
In 1954, the United Fruit Company (now called Chiquita Brands), then
the largest landowner in the country primarily invested in the banana
industry, used its close ties to the Eisenhower administration to encourage a
US-sponsored military overthrow of the democratically elected Guatemalan
government. The country was taken
over by a right-wing dictator and plunged into a 36-year civil war costing
the lives of an estimated 200,000 people, mostly indigenous peasants. Peace accords were signed in the 90s, but
the road to peace and a shared abundant life is still rocky. SITRABI: Unfortunately, violence is still
used to protect the interests of the banana companies. Selfa
Sándoval currently works at the SITRABI union headquarters in the town of
Morales. It was in these same
headquarters that 20 union leaders were made to resign at gunpoint in
October, 1999. A group of 200-armed
men carried out the attack on the eve of a large-scale job action organized
by the union to oppose the layoff of 1,000 workers on three unionized
plantations. The armed thugs also
forced union leaders to read a statement on local radio calling off the
workplace action and telling workers to return to work. The five elected leaders of the union
eventually received political asylum in the United States. The three plantations at the source of the
original dispute were turned over to "independent" producers paying
a fraction of the wages and no benefits.
One of the leaders of the armed gang is reportedly running one of the
plantations. Selfa and her fellow union leaders who stepped up after the
attack are well into the difficult and dangerous process of rebuilding their
organization.
JUNANDINA:
Peruvian social movements of youth and workers are struggling against
attempts to consolidate imposition of exploitative economic policies, as
Peruvian society tries to find a way out of widespread impoverishment left in
the wake of the violent years of dictatorship, military and guerrilla
violence. International Financial
Institutions such as the IMF and WB have had a succession of willing and
submissive governments intent on privatizing state assets, including water,
but coalitions of Peruvian social movements including youth and state water
workers among others have successfully fended off water privatization. Rural women are also raising awareness and
empowering themselves to strengthen the grassroots movements. Isabel works with all these sectors as a
kind of catalyst and facilitator for change.
Agricultural Missions, Inc (AMI), is a 75 year old ecumenical organization that
accompanies rural peoples’ organizations and North American churches. This will be the fourth Justice Tour
organized by AMI. One of the mandates
of AMI is to raise consciousness in U.S. society, including in the churches,
to the nature of the struggles being undertaken by rural peoples'
organizations and social movements,
both within the U.S. and abroad. AMI
has been deeply involved in advocating for and accompanying the struggles of
small farmers, farmworkers, indigenous peoples and rural women's
organizations.
The Beehive Collective is a wildly-motivated, all-volunteer,
art-activist workshop that has gained international attention and
participation for its collaboratively produced graphics campaigns focused on
globalization and militarization. We use elaborately illustrated graphics and
an engaging narrative to expose the connections between COLONIZATION,
MILITARIZATION and RESOURCE EXTRACTION in the Americas. Join in as the Bees
deconstruct the complex and overwhelming issues that are shaping our world
using metaphors and bio-regionally accurate depictions of animals and insects
- it's a storytelling picture-lecture to be understood by anyone, not just
the experts and political analysts!
Presbyterian Hunger Program (PHP): For thirty-six years, the PHP has provided a channel through which Presbyterians can be engaged in the fight against hunger worldwide. A ministry of the Presbyterian Church (USA), the PHP works to alleviate hunger and eliminate its causes, responding with compassion and justice to poor and hungry people around the world. Current Special Programs include: Joining Hands Against Hunger, The Food & Faith Initiative, The Campaign for Fair Food, Enough for Everyone, and Just Trade. I do not mean that
others should be eased and you burdened, but that as a matter of equality
your abundance at the present time should supply their want, so that their
abundance may supply your want, that there may be equality. 2 Corinthians 13-14
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