Encountering Potosí

I wrote this newsletter a month ago following my participation with a Joining Hands delegation visit to Bolivia. It is posted here, and an archive of my official newsletters is available on my Mission Connections page.

Pack Nothing.
Bring only your determination to serve
and your willingness to be free.*

We’ve packed “light,” but it’s a challenge fitting our bags into the taxis that will carry our Joining Hands delegation from Sucre up the winding road to Potosí. After several days of meetings, partners from San Francisco and Cascades presbyteries are setting out with staff and leaders of UMAVIDA to meet some of the individual organizations that comprise the Bolivian network. Approaching our destination through peaceful green mountains, I observe the setting sun’s glow on the barren slopes around the historic mining city. It comes as a shock, seeing this mountain visibly worn and stripped down by over 450 years of continuous exploitation.

We arrive and settle in to view a documentary called “The Devil’s Miner,” an introduction to the harsh reality of life in the mines. The Cerro Rico (“Rich Mountain”), source of much of colonial Spain’s silver, has had miners chipping and blasting away at its interior since before the city of Potosí was founded in 1546. Over 8 million people have died in these mines or from related health complications over the centuries.

The delegation visits a mining family.

Indigenous and African slaves were worked to death in the colonial period and today Potosí’s miners have a short 40-year life expectancy, with most contracting silicosis from breathing rock dust. But the most shocking part of the documentary is its focus on the life of child miners, telling the story of a 14-year-old boy named Basilio, his younger brother and sister, and their widowed mother.

Before getting to know the work of CDR (the Center for Regional Development, one of UMAVIDA’s nine member organizations) it had never occurred to me that child labor could be so commonplace, but now I know that boys as young as 11 begin working in the mines. CDR focuses its work on child miners like Basilio and mining families, offering academic support, special workshops in health and life skills, and recreational activities. The strategy is to provide long-term support so that these children and their families will have opportunities outside of mining. As CDR’s director and current UMAVIDA president Wilhelm Piérola puts it, “Remember that these children aren’t working so they can afford a car. They are working so they can eat.” Simply enforcing a prohibition on child labor will not solve the fundamental problems facing these young miners.

At CDR’s offices we meet several young men and women who have come up through the program and now are giving back by working with a new generation of beneficiaries. Their work is varied: carrying out environmental studies to determine health risks from local mining contamination and poor sanitation, and providing education about how to reduce risk; joining with other UMAVIDA youth in educational campaigns to protect water sources; helping the children grow vegetables in an experiential greenhouse; choreographing the “Little Miners,” the CDR carnaval troop that dances each year in the local parade. They have energy, enthusiasm, and plans for building a better future. Even here, where few plants choose to grow, hope takes root.

Our visit is a step in strengthening ties in the Joining Hands endeavor, which seeks to address the root causes of hunger in a new way, raising awareness and building a movement of people in the United States and around the world who are united in a quest for greater justice in our globalized society. It can be daunting to come together in relatively small groups and attempt to make a stand for God’s shalom in the face of social, environmental, or economic injustice. And yet this collective of ordinary U.S. Presbyterians and ecumenical networks in other countries is strengthened by its sense of call, of being set free from bondage to the status quo and sent forth on a journey of transformation.

This image of a journey out of captivity set the tone for the delegation. At evening devotions on the first night, companionship facilitator Chenoa Stock shared the poem “Passover Remembered” by Alla Renée Bozarth.* Here are a few excerpts from that powerful exodus retelling:

Set out in the dark.
…………………
I will give you dreams in the desert
to guide you safely home to that place
you have not yet seen.
…………………
Sing songs as you go,
and hold close together.
You may at times grow
confused and lose your way.
…………………
So long ago you fell
into slavery, slipped
into it unawares,
…………………
I am sending you into the wilderness to make a way
and to learn my ways more deeply.
…………………
Do not go back.
I am with you now
and I am waiting for you.

I am greatly privileged to accompany the work of the Joining Hands initiative here in Bolivia and in Perú. Joining in this delegation trip reaffirmed my commitment to the arduous, joyful journey of liberation, following our trusted Friend toward the homeland we have not yet seen, taking His yoke upon us even when we might prefer the familiar chains we’ve left behind.

I hope you too will share this journey in some way. Although at times it means setting out in the dark, trust that God will guide you, and know that you have fellow pilgrims on the way. As we go, let us sing songs and hold close together, always remembering that God is with us now and is waiting at each step ahead.

In hope and faith,

Sarah

* “Passover Remembered” by Alla Renée Bozarth is included in several volumes, including Stars in Your Bones: Emerging Signposts on Our Spiritual Journeys by Alla Bozarth, Julia Barkley and Terri Hawthorne, North Star Press: St. Cloud, 1990.

More on the Cumbres, and Days of Prayer and Action

Presbyterians are among those deeply concerned by human rights conditions in Colombia and throughout the world. You may recall the dedicated efforts to halt the Free Trade Agreement between the U.S. and Colombia, which eventually was approved by the U.S. Congress. In conjunction with the Summit of the Americas this weekend, President Obama announced that Colombia has met the labor rights conditions associated with the FTA and that the agreement will take effect next month on May 15.

This is sad news, considering the ongoing killing of union leaders and land rights activists in Colombia. PC(USA) Stated Clerk Rev. Gradye Parsons wrote to President Obama prior to the Summit to urge a strong stance in favor of real respect for human rights in Colombia and an end to impunity.  If you would like to speak out, the Latin America Working Group has a tool to help you write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper.

CEDERHNOS in Colombia (the Center for the Study and Development of Human Rights) invites Christians around the world to sign their petition to President Santos, calling for him to take leadership for a negotiated end to the violence in Colombia and reparations for the victims. The petition is in Spanish, and invites those interested to sign with their name, the organization they represent, and their home country.

Lisa Haugaard, LAWG’s executive director, issued a call to leaders attending the Summit to protect human rights defenders.

The Presbyterian Peace Fellowship shared information on the groups across the U.S. organizing for the Days of Prayer and Action for Colombia, and actions planned for the People’s Summit in Cartagena. Schools, churches, and others across Colombia also participated with concrete actions affirming that everyone deserves a place to call home.

If you’ve been wondering what the big deal is about land issues in Colombia, the Fellowship of Reconciliation has put together a helpful booklet to illustrate the importance of land to all of us and the issues surrounding the problems in Colombia.  You can order printed copies or download the digital file here.

Over 8,000 people from across the Americas participated in the fifth Summit of the Peoples last weekend to raise an alternative voice and do strategic work together. After high hopes raised by President Obama’s words at the last Summit of the Americas shortly after his inauguration, there was a renewed sense of frustration about U.S. foreign policy in Latin America and a lack of effective solidarity. The official Cumbre de los Pueblos website (in Spanish) has a number of videos and press releases published throughout the event. It also includes the formal declaration issued by the summit, which decries the growth of militarization and free market economics in the region and the continued threats of extractive industries and agrobusiness to the self-determination of indigenous communities and small farmers. Ecumenical leaders will continue to offer ways we can stand and speak together as churches in the process of building peace in the Americas.

People of the Americas

Sometimes the way things coincide makes me smile. This afternoon I’ve been bundled up on the sofa, catching up on the happenings around the Summit of the Americas and the parallel Cumbre de los Pueblos, the Summit of the Peoples. Several of my dear friends are joining in this event in Cartagena, Colombia, and I just got a glimpse via skype of the discussions going on about the role of the churches in peacebuilding.

I hope there will be some hopeful news coming from both the official OAS event with heads of state from around the hemisphere, as well as the grassroots event. In the meantime, please keep the process in your thoughts and prayers, and take a look at Richard’s blog post on the subject.

Childlike

This morning I attended worship at my “home” congregation in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angles, and was moved to see a reversal of roles they’ve been practicing this Lent. Typically during the “young Christians” section Pastor Janet closes by leading a repeat-after-me prayer, with the children repeating each line. Today the children were doing the leading, reading the lines of prayer, and the entire congregation repeated after them. Occasionally I couldn’t make out exactly what the words were supposed to be, but the act of being led by the children drew me into a deep presentness in the moment. I was grateful.

Last Sunday I worshiped with Luz y Verdad congregation in La Paz. It had been several months since I joined them on a Sunday morning, and I was delighted to see how they are thriving. One of the most significant developments is the participation of several new children from the community, full of energy and an eagerness to learn about God’s story. Itching to give and receive love.

These simple experiences have reminded me of the importance of the church as a multigenerational community. The youngest ones, the growing-up ones, the aging ones–we all have beautiful gifts to offer that community. But Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” For the children in our churches, and for God’s many mysteries, I am grateful.

Notes from Colombia

I meant to share this link several days ago to a reflection my friend Richard Williams wrote about the courage of public protest he has accompanied in Colombia. He opens with these questions:

How do you speak out when you are fearful for your life? What does democracy look like when people cannot show their faces? How do we seek justice when it can cost so much?

Read more at Called to Colombia

Between worlds

A recent delegation from San Francisco and Oregon visited Bolivia, providing the opportunity for me to jump back into a mode I very much enjoy: interpretation.

I love to interpret, serving as a link in communication for people who speak different languages. In my case this means Spanish and English, but also the various cultures and assumptions we’re coming from. And it involves important power dynamics. Ensuring that speakers of each language feel included and able to hear and be heard by others can be an intricate dance. The interpreter holds great power as the one deciding how to render the message of another person in a different language. This involves choices that go beyond direct correlation between words in each language, drawing on context, history, culture, and other cues on which the proper understanding of the message depends. And it implicitly relies on the interpreter’s understanding of the context of both the speaker and the listeners.

Recently while talking with some U.S. missionary friends I encountered the notion that I came into this crossing-cultures business young enough to be considered a “third culture kid” in my own right. According to sociologist David C. Pollock’s definition: “A Third Culture Kid (TCK) is a person who has spent a significant part of [his or her] developmental years outside the parents’ culture. The TCK frequently builds relationships to all of the cultures, while not having full ownership in any. Although elements from each culture may be assimilated into the TCK’s life experience, the sense of belonging is in relationship to others of similar background.”

I was 22 when I first came to live in South America (as a YAV in Uruguay), ostensibly out of the developmental years, but even so I’ve come to feel comfortable and acclimated in some cultures here that are very different from the place that gave me birth. In some ways I feel more at ease in Latin America than I do in “my” culture in the US. And I certainly find it easiest to connect with new acquaintances who share something of this perspective and experience.

Bringing this back to the practice of interpretation, I think this somewhat awkward position between cultural worlds has a lot to do with my growing ability to serve as an effective interpreter. I make no claims to having a perfect or complete grasp on the cultural intricacies of the communities where I’ve lived and served in Latin America–nor in my home country, for that matter! But constantly crossing back and forth has alerted me to some of the important differences in perspective and experience in each context, and these are helpful things to keep in mind and share with others who step into the liminal space of cross-cultural encounter.

More and more I am convinced that truly hearing one another is one of the most essential and most difficult things in human relationships. Even when we share a common linguistic base, it’s easy to misunderstand others. So how can we hope to connect across language lines? It’s often messy and always imperfect, but somehow when we open ourselves up to listen there can be moments of grace when we truly do hear the voice of another person in spite of all the obstacles and differences. Helping to open that channel is what I love about interpreting.

It can be awkward at times: attempting to convey what is funny for one group when it depends entirely on culture or language; deciding on the spot whether to intervene if I suspect one speaker is moving into culturally inappropriate territory with their questions or comments; being invited into uncomfortable conversations between two friends when one has been hurt by the other’s words or actions. But even in those awkward moments, I give thanks for the opportunity and ability to help people hear and be heard by one another.

Carnaval!

I spent the past few days in Barranquilla, Colombia’s carnaval epicenter, and thought I’d share a little of the colors and energy that go with it. I didn’t go to the big parades this year (I did mostly more relaxed things with friends and their families) but did finally put together a short montage of video clips from last year. These are just a few of the various Colombian dances (mostly cumbia) bookended by the popular and highly entertaining marimonda troupe of Barrio Abajo.

I enjoy soaking up some of the exuberance and excess before entering into the prolonged reflections of Lent. Now I’m back in La Paz, listening to incessant firecrackers that accompany the local celebrations here, preparing for two busy weeks of travel with Red UMAVIDA around Bolivia. Maybe next year I’ll make it to Bolivia’s big parade in Oruro!

Blessings to you this day and in the season ahead. Enjoy some decadent food, and do something silly with folks you love!