Guatemalan Women Are Moving!

I am happy to report that slowly but surely Guatemalan women are moving into all the positions they deserve. Two good friends come to mind:

First of all, we have to congratulate Stephanie Falla {ñ} for winning the Best Future Project with Journalism 24/7 at Exponet, Prensa Libre’s initiative to promote best web practices and web excellency. Stephanie is a great example and a role model for anyone, but especially for women since she also leads one of the largest web communities in the Spanish speaking world: Maestros del Web. You may recall that a few days ago I mentioned her name in relation to new digital media projects in Guatemala.

Another great role model for me is Renata Avila {ñ}, the Guatemalan voice and correspondent for Global Voices, a blog community promoting all the different voices through out the world. Renata takes the time to surf and fish out the best content produced by the Guatemalan Bloggers, then translates it into English and puts it in perspective. On top of all that, she’s also the leader in the creation of jurisdiction-specific Creative Commons Licenses for Guatemala, which, by the way, will be presented and introduced by Jimmy Wales from Wikipedia in a couple of weeks in Guatemala.

I am very happy to know them both and to be inspired by their extraordinary work!

Below you click on the thumbnail to see the moment Stephanie Falla received the Q50,000 award as seed money to get her Periodismo 24/7 (Journalism 24/7).

Lessie says:

October 10, 2008 at 12:26 pm

Rudy —
Permit me to be a bit off topic. 🙂
I’ve thought a lot of you and your blog the last couple of days.
Word is the Guatemalan Consulate from Atlanta met this week in Greenville with Guatemalan nationals affected by the recent ICE raid at a local plant. Word says that many of those detained are Guatemalan and some don’t speak Spanish fluently. Riding in my car from home to work, I only see my co-workers, my family, and some friends for weeks on end. Though people from all over the world live around me, I’m oblivous to their existence most of the time. This raid and its humanitarian ramifications stick in my mind. What action should I take? The article referenced below finally prompted me to write you a note (I couldn’t find your e-mail address). Thanks for giving us a window into La Antigua and into Guatemala.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jO9WZoMijd4RZonKDKU4OabjtjkgD93MN79O4

Rudy says:

October 10, 2008 at 1:51 pm

@Lessie, thanks for sharing this moving story with us. I do not know what action you can take, except for speaking up, like Janna does. I recently saw a documentary entitled Why We Fight. In this film, a woman asks herself why we fight? and then she answers, because there are not enough of us speaking up! Please read Janna’s posts and get in touch with her. I am sure she will be able to point you in the right direction.

janna says:

October 10, 2008 at 2:57 pm

Rudy, thank you for your note.
Lessie, It’s easy to go about our lives without seeing the immigrant workers who live among us, because they really try not to be seen. They want to live and work and do their best for themselves and their families, and the system in our country makes it very difficult and, for the poorest, impossible, to do so legally. They know it’s best to live below the radar, just go to work, work hard, go home at the end of the day, and not venture outside, just trying to avoid any trouble.
The raids that are devastating the dreams of so many migrant workers right now are shining a glaring light on them, and it makes them uncomfortable. They prefer the shadows if the alternative is living in the light but living in fear of jail and deportation. Deportation to one’s own homeland may not seem harsh, but I have seen that mix of relief and dread that they experience when facing deportation. It is heartbreaking to watch some migrants I know make the horrific journey from Guatemala through Mexico and across the U.S. border yet again, after having been deported only months ago. They are paying thousands of dollars and risking their lives, to flee their HOME. That’s how desperate their situation is at home. It’s not that living here in fear is so wonderful, it’s that poverty and hopelessness in their home country is that bad. We can’t imagine that kind of desperation.
You ask what action you can take. You have already done something good: you’ve taken notice of them, and of how awful this situation is. You’re seeing these important people now with new eyes. Keep seeing them, in the kitchens and in the fields, and in unexpected places, working. Keep seeing them as people, not as de-humanized “illegals.”
Now, keep learning, and take action. Here is a great place to start: Top Ten Ways to Make a Difference. And please feel free to send me an email at mariposaenlapared at gmail dot com if you want to talk more. Thank you Lessie, we need more people like you in the world.

October 10, 2008 at 4:55 pm

@Janna, thanks for your thoughtful response. This is what I like about this site… we all share and we all learn from one another.

Guatemalan Women Are Moving!

Related

Leave a Reply Cancel reply