Guatemala

A land of ravishing beauty, Guatemala entices the visitor with its mountains, lakes and brilliant colors. Perhaps the contrast between that splendor and the country’s many legacies of violence is what draws both Guatemalans and committed foreigners to try to find solutions, to end the cycles of violence, to construct nation and community. First Takes offers two viewpoints: distinguished sociologist Edelberto Torres-Rivas and noted photojournalist Jean-Marie Simon, who have dedicated their lives to overcoming the legacies of violence.

Indigenous people are a majority in Guatemala, but they have been subject to racism, discrimination and even genocide. The 1996 Peace Accords recognized Guatemala as a “multicultural, pluri-ethnic and multilingual” nation. Much has been accomplished in terms of preservation of language and identity, but many challenges still lie ahead.  

One of the legacies of violence is that a country at war finds its process of development at a standstill. Guatemala, a country of spectacular modern buildings and lush rain forests, is experimenting with different development strategies from small community organizations to social enterprise.

 The only thing worse than the hundreds of thousands of victims of la violencia in Guatemala was the horrific silence. The endeavors of nongovernment organizations and progressive churchworkers, the accidental discovery of a treasure trove of government records, books, photographs, testimonies and films are now all breaking through that silence. 

Violence is a word all too common in Guatemala: la violencia, the civil conflict that engulfed the country in the 80s; the violence of nature and frequent natural disasters; the violence of poverty and discrimination; the everyday violence now fueled by common and organized crime. The legacies of violence permeate the fabric of society. 

The lives of immigrants are increasingly connected to their homelands. A declining global economy and traumatic family separations create new challenges. Guatemalan immigrants often have unusual circumstances as they are Mayas, often with little or no Spanish skills. The Postville immigration raid in Iowa drew special attention to these problems.