Limpia: One part of the Truth

As part of our retreat on Silence and Indigenous Spirituality, we also participated in a Limpia, a tradition which we learned about from an indigenous man named Ignacio, or Nacho.
Literally, the word, Limpia, means cleaning or cleansing.  In this experience, a limpia was a spiritual cleansing.  Even with my intuitive ways, I was skeptical of this practice.  The more I learn, the more I realize the grounding power of logic in connection with a free and open intuition.   My logic tells me that there was value in this experience, that it was indeed, a health creating practice, in the way that I experienced it.  Using an uncracked raw egg, some herbs, and a pinch of intuition, Nacho cleansed each YAGM volunteer's spiritual aura, and then explained what issues we might be having in our lives by cracking the egg into water and "reading" the yoke's pattern.  Its important to be a little skeptical when encountering practices like this in Mexico, or anywhere, because there are lots of people who want to take advantage of gringos' fascination with indigenous spirituality to do scams.  Yet, there is also a rooted tradition of healing using herbs, rituals, and faith to cure.  This contrasts western medicine, where it seems that everything must be scientifically proven by professional studies to be valid.  I believe that both western knowledge and indigenous and ancient practices - even while handed down through centuries - have value, and that we need both.  In Mexico, the indigenous traditions of healing, combined with less economic resources, and less access to state of the art health care, creates more openness to more grounded and more spiritual ways of healing.  The Limpia that Nacho did was a ritualized set of movements, passing the egg over the head, shoulders, arms, solar plexus, lower calf, and feet, pressing the egg into our skin at certain points.  After Nacho "read the egg", he asked us questions, that invited us to reflect on our lives, for example: "Have you ever been to a place that you haven't asked (or given yourself) permission to be in?" If we had, he suggested putting flowers out as an offering of humility to ask forgiveness.
He explained how some of us absorb sadness and anger from those around us, but that we can help ourselves heal through seeing the big picture of the suns' rise and set, and trying to let emotions flow instead of holding on to them. He asked us to reflect on people that may be trying to harm us or people we are trying to harm, and to make peace with those around us.   He encouraged us to pay attention to our dreams, waking and sleeping ones. These reflections are a way to be more aware and awake to life, cleansing our spirits and growing in health.

Temazcal: Tradition of Rebirth

A temazcal is an indigenous MesoAmerican tradition of rebirth that continues today.  We participated in this tradition as part of our YAGM retreat on silence and indigenous spirituality.  A temazcal is a spiritual ritual that involves a herbal steam bath which we participated in a dark lodge.  We crawled in to the igloo-like space backwards, and soaked in the warm, sweet, strong, steamy herb-filled air.  The small space is meant to be like returning to a womb: a dark, safe space of gathering.  After about twenty minutes of silence and sweating, we re-entered into the light, the bright surprise of life once again greeting us.  We were wrapped in a sheet, and then we rested.  I also participated in this tradition at a birthday party with a blend of Mexican and international friends to at the beginning of spring. At this party, there was a temazcal at the house we went to.  While we didn't participate in the steam bath, we did go in.  A woman who had studied the spirituality of the temazcal led us in a chant to  honor and create sacred space.  This tradition reminded me to reflect on each moment as an opportunity for rebirth, each breath as an opportunity for renewal.  There are many places throughout Mexico City and Mexico in general where one can go for a temazcal.  Sometimes, one has to pay for these services, and many times, people do a temazcal with the intention to heal or improve a certain health condition.  The health benefits of a temazcal are similar to those of a sauna: they help with circulation and cleanse the body through sweat.  The spiritual, historical, and sacred elements are all intertwined into this health-creating ritual of renewal.

Books I have been reading this year...

Sky Burial, by Xinran

Breath, Eyes, Memory, by Edwidge Danticat

The Devil's Highway, by Luis Alberto Urrea

The Red Tent, by Anita Diamant

Weaving the Past, A History of Latin America's Indigenous Women from the Prehispanic Period to the Present, by Susan Kellogg

Anam Cara, by John O Donohue

Night of Many Dreams, by Gail Tsukiyama

Crossing Over, by Ruben Martinez

Peace Pilgrim, compiled by some of her friends

Performance y arte acciOn en AmErica Latina, by Josefina AlcAzar y Fernando Fuentes

"We belong to the Land and Not the Reverse"

As part of our YAGM retreat on silence and indigenous spirituality, we listened to an indigenous man named Ignacio, "Nacho," who explained the history of oppression that indigenous people have resisted for hundreds of years. 
Early in his talk, he told a story about one of the conquerors who tortured an indigenous leader and demanded to know, "Where is the treasure?" The indigenous leader responded, "How sad that you do not have eyes to see? You have already killed it.  The treasure is in the knowledge, wisdom, discipline, and life of my people."
After the conquista, 10 % of the indigenous population remained.  Though marginalized, the knowledge, wisdom, discipline, and lives of many indigenous people still inform and form Mexican cultures. 
Nacho explained that the indigenous had a circular lunar calendar, with cycles marking the time of light and the other half marking the time of dark.  In contrast to Western culture's views, the time of darkness is not seen as negative, but as a time of regeneration.  When the Spaniards came, many indigenous interpreted it as a change from the time of dark to the time of light and hoped for positive transformation, but what followed was horrible destruction and loss of culture and life. 
Since the conquista, indigenous have struggled for rights to land.  Many indigenous worked havesting sugar cane and coffee, living basically as slaves in extreme poverty.  He explained how debts were not forgiven when a family member died, and so for 300 years, this injustice grew, and poverty worsened. 
When Mexico gained independence on September 15, 1810, the Legislation of Land was not dealt with, and indigenous were oppressed for 100 more years.  In 1910, another social movement began to fix this land conflict.  Emiliano Zapata called out, "It's better to die on your feet than to live on your knees!" There began the Zapatista Movement, whose theme was, "For Everyone, Everything! For us, Nothing!"  Although many indigenous didn't believe in violence, because "we reap what we sow," they recognized that sometimes it is necessary.  Guns force others to listen.  A bloody revolution began in 1910 and ended in one sense in 1919.  In 1911, Emiliano Zapata drafted the "Plan de Ayala," which said, "This land will return to those who work it with their hands."  Yet the revolution for land in Mexico still continues today.  "The government is not listening," Nacho said. 
In 1917, Article 27 of the Mexican constitution was created and said, "Communal Land, or Ejido Land is the property of the people who work it with their hands."  From 1917 to 1919, after the assasination of Emiliano Zapata, agrarian reform began, but only in the state of Morelos (in Cuernavaca, Morelos, one of the street names is Plan de Ayala).
Nacho explained how many indigenous people see land very differently than people from Western cultures.  The land we are on connects us to the present.  The land is the time and space we inhabit in the here and now.  For this reason, the land is not something we can own; we can't carry the land with us.  Many indigenous are against the definition of private property, and see it as an "invention of oppresion." Private property prevents access, even to basic needs of life, like water.  "In privatizing everything," he explained, "we are thinking more with our wallets than with our hearts." "We belong to the land and not the reverse," he explained. 
In the 1990s, President Carlos Salinas changed Article 27 without asking permission from the indigenous.  Communal Ejido Indigenous Lands could be sold for profit.   So, many multinational companies showed up.  NAFTA was about to go into effect.  Nacho explained that NAFTA works in theory, but not in practice. In 1994, the Zapatista Army for National Liberation protested NAFTA.  With NAFTA, Mexico was considered "first world." But Mexico can't compete with the U.S. because of differences in agricultural machinery, agricultural subsidies, access to education, and healthcare.  In that time, 33% of the Mexican indigenous were living in extreme poverty, on one dollar a day, eating salt and tortillas, especially in the states of Guerrero, Chiapas, Oaxaca, and Hidalgo. 
"The Zapatista movement is about dignity," Nacho explained, since so many indigenous have lived through so much suffering and indignity.  Zapatista movement is about indigenous rights to land, natural resources, and autonomy. 
"Many indigenous have much mistrust of multinational companies because they have arrived and mined, and taken advantage of us," he said.  He said its frustrating that many students come to "study the indigenous," and they leave after a time, and advance in their professions, but "what about the indigenous people?" The studies done by students may educate others, but do not have a direct and immediate impact on the indigenous communities.  He said its frustrating to feel that his culture is valued in museum pieces and exhibits, but that human beings who form his culture are not valued.  He said, "As indigenous, we want to be included in a nation-project.  We want to be included and valued because all of us are children of the Land."  This makes me think of the indigenous perspective that God lives in the earth.  In Christian traditions, the phrase, "We are all children of God," is so common. If we see from the eyes of the indigenous, being children of God means being children of the earth, and ALL of us belong to the earth, not the reverse. 

Lizards and Snakes: Sacred Creatures

This is one of the church door handles at Southside Presbyterian Church.  The church modeled some of their structure to connect their beliefs with indigenous traditions.  Many indigenous believe(d) God lives in the earth, and so lizards and snakes are sacred, since they live between us and God!

In D.F., most days I see tiny agile lizards scrambling into crevices in the hardened lava that forms the rocky landscape where I live.  I haven't seen as many live snakes, but the snake is present in lots of art, including the Mexican flag, which pictures an eagle on a nopal (cactus) eating a snake.  The ancient Aztecs received a message from their gods that when they saw this image, they should build a great city.  They built Technotitlan, (the original name for Mexico City) in the middle of a huge lake!   I recently walked on top on a winding snake sculpture garden at UNAM, one of the largest universities in the world.  When our YAGM group traveled to the border, we visited the Southside Presbyterian Church in Tucson, Arizona.  There, John Fife, one of the founders of the Sanctuary Movement (learn more about the New Sanctuary Movement here: (http://www.newsanctuarymovement.org/), is pastor.  He explained how the church design reflects how indigenous spirituality has and can inform other religious traditions.  For example, the altar is in the center, reflecting the importance of community, so that everyone can see one another's faces.  The handles of the church made an impression on me, as the handles are sculptures of lizards and snakes.  He explained to us that many indigenous peoples believe God lives in the earth.  And so snakes and lizards are sacred creatures, because they live between us and God. How interesting that this sacred snake and lizard link to God in the earth can help us live in community: When we care for the earth, we care for one another, and the reverse.  When we love the earth and one another, we love God. 

The outer entrance to Southside Presbyterian Church in Tucson.

Our Group with John Fife, one of the founders of the Sanctuary Movement, inside the church.  The congregation sits in a circle with the altar in the center, which reflects an indigenous practice of community.

This small colorful art piece was outside the church,
making me think of the abundance that the earth gives, when
we care and honor for the God who lives in the Earth.

I Cross Myself Because there's No Seatbelt and Other Spiritual Reflections...

I've gotten into the popular Catholic-Mexican habit of crossing myself, except instead of doing so when passing a church or holy place as many Mexican people do, I cross myself every time I get into a bus or taxi, where one is hard pressed to find a seatbelt. Taxis careen, buses zoom, passing happens wherever whenever, drivers honk instead of stop at intersections, its a wonder anyone makes it anywhere in the mess of traffic in Mexico City.  I also cross myself on the way across the street, as buses barely (and sometimes don't) stop at red lights and crosswalks.
"Thank God," I think to myself as I take a deep breath and feel grateful to have made it. I've noticed that I am used to using the phrase, "Thank God," only when something bad did NOT happen. Here in Mexico, I hear a different spirit of reverence when people use God in daily expressions. Many everyday sayings reference God.  Many people use them, whether they are particularly religious or not. "Thanks to God," expressed "Gracias a Dios," is one of the most common. If someone asks "How are you?" for example, it is not uncommon to hear, "Estoy bien, Gracias a Dios," or "I am fine, thanks to God." Sometimes when I thank someone, instead of replying "de nada" or "you're welcome," the person will reply, "Gracias a Dios." A friend was telling me that "the phrase "Gracias a Dios" is so common in Mexico that we have the saying, 'Yo soy atea, Gracias a Dios,' which means, 'I am an atheist, Thanks to God.' "
Another phrase often used to speak about miraculous or uncommon events of grace, is "Dios es tan grande que..." which means, "God is so big that..." Sometimes I hear that phrase about the size and mystery of God when others marvel at nature.
A very common reverent habit is saying, "Si Dios Permite," which means "If God permits." If I say, for example, "Hasta MaNana" "See you tomorrow," to Esther, my host, she will often add for me, "Si Dios Permite," meaning "Yes, if God permits." This phrase is a constant reminder to me to not take life for granted.
I have reflected on why expressions about God are so different in the U.S. and in Mexico. In general, I feel that my U.S. culture more commonly uses expressions with the word God in negative ways, only to say things like, "thank God I did not die in that car accident!" And in general here in Mexico, I feel "Gracias a Dios," usually carries a completely different reverence, respect, and awe.
In a recent conversation with the other YAGM, Amy, dear friend and one of the volunteers, relayed a story about a conversation at her worksite. She was at a meeting, speaking in English, with the director of her work site translating for one of her coworkers. Amy explained how in the U.S., there is a different sense about time, efficiency, and getting things done. And the director of her work site, translated her statement in a very interesting way, explaining to the Mexican woman she was with, "The U.S. is a culture of conquerors, and so are efficient and warrior-like in the way they occupy time" and "we are a culture of the conquered, which means we view time very differently."
I feel this explanation also relates perhaps to the differences in the ways of relating to God. Coming from a "culture of conquerors," there are ways that my actions are in some ways "more effective," in the sense that I have more economic possibilities, more of certain kinds of privelage, more of certain kinds of opportunites, just because I am white and from the U.S. That means that maybe I don't look as much for help to the powers outside of my control. Whereas, being from a culture of "the conquered," perhaps there is more of a reverence, a mixed up blend and fear and hope for what is out of one's control and out of one's reach.
I find myself at times deeply appreciating, at times annoyed by this all-pervading sense of a great and mysterious God. Sometimes, especially if I feel angry or don't sense the presence of God, I just want to say, "Yes, I will wake up tomorrow, whether God gives me permission or not!" This attitude comes from being part an indivilualistic culture of conquerors, and the illusion of wanting to accomplish something without any outside help.  Yet, when I reflect, that is impossible.  Many times, I feel so humbled to be able to breathe, sleep, be a part of another culture, and live, that saying "Gracias a Dios" seems the very least I could possibly do to acknowledge the mystery that has brought me here that I don't understand, and the many other people and forces of the universe which allow me to live. Gratitude, humility, a history of struggle and strength through oppresion, and awareness of the importance of relationship, are at the core of these sayings. It really is by some strange and wondrous permission that we are here, waking up again, living, breathing, and saying, its all "Gracias a Dios." How can we learn from humble hearts, using our gratitude to help us live with more care for one another and ourselves?
A gospel choir song that I used to sing at St. Olaf sings,  "Thank you for another day...For makin things okay. What was broken yesterday, is all fixed up today. I thank you for another day.....I thank you for another day." Another day to begin anew.  Here, I am learning to say, "Thank God I woke up this morning!" , "Thank God I have family, friends, and health." "Thank God I arrived back home safely," and "Por Todo, For Everything, Gracias a Dios." If God is truly the animating spirit inside of each one of us, then saying Gracias a Dios is a way to acknowledge all the people who've gone before me, all my ancestors and all people who've lived, for their contributions, inventions, inspirations, dreams, writings, discoveries, constructions, artistic creations, mistakes, failures, perseverence through loss, and movements towards peace. Gracias a Dios is a way to acknowledge all those who live now, who support me in direct and indirect ways, the people who sew my clothes, harvest the fruit I eat, drive the trucks which bring food from the farm to the city. Gracias a Dios is saying thanks the inner spirit of the people who have been and are my teachers, my friends, my family. Gracias a Dios is a way to see this big interconnected web, and recognize that we each are supported by zillions of invisible threads.  Anything that you or I accomplish, you or I have not done "by myself." The food that we ate for strength, the transportation that we drive or ride, the clothes which we wear, the support we receive from family and friends, the people who care for health, the people who have paved the way before us, all make it possible for us to just simply live and breath our lives. I will close with a quote I love by Albert Einstein which I feel reads almost like a prayer, especially, if thinking about the God inside each one of us:
"A hundred times every day, I remind myself that my inner and outer life are dependent on the labours of other [women and] men, both living and dead, and that I must exert myself, in order to give in the same measure as I have received, and still am receiving."
 ~Albert Einstein

Swedish Pancakes : Who Knew they'd be Such a hit in Mexico?

I get a kick out of it when Mexicans ask me, "What foods do you eat in the U.S.?" and then answer the question themselves, only half jokingly: "Hot dogs, hamburguesas, pizzas, y Puro Pan! (Pure White Bread!)..." Well, yes, you can find those foods, I reply, but there's lots more to it than that.  I try to explain how foods people eat in the U.S.  depend a lot on the particular family's lifestyle, economic class, and heritage and less on the location in the U.S. where they live.  As I explain, I realize the multicultural identity of the U.S. is reflected in the foods we eat.  In major cities and small towns alike, restaurants often reflect a variety of cultures: Chinese, Italian, and Mexican restaurants are easy to find in many places, for example.  While in many of these restaurants, these cultures' foods are americanized, they still reflect some base connection to another culture.  I also explain how there is growing interest in locally grown and organic foods, in my hometown and beyond, and that many people are seeking ways to eat healthier for themselves and the environment, lower on the food chain.  Here in Mexico, each state is known for particular types of foods, and then this gets even more specific with foods common to regions, towns, and then families.  Many Mexicans here ask frequently, "And what do you think of the food here in Mexico?" And I reply that I like just about all of it. "And do you like spicy food?" they want to know.  For reasons unknown to me, since arriving in Mexico, I've happily spinkled spicy salsa onto almost everything (my Scandinavian, Scottish, Dutch, English ancestry certainly does not explain it.) I am already thinking about carrying around limes and chilis in my purse when I get back to the U.S. because I've gotten used to putting lime juice and chili on just about everything!  In spite of common foods across much of Mexico, like limes, chilis, and what often comes to mind in the U.S.: tacos, there are diverse, rich and rooted culinary traditions here, and food is an important part of sharing among Mexicans and foreigners.  "Para que lo pruebes," "So that you can try it," Mexicans and market vendors will often say as they offer to share something with me that I've never tried. Many Mexicans love to share their eating traditions, and are delighted when foreigners share the food they eat with them in the way they eat it.  When I first walked thru markets, I was super surprised to see things like pigs' heads, pigs's feet, whole unskinned fish, whole chickens with vendors pulling off feathers, and intestines hanging from the market booths.  Just yesterday, I ate a handful of grasshoppers (smothered in lime juice---which makes everything go down easier) for the first time.  Now in some strange way, I appreciate this whole hearted approach to meat - it gives me a more of a sense of connection to the animal I eat.  In the U.S., sometimes the meat we buy in the store has been so processed that it loses its raw animal-ness.  A piece of chicken that has no bones, no feathers, no blood, makes it easier to forget that this meat used to be a living breathing creature.

Many Mexicans also have asked me, "so what did you eat in the U.S.?"  and before they can answer for me, with their assumptions of white bread and pizza, I explain some of my family's favorites: goulash, chili, soups, salads, stir fry chicken, homemade bread, and, in attempt to show how the U.S.'s multicultural heritage is reflected in foods, I tell them about Swedish pancakes, a family favorite on my mom's side.  I've made Swedish pancakes in Mexico for my coworkers, host family, and many other family friends, on several occasions.  Esther, my host mom, shares the name of my Swedish great grandmother on my mom's side, and so I think its a funny coincidence that she happens to be the biggest fan.  
Its a simple recipe.  I've realized Swedish pancakes end up kind of like tortillas, but I have yet to try putting lime and chili on them!
Here's the recipe (this makes enough for 6 hungry people or so):
4 dry ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
2/3 cups of flour
a pinch of salt
a few shakes of ground cinnamon (optional)
Mix these three dry ingredients together.
3 wet ingredients:
6 eggs, beaten
3 cups milk (any kind will do)
a little bit of vanilla
Mix these wet ingredients together.
Then, mix the wet and dry ingredients together gradually.  The batter should be runny and bubbly.
Then, pour oil into a pan, let the oil and pan heat up.  Then, pour a little bit of the batter into the pan, and pick up the pan and move it around in a circle so the batter spreads evenly.  Put it back over the heat, and wait till you see bubbles on the top, then flip the pancake! Walla! Swedish pancakes.  You can eat plain or top with yogurt, fruit, jam, sweetened condensed milk, butter, syrup, limes and chili, peanut butter, or whatever else you want to try!

Inspiration from the Borderlands: Learning from a Border Patrol Agent, and a Former Coyote...

We heard from border patrol agent, Jared Allred, who patiently answered our many questions while taking us on an informative tour of the Border Patrol Headquarters in Douglass, Arizona, where the BP employs hundreds of agents. He explained how principles of honor and integrity guide his work, and how his job is to enforce and uphold the law, whether he agrees with it or not. We later learned from John Fife, one of the founders of the Sanctuary Movement, that police and soldiers have a legal obligation (through international laws in place since WWII) to disobey authority or the law if it interferes with basic human rights.  However, if I imagine myself in the border patrol's shoes, resisting authority and a border policy that is supported by many U.S. officials would not be an easy task.  Agent Allred said several times he knows that a lot of immigrants migrate out of economic necessity. He explained that migrants who cross are in huge danger and risk, because coyotes who guide them through the desert are often also smuggling drugs, and many care more about money than the people they are guiding. By enforcing border patrol he said he is helping deter migrants from taking that potentially deadly journey. When asked what message he wants to share, he said, "A lot of people think that border patrol agents are against immigration, but that is not true. We are only against illegal immigration." While many (including myself) may want to pit the border patrol agents as the "bad guys" in this situation, it is just not that simple. Border Patrol agents also can be credited with saving lives of some who may have died in the desert. However, there have also been many human rights abuses commited by the border patrol.  Learning from a human being puts a different perspective on the issues and has made me reflect on the importance of creating humane systems.  Learn more about this complex, growing organization on their website:
http://www.cbp.gov/
We also listened to Pastor Mark Addams, who is one of the leaders of Fronteras de Cristo, or Frontiers of Christ, who you can also look up online http://www.fronteradecristo.org/. He explained the link between the border patrol and coyotes (people who lead and organize groups of migrants through the desert). During the 150 years before the border patrol, seasonal migrants would simply cross, and there was an unspoken recognition that migrant labor was part of U.S. economy. As border patrol and border security has gotten more complex, so have the coyote's human smuggling techniques. Coyotes now take more and more extreme measures to keep their human smuggling business going, and migrants pay coyotes thousands of dollars each to guide them across the most dangerous parts of the desert.
Again, it would be easier if we could say that the coyotes are the bad guys in this whole situation. Yet, on our trip, our group met a former coyote, who was an animated storyteller, a friendly man who shared his experiences openly with us. We spent an afternoon with 3 guys (whose names I'll leave anonymous) who are part of CRREDA, an organization of recovering alcoholics and drug addicts in Agua Prieta, Mexico. These men do a variety of community service projects as they recover from addiction with the support of the CRREDA community. We participated in one of these projects with them: filling water tanks on the Mexican side of the border, very near to the border fence. We walked over sandy and rocky paths, winding through all types of thorny shrubs, and arrived at the high wall, where we peered through rusty metal poles to see desert stretching out in an unknown hilly expanse. We watched as border patrol trucks rumbled by and then camped out on the hill, waiting out in the open to deter or detain immigrants.  While there, I wondered about dear immigrant friends I had met in the U.S. and gave thanks they had survived. Had any of them crossed here?

Inspiration from the Sierra Club Borderlands Campaign

Walking through the desert, I was amazed by the striking sharp beauty of the unfamiliar landscapes, filled with spirit-like cactuses, strong, spiny plants, and bright yellow and blue skies becoming brighter in contrast to earth tones. We realized the beauty and fragility of the desert landscapes even more as we heard from Dan Millis of the Sierra Club, the largest and oldest environmental organization in the U.S. Dan gave us a presentation about the Sierra Borderlands Campaign.
This campaign was started by a group of volunteers in Tucson, Arizona who were disturbed by wall construction in protected national wildlife refuges. The Borderlands cross mountain ranges, 2 of North America's 4 deserts, and host many threatened & endangered species. The Borderlands include rare coastal habitat and one of the last big saltwater marshes in California. The Sky Islands form a unique desert border landscape marked by mountains rising out of big, open plains. Desert dunes hold centuries of alluvial deposits. The Lower Rio Grande River Valley is a vital ecological link. Horned lizards, diamondback rattlesnakes, mountain lions, roadrunners, sonoran desert tortoises, jacarundi, extremely rare jaguars & ocelots, quails, javelinas, desert deer, and many more species live in these lands.
We learned how in the mid 1990s, walls began being built in San Diego and urban areas. The walls shifted where migrants cross, but didn't stop them from crossing. The Border Patrol themselves have said that the wall is not made to stop immigrants from crossing, but to slow them down so they can be detained. The Border Patrol estimates that the wall slows a migrant down by 5 minutes. Yet, billions of dollars have been poured into wall construction and maintenance. In addition, roads, towers, and high voltage lighting all take a toll on the environment, especially noctural animals, and migrating species. The wall itself is approximately 650 miles long with 350 miles of 15 foot walls and 300 miles of 6 foot high vehicle barriers. The wall costs taxpayers an average of 4 million dollars per mile. The cheapest sections of the border fence cost about $700,000 per mile. The most expensive at $16,000,000 per mile can be found in the Otay Mountain Wilderness, California, an area which many say forms a natural barrier due to steep, dangerous terrain.
The Sierra Club is against the environmental degradation that has occurred because of Border policy and wall construction. The wall is an impenetrable barrier to many species of wildlife. The presentor we heard, Dan Millis, explained that for many creatures, large areas of desert are like their house. They roam to one large area to eat, another to mate, another to sleep. What if someone built a wall in your house and suddenly you were stuck in the kitchen? Where would you sleep, go to the bathroom, mate? The Border wall not only affects animals, it has also changed land contours and caused sediment and water drainage problems.
The Sierra Club is for following the laws, with special attention to environmental laws. Yet, in 2005, Michael Chertoff, the former secretary of Homeland Security, signed the Real ID Act, in which Section 102 gave those constructing and maintaining the border permission to waive all local, state, and federal laws. Waiving 40 years of environmental law is an abuse of power and a danger to the environment, according to the Sierra Club. This disregard for these law has taken away border communities voices, many of whom are impacted most by these policies. Another issue is that sometimes border patrol have intended to resolve problems caused by lack of ecological understanding, and caused more harm and wasted more money. Many are concerned that very little has been invested in monitoring the effects of wall construction on the environment. The Sierra Club advocates a border policy that works for the environment, tribal nations, and local and global communities, with attention to the laws meant to protect, preserve, and build sustainably in harmony with the environment.
The Sierra Club Borderlands Campaign grew out of pure environmental concern, but as the issues have evolved, Dan explained that the campaign needed to take a political stand. This is an example of how human rights and environmental justice are inextricably linked and highlighted through human migration. The Sierra Club's position is that we need to address the root causes of migration and see migration as part of a larger web of interconnected issues, as an ecologist looks at the interconnectedness in the environment.
To learn more, visit www.arizona.sierraclub.org/border. You can also watch a 5 minute short version of a longer video on youtube called, "Wild Vs. Wall," http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vIx0h8njok which highlights some of the environmental issues with current border practices/policy. You can also look up www.sierraclub.org/borderlands/googleearth in order to get a better sense of the geography in the borderlands. Write to U.S. senators and representatives, and hold them accountable to follow environmental and civic laws especially in relation to border policy. Urge them to repeal section 102 of the Real ID act. Its important to follow through on doing studies of the environment impacts of border policy.

Inspiration from the Borderlands: Cafe Justo ~ "More than 'Just Coffee'"!

Cafe Justo (Just Coffee): We heard from a former coffee farmer at this exciting and hopeful organization, which moves beyond the concept of fair trade, with an emphasis on coffee farmers' involvement and ownership in the entire process! This affords them the benefits of social security and healthcare, so they can stay on their lands and sell delicious and conscious awakening coffee! Yum!!!
If you love coffee, or know someone who does, this coffee is a special treat and you can order it online...Also if you're interested, contact the organization and your college, school, church, synagogue, or temple can get in on this great coffee, too! http://www.justcoffee.org/

Anneli, a dear friend and one of the YAGM Mexico volunteers, LOVES her coffee!



The photos displayed on the Just Coffee wall are of coffee farmers and farms at cooperatives throughout Mexico.  Just Coffee is growing is Salvador Urbinas, Chiapas as well as Agua Prieta, Sonora, El Aguila, Nayarit, and El Cordon del Jilguero.  There are Just Coffee cooperatives "in the works" in Nayarit, Veracruz, and Baranderes, Haiti.  Just Coffee is one of many organizations working to address root causes of migration by creating favorable working conditions so that workers are paid a just price for their labor and so do not have the economic necessity to migrate.

 


Polina, Sam, and I relax at Just Coffee...





Inspiration from the Borderlands: Stories from a Feather Factory...& what is a Maquila?

During our time in the border town of Agua Prieta, our group visited Gateway Feathers, a Maquila (U.S. run factory on the Mexico side of the border. Similar types of U.S. run factories can be found throughout the world). The reason these factories operate in other countries is because its cheaper for many companies to pay wages in other countries, even with the additional shipping cost of getting the product back to the U.S. There are many maquilas along the U.S. Mexico Border, and since NAFTA of 1994, these factories employ a huge number of people in Mexico. However, the conditions at these maquilas are difficult, the pay is low, and many maquilas create environmental problems. At the factory we visited, workers cut turkey feathers into tiny brightly colored pieces used in bows and arrows. The Maquila was relatively small. Conditions seemed surviveable for the hour or so which we visited, but the overpowering reek of chemical dyes created a need for face masks, and Olivia, the almost 1 year old traveling with us, was not allowed to come into the factory because of these chemicals. Our group watched a documentary, "Maquilopolis," that tells the story of terrible working and living conditions, including lead contamination in the air in Tijuana.  The film explained that women make up 80% of the Maquila workforce.  The women in the film at the end spoke of their hope, "My hope is someday there will be factories that don't pollute the environment." You can learn more about Maquilas in general by watching that film or through reading on wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maquiladora.  To learn more about NAFTA, read the Mechanisms section: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_Free_Trade_Agreement

Veronica, a warm, smile filled mother of 2 who is a supervisor at the plant, gave us a tour of the relatively small maquila. Although the working conditions weren't great, she told us she was glad to have the work. From our perspective, wearing face masks barely masked the naseuating smell of chemical dye, and we wondered how she managed on the salary: a full days' work earns 100-180 pesos, or about 8 to 16 dollars.

 

In the first room we entered, women and men sat at counters, doing precise-looking work at microscope-like instruments. Others were in the corner, facing a wall and counter where they inspected the finished feather for quality control and bagged them. The room was a noisy whirl with the sound of clipping, stacking, buzzing, and the blare of the radio, playing a bouncy pop tune that contrated a longing heartbroken voice. Trash cans were filled with leftover colorful pieces of feathers, and garbage bags were filled to the brim with white feathers, either freshly dyed or ready to be dyed.

There was one woman we saw who I thought could be a ballet dancer. Her features were thin and severe and her hair was pulled back in a tight and perfect bun. She moved with a speed and precision that I couldn't match for all the ballet classes in the world, all the while standing tall.  She held her head high and regal, and her face undistracted and only showed emotion once in a while. Her eyes followed her work and she didn't look up when the crowd of us stood around her area in a big circle, listening as Veronica explained more. Later we learned that workers are paid by quota, so their earnings depend totally on how much they get done or not. I wonder what dreams this dancer-like worker was racing toward as she clipped and stacked, clipped and stacked, clipped and stacked, sometimes muttering along and sometimes singing loudly and freely along with the radio singer's voice. What opportunities or barriers to those dreams does working at the maquila provide her? Did she know she made her work into an art?

In another room, there were large dryers where huge loads of feathers tumbled dry. We walked outside into welcome fresh air for just a minute before we went into another building. There a disgusting, overpowering, glue-like smell easily leaked through my face mask, making me naseous. A strong man in army pants stood mixing a vat a of bright green dye and feathers. We learned it takes 1-1.5 hours to dye the feathers. We walked through another room where women sorted feathers according to size. Work, work, work, buzz, buzz, buzz, clip, clip, clip, stack, stack, stack, sing, stack, stack, stack, dye, dye, dye. A constant steady swirl of work, from 7-5 p.m. Monday thru Friday, sometimes overtime, and sometimes Saturdays. All of this for 8-16 dollars per day.

A message from the company's website explains: "All of our dye materials and packaging products are purchased in the United States and are certified environmentally safe. We then ship all of these products to our factory in Mexico to complete our manufacturing process. This is done to hold down the cost of feather processing, a savings which is passed on to the consumer." How far do we go to benefit our consuming habits when we know that they compromise the quality of life for someone else? Would paying a few extra cents or dollars be worth it? How can we encourage companies to pursue efficiency without sacrificing basic human dignity?

Many people advocate boycotting companies with poor labor conditions. This is a powerful way to become a more conscious consumer and sends a strong message to money conscious companies. At the same time, when asked about message she would like to share, Veronica, the working woman who was giving us a tour, didn't know, and hesitantly said, "well..buy more feathers?" While we can boycott companies, its also important to realize that our current economy depends on them, and they aren't going to disappear overnight. We can also tell companies we expect specific improvements and standards to be upheld, and we can obligate our governments to provide oversight. We can write the company or another company which we buy goods from and ask them to pay minimum U.S. wage to their workers, & provide healthcare, and social security for them. Another thing we can demand is that at a minimum U.S. companies follows U.S. safety and health codes even though the company operates in another country with a different set of standards. To learn more about the company which the maquila we visited is part of, visit http://www.gatewayfeathers.com/.

Intro: Inspiration from the Borderlands: Moving forward with Hope

After a weeklong Mexico - U.S. border immersion experience with the YAGM (Young Adults in Global Mission), I am charged to share the stories of people living in, working in, and crossing the borderlands. Our group of 7 YAGM Mexico volunteers have a range of moderate, conservative, and liberal opinions on immigration issues. A unique part of this journey was its purpose: It was not to convince us that one of the many sides is right or wrong.  Instead, we went to the border to see these issues for what they are, and hear the human stories from all sides. At the border and beyond, issues of migration affect all of us. Learning more is one of the most important steps we can take! As we learn more, we can share open dialogue and improve the situation for the sake of global health and security. In the following blog posts, I will share images, stories, info, and ideas for action or non-action inspired by the people and places we visited.

Here our group stands by water tanks on the Mexican side of the border with men from CRREDA, an organization of men recovering from drug and alcohol addiction.  To support themselves through recovery, these men do community service, including filling water tanks for migrants in the Mexican desert.  These water tanks are a short walk from the border wall. 

Learning to Use a Machete and Other Reflections on Machismo & Marianismo

Whether we are female or male affects so much of our lives! This year, volunteering at "Women's Space for a Dignified Life Free of Violence," I am learning about the many ways gender shapes our lives in society.  We define ourselves as male or female, yet gender is so much more wonderful and complex! All of us have both feminine and masculine energies, and we can be glad and in awe of these different aspects of our humanity.  Unfortunately, perhaps in part because of fear of acknowledging our complex multi-faceted identity, in most societies, gender inequality exists, and gender discrimination causes problems for both women and men.

This past June, I attended a conference on Gender Violence in Des Moines, Iowa, as preparation for this year in Mexico.  The conference was presented in Spanish for a mostly Latina/Latino group, and one of the presentors addressed the concepts of Machismo and Marianismo.  I had heard of Machismo, but never Marianismo.   Marianismo refers to the Virgen Maria or the Virgen Mary. There are many virtues to learn from the stories of the Mother Mary, for example, her open spiritual readiness to be the holy house for the baby Jesus to be born through her.  Yet, church and society has put too much emphasis on an unhealthy and unattainable virginal ideal for women.  The Sunday before I left for Mexico, the pastor who was substitute preaching at my church, Rev. Richard Simon Hansen, gave a sermon about this.  A Hebrew scholar, he explained how in Jewish Hebrew tradition, it is impossible to say a woman "lost her virginity." The Hebrew word translates better as "fulfillment."  When a woman loses her virginity, she has gained something, not lost it.  What a radical and refreshing message for a woman to hear in a church.  Hallelujah! God created us as sexual creatures, and this is not something to fear, but to celebrate with responsibility and respect. 

Marianismo permeates not just the Catholic church, but church in general.  Sex is only condoned within marriage, leaving out the fact that plenty of sex happens outside of marriage with great love and respect, and there's plenty of sex that happens within marriage without love and respect.  Marianismo also keeps women afraid of experiencing and enjoying her sexuality.  It prevents women from experimenting with masturbation, or experiencing sexuality before marriage.   If a woman tries to be a perfect virgin, this can keep her from experiencing pleasure and knowing her own body. Many churches continue to preach that sexual purity is important, yet this message excludes more than it gathers in.  By preaching a message of acceptance and celebration of sexuality with responsibility, I think many churches would grow and many people would be able to make a sacred link between spirituality and sexuality, enjoying these gifts with care and respect for self and others.

The workshop presentor also explained how what is now called Machismo has its roots in something good: a male's healthy sense of responsibility and care for his wife and children.  Machisimo twists this sense to an extreme that results in controlling, possesive, and discriminatory behavior and cultural practices.  Machismo is a common word in Mexico, used to describe how male dominance and control is ingrained into many aspects of the culture.  Here are some examples of how Machismo is part of religion, polotics, language, and culture in Mexico and beyond.

RELIGION: In the Catholic and Lutheran churches, as well as all the other churches I've had contact with, God is referred to almost exclusively or exclusively as male.  This leaves out even the possibility that our all powerful God has a female or androgynous identity as well.  God is referred to as Father, or Senor, or He almost or simply all the time.  This imagery can be especially harmful to women who have experienced violence at the hands of men.  At the beginning our YAGM year, we learned from the coordinator of the whole YAGM program that in Hebrew, the word for Holy Spirit is a feminine noun.  How have we lost that holistic, pluralistic sense of God in translation?

In the Catholic church, women are not allowed to be priests.  In many other denominations, more men than women are religious leaders and in some denominations, women are discouraged or not encouraged to go to seminary and become a pastor or religious leader.  A woman pastor who inspires me has preached sermons about how she was scoffed at when she told men she felt a call to be a pastor.  Why are women not seen as equally capable of being spiritual leaders in many churches?

POLOTICS: Similarly, look at the number of women who hold office compared to men. 

LANGUAGE: One of the most striking examples of language discrimination is a Mexican slang expression for "Cool."  In the first few weeks I was here, I soon learned that"Que Padre!" means "how cool!" Padre literally means Father.  In contrast, Madre is also used in popular slang and while it can have a variety of meanings, most often Madre is used in a negative sense, as in the English, "Mother F*&!$%!"  There are other Mexican expressions using Madre that mean I'm in pain or I'm really tired.  I've been reflecting on this imbalance.  I've never heard anyone ever say "Father F*&(%$#@!" for example.  I'm intending to find alternatives to "Que Padre" for cool, mostly because its frustrating to me that there is not a feminine equivalent.  "Que madre" means something totally different than "how cool."  I still find myself using the catchy slang and then wondering, "How do these expressions influence us in daily life and how can we create gender equality and celebration in language?"

Another example of language discrimination is that in the Spanish language, if you are going to say, "A group of us," to say us, you have to specify which gender. Students are taught in school that if it is a group of 10 women, and one is male, that the whole group should be referred to as male.  Similar issues exist in English.  For example, the male adjective usually goes first: him/herself.  Another example is the expressions using "mankind" instead of humankind or womankind! In the effort to move toward gender equality, its important that we as women find a balance even as we go from extreme to extreme.  How can we express the feminine and masculine aspects that are part of all of us - giving them a voice and a place and a recognition?  In Mexico City, because I am working at a center focused on gender issues, I get to see how many activists are working together to create and practice using more inclusive language that recognizes women and men.  Through visual and spoken words, we can and are re-shaping society through re-inventing how we express gender.

CULTURE:
I visited rural villages in Veracruz with a dear friend, Saul and his parents, Angela and Alfonzo, for the holidays.  In the rural villages we visited, traditional, indigenous culture is rich and present.  There is beauty, wisdom, and function in these particular traditions and roles.  As an outsider, I wonder what it would be like to live inside those roles for my entire life.  For the two weeks I was in Veracruz, I lived into the roles as a traditional Veracruzan woman as much as I could.  One important skill that women learn at a young age is making tortillas from scratch.  Mixing the heavy "masa" or dough reminded me of kneading clay in a college pottery class - the consistency has to be just right.  Then you role the dough into ovals which also have to be just the right size.  After the ovals, the tortilla press, another "just right" skill (some women can make tortillas without the press - just with their hands! wow!).  Even with the press, I made lots of tortillas that were too thick or too thin, or that stuck to the piece of plastic and broke into a messy glob on the "comal," or cooking sheet that is laid over the open fire.  The Veracruzans I met got a big kick of my gringa attempts to "tortillar" as they call it.  Peeling the tortillas off the thin sheet of plastic and laying them on the comal required a deft delicacy.  Then, waiting just the right amount of time to flip the tortilla, quickly without a spatula - just fingers! OO! HOT! don't burn yourself!  Quick! And then wait some more - but not idly.  Stir the beans boiling over the fire, make some more tortilla ovals, attend the children, call the men in to eat, keep busy! Lily, my friend Saul's cousin's wife, 3 years younger than me, and an expert in the arts of daily life, would say to me playfully yet with expectation, "KAH-TEE! TRATA HACER LAS TORTILLAS MAS BONITAS!" "Kate! Try to Make Prettier Tortillas!"
Women always serve their husbands and children first, and of course the time consuming work poured into the tortillas are devoured in minutes as hungry husbands and children sit down to eat!
While this rhythm has its way of working, I wonder what options there are for women who aren't interested in making tortillas.  During preparation for my friend Saul's uncle's wedding, I stood for several hours making tortillas in a kitchen with the sky for a roof, and the earth for the floor, with over 20 indigenous women. As the kitchen's fire smoke and steam swirled, the women swirled in an unconscious practiced rhythm - from the bucket of masa, to the tortilla press, from the press to the fire, wait wait wait, flip QUICK hot!, wait wait wait, flip QUICK hot!, walk, weave in between other women, toss into the bucket of freshly made tortillas, soon to be consumed by the family and friends also swirling about in preparation for the wedding.  The women were a swirl of silent work at times, and then gossip and laughter would burst out.  The whole time I was there, one woman stood silently in the pantry, hidden from view, in a strange unexplained isolation, yet almost all the women knew she was there, and a few even exchanged whispers about her.  I looked over at her and smiled a few times, to acknowledge that she was there.  I wondered if her standing was a silent rebellion? Who could know? I didn't have the courage and didn't feel it would have been appropriate for me to ask.  A few times during my stay, I asked some of the women if they liked cooking and making tortillas and a few of them looked at me as if to say  'What kind of a question is that? Its not something we question, its just a way of life for us....'  

While many men in the rural Veracruzan villages I visited also do a huge amount of difficult and physical work, the difference is that the endless daily tasks of washing the dishes, doing the laundry, cooking, cleaning, and caring for children and grandchildren, are left mostly to women.
While there are some jobs that seem reserved for men only, it seems that women do learn just about everything.  I was surprised to be pulling feathers off freshly killed chickens and turning pig's intestines inside out - both times with other women, who are obviously not spared from the blood and guts of life.
My friend Saul's aunt and uncle run a "chorizo" or sausage making family business as well as a car repair.  While chorizo gives the family a higher profit than most rural Veracruzan families, it keeps the whole family busy 6-7 long days of the week, with little to no vacation time.  I got to help the women in the family with the process - crushing and peeling garlic, soaking and tearing cornhusks, tying the sausage into links as Saul's cousin mixed chili and spices into raw meat, and Saul's aunt weighed the links.   Lily, Saul's cousin's wife taught me the tricky yet fascinating art of turning pig's intestines inside out.  Women work. And they work hard.  So do the men. 
As a woman, I wanted to help as much as I could - selfishly, to learn and experience, and most importantly, to feel included. To me, working alongside another is one of the most meaningful ways to feel included and part of a group.  It was a gift to me to be allowed to help sweep the floors, hang the laundry, watch the children, and make chorizo. It was a small way for a short time to feel I could lighten the load in some very tiny way for women who were teaching and sharing so much with me. 

Doing these chores gave me time to reflect on how Marianismo and Machismo affect daily lives.  While many of the women and men I met seemed settled in their roles, I wonder what effects of gender inequality lie under the surface.   There are many ways which gender discrimination negatively affects all of us - internally and externally and in small towns and cities. 
For example, in Mexico especially, there is a different standard in relationship ethics for men and women.  In Mexico, if a man goes out with many women, or even has affairs, it gives him a "Don Juan" air.  Yet, if a woman goes out with several men, she risks completely ruining her reputation. 
I had an interesting conversation with a refugee from an African country which I will leave anonymous.  He said in his country, women and men are equal but in different ways.  Men, for example, can have many lovers, but women must remain faithful to one man.  When I asked, "what if women could have the same privelages enjoyed by men?" he burst out laughing.  Yet, he also said women in his culture have a high place of honor and respect because it is recognized that women are very powerful. 
Another example of inequality is in the way women's bodies are displayed everywhere in Mexico City in public.  It is not uncommon to see nude women or practically nude women on the cover of magazines out in the open for all to see.  These women's bodies are idealized to the max: air brushed and perfect seeming.  No wonder many women struggle with self esteem issues.  I notice that many images even in Mexican advertisements are of blonde, light skinned women, which makes the image more unattainable for Mexican women, and reinforces a stereotype of a hyper sexualized white woman.  Images of men's bodies can be found on some billboards, but not with any comparison to the amount of nudity and frequency of women.  Contrast the hyper-sexualized images of women that are unavoidable in the midst of daily trips to work, school, and home, with the hyper - purity advocated by many churches, and ay ay ay! what a lot of confusion and inner angst of shame and fear.

The power of our bodies is huge.  Yet, we can transform fear of this power to wonder and curiosity, living with healthy respect for this inner power.  Our shame needs to help us live in responsibility, not denial.
At a Black History Conference I went to at Luther College, an African American man who is an expert in 52 Blocks, a defensive martial art, asked the group of us students, "What is the most powerful thing in the world?"
This huge strong and powerful man answered himself in front of all of us: "the woman," and went on to explain how women make men do crazy and silly things, women turn heads when they walk by, women give birth, women work, raise children, women are peace makers, inspirers.  Women are powerful, he affirmed.  He also surprised many of us by explaining how in a martial arts fight, the majority of energy used is feminine.  Only in the moment of striking is masculine energy used.  So, he explained, its important for all of us to have a strong connection with our feminine energy. The power of the feminine is what sustains us through the bulk of struggle or fight.

During my time in Veracruz, Cuernavaca, and the D.F., I've witnessed the power of many Mexican women.  The women who volunteer at Espacio Mujeres have powerful compassion to accompany those who come to the center.  These women have courage to look inside of themselves, boldness to change, strength in vulnerability, and curiosity about their creativity.  The women in Veracruz strike me as joyful, resilient, and savvy.  The mother in the family I traveled with, Angela, is a delight to get to know.  Her spirit radiates with intelligence, kindness, and a spunky strength.

She taught me to wash my laundry in the river using a rock as a washboard.  She hiked with her husband and I through the bush, inspiring me by crawling under barbed wire fences with a nimbleness I hope to have at age 50+!  She taught me to live with hospitality and spirit, constantly reminding me, "Estas en tu casa" which means, "You're in your house" when we visited her family in rural villages. 
She kindly laughed and delighted in my attempts to "tortillar," and "cocinar."
She knows how to do and cook and talk about all kinds of things, and while she follows many traditional women's roles, she's also very independent and self-sufficient.
Yet, neither of us knew how to use a machete, but on this past New Year's Eve, we both learned!
So, to close these many reflections on gender, here is the story of

HOW WE LEARNED TO USE A MACHETE:
One of my favorite moments of the journey to Veracruz was hiking with Angela and Alfonzo, Saul's parents, into the wild jungle-like land where Angela grew up.  We bushwhacked up an overgrown hill on a warm sunny day, Alfonzo clearing the way  on the greener than green hills with his machete, which I learned from Saul, is an essential tool for Veracruzan men to know how to use.  We made it up the hill, and sat on chairs we quickly fashioned from palmito tree branches.  Hoo! Rest.  Alfonzo began to hack away deliberately with a machete at the palmito tree, finally getting to the core where a sweet cylindrical fruit was waiting.  We all shared the coconut - like, slippery bark.  I didn't much like the flavor, but as Alfonzo went to work hacking another of the overabundant seeming Palmito trees, I wanted to try my hand at the hacking.  It looked like a good way to release aggression.  Maybe I shouldn't ask, I thought, I'll probably hurt myself and this is definitely not a lady-like thing to do.

"Can I try?" I asked, before my thoughts could go any further.  Alfonzo turned and looked at me with a puzzled yet proud look.  I'd tried almost everything else in the past weeks, what the hec? he seemed to be saying.  He handed me the machete.  I timidly took it with both hands and slammed into the bark, which felt like cement at my first whack.  This was not as easy as it looked. I hacked away for a while, sweating a lot but making little progress, while Angela and Alfonzo reclined in their palmito palm chairs, enjoying their favorite palmito fruit, and maybe entertained by this slightly kooky gringa.
"It works better like this," Alfonzo showed me.  He took the machete in one hand, and with a sweeping momentum filled stroke, gave the tree a good clean whack, and then went on to explain how to cut the tree in the most efficient way and which points of the pointy bark I should aim for.  Once I got the hang of it, I really let the tree have it, taking out some old anger with the whacks of the machete.  My favorite moment was when Angela asked if she could try it! Angela is such an adventurous, self-sufficient, independent and intelligent woman that I was surprised to learn that she had never used a machete in her life! So there we all were, taking turns whacking away at the Palmito tree, the three of us, Angela, Alfonzo, and I, celebrating the masculine and feminine aspects in all us!

Aprendiendo Usar Una Machete y Otras Reflexiónes Sobre El Machismo y El Marianismo Kate Blair Febrero 2011
!Nuestro género afecta tantas aspectos de nuestras vidas! Este año, trabajando cómo voluntaria  en el Espacio Mujeres para Una Vida Digna Libre de Violencia, estoy aprendiendo de las muchas maneras el género forma nuestras vidas en la sociedad. Definimos a nosotra(o)s misma(o)s como hombres o mujeres, pero el género es mucho más maravillosa y complejo! Todas y todos de nosotras/os tenemos ambas energías masculinas y femeninas, y podemos estar alegres y asombradas de aspectos de nuestra humanidad. Desafortunadamente, posiblemente en parte por miedo de reconocer nuestra identidad compleja y multifacéticos, en la mayoría de las sociedades, la desigualdad de género existe, y la discriminación de género causa muchos problemas para las mujeres y los hombres.
Este junio pasado, yo asistí una conferencia sobre la violencia de género en Des Moines, Iowa, como preparación para este año en México. La mayoría de gente quienes asistieron la conferencia eran latinas/os, y la conferencia era presentada en español. Uno de las tallerístas habló de los conceptos del machismo y el marianismo. Yo había escuchado del machismo pero nunca del marianismo.
Marianismo se refiere a la Virgen María. Hay muchas virtudes de aprender de la Virgen María, por ejemplo, su habilidad de estar lista espiritualmente para el bebe Jesucristo para él podrá nacer por ella.
Pero la iglesia y la sociedad ha puso tanto énfasis en una ideal virginal, imposible y insaludable para las mujeres. El domingo antes que yo salí por México, el pastor quien era predicando en mi iglesia, El Pastor Richard Simon Hansen, un especialista de hebreo, explicó como en la tradición judía hebreo, es imposible decir que una mujer "perdió su virginidad."
La palabra hebrea se traduce mejor como realización. Cuando una mujer hace el amor por la primera vez, puede ser que ella ha ganado algo, no perdido algo. Que mensaje radical y refrescante para una mujer escuchar en la iglesia. El Dios/La Diosa ha creado a nosotros/as como criaturas sexuales, y podemos no solo temor este hecho, pero celebrarlo con la responsabilidad y el respeto.
Marianismo penetra no solo la iglesia católica, pero la iglesia en general. En la iglesia luterana y otras iglesias, oficialmente, el sexo solo es aceptable dentro de un casamiento. Un líder espiritual de mi iglesia me dijo, "este posición no toma en cuenta que hay mucho sexo que pasa fuera de un casamiento con gran amor y respeto, y hay mucho sexo que pasa dentro de un casamiento sin respeto y amor." También, el marianismo puede prevenir que una mujer experimenta, explora, y disfruta su sexualidad. Puede prevenir las mujeres de experimentar con la masturbación o experimentar su sexualidad antes de casarse. Si una mujer se trata de ser una virgen perfecta, este puede prevenirle de experimentar el placer y conocer su propio cuerpo. Muchas iglesias siguen predicando que la pureza sexual es importante, pero este mensaje excluye más que incluye. Si las iglesias predicarían un mensaje de aceptar y celebrar la sexualidad con la responsabilidad, yo pienso que muchas iglesias crecerían y muchas personas iban a poder hacer el vinculo sagrado entre la sexualidad y la espiritualidad, disfrutando estos regalos con cuidado y respeto para sus mismas/os y otras/os.
Además del marianismo, la tallerísta también explicó cómo Machismo tiene sus raíces en algo bueno: el sentido saludable de un hombre de cuidar y proteger sus hijos y la madre de ellos. El Machismo es este sentido doblado y exagerado que resulta en prácticas culturales y comportamientos controlados, posesivos, dominantes, y discriminatorios.
El Machismo es una palabra común en México, usado por describir como el dominio y el control de los hombres que afecta muchos aspectos de la cultura. Aquí están unos ejemplos de cómo machismo es parte de la religión, los políticos, el lenguaje, y la cultura en México y otros partes del mundo.
Religión: En las iglesias católicas y luteranas, y también todas las otras iglesias que yo he visitado, casi siempre o siempre se refiere a Dios exclusivamente como hombre. Este no permite aun la posibilidad que nuestra Dios (a) poderosa tiene una identidad femenina o andrógino. Se refiere a Dios en la iglesia siempre como Padre, Señor, o Él casi o simplemente todo el tiempo. Estas imágenes puedan causar daño, especialmente a las mujeres quienes han vivido la violencia por parte de los hombres.
Al principio de nuestro año en el programa de YAGM, aprendimos de la coordinadora de toda la programa (quien también es pastora) que en Hebreo, la palabra por el espíritu sagrado es un sustantivo femenino. ? Como hemos perdido este sentido pluralista y holístico en traducción?" En la iglesia católica, las mujeres no están permitidas a ser sacerdotes. En muchas otras denominaciones, las mujeres están por parte de otros de ser pastoras o ir al seminario. Una pastora quien me inspira mucho me dijo que personas se burlaron de ella cuando ella dijo que quería ser una pastora. ? Por que las mujeres no se ven con la capaz de ser líderes espirituales en muchas iglesias?
POLÍTICA: Similarmente, mira el numero de las mujeres quienes tienen puestos políticos en contraste a los hombres.
El LENGUAJE: Uno de los ejemplos ms impresionante de la discriminación del lenguaje es una expresión mexicana coloquial que para decir, "Que bueno," o "Que maravilloso." "Que Padre," significa "Qué bueno!" En contraste, Madre también se usa en muchas expresiones populares y mientras puede tener una variedad de significativos, la mayoría son negativos o vulgares. Hay expresiones usando madre que significa, "Me siento pena o estoy muy cansada." Yo he estado reflexionando en este desequilibrio. Yo estoy intentando encontrar alternativas a "Que Padre" porque me frustra que no hay una equivalente femenina. "Que Madre" significa algo totalmente diferente de "Que bueno." Todavía, me doy cuenta que estoy usando la expresión Que Padre porque es pegajosa, y después me pregunto a yo misma, "Como influyen a nosotras estos expresiones en la vida cotidiana y cómo podemos crear la igualdad y la celebración de género en el lenguaje?"
Otro ejemplo de la discriminación de lenguaje es que en español, si vas a decir, "un grupo de nosotros," tienes que indicar que género. En la escuela, enseñan a las estudiantes si es un grupo de 10 mujeres, y un hombre, tiene que referir a este grupo como "ellos" como masculino. Hay muchos ejemplos en otros lenguajes también.   En el esfuerzo de mover hasta la igualdad de género, es importante de que como mujeres nosotras encontramos un equilibrio aun mientras movemos a un extremo al otro. ? Como podemos expresar los aspectos masculinos y femeninas que son parte de todas de nosotros – dando les un reconocimiento? En el D.F., porque estoy trabajando en un centro que enfoque en estos asuntos de género, yo tengo la oportunidad ver como muchas activistas están trabajando para crear y practicar usar el lenguaje más inclusive que reconoce las mujeres y los hombres. Por palabras visuales y dichos, podemos y estamos re-formando la sociedad por re-inventar como expresamos el género.
LA CULTURA: Yo visité pueblos rurales en Veracruz con un querido amigo, Saúl, y sus papas, Ángela, y Alfonzo, por la Navidad y el año nuevo. En los pueblos que visitamos, la cultura tradicional y indígena está presente y rico. Hay belleza, conocimiento profundo, y función en éstas papeles particulares y tradiciones. Como una extranjera, yo pensaba como será vivir dentro de estos papeles por toda mi vida. Por las 2 semanas que yo estaba en Veracruz, vivía los papeles como una mujer tradicional veracruzana lo más que yo podía. Una habilidad muy importante que las mujeres aprenden muy joven es hacer tortillas. Mezclando la masa pesada me hizo recordar de amasando barro en la clase de barro de mi universidad. La consistencia tiene que ser exactamente así. Después, se dobla la masa para formar globos que también tiene que tener el tamaño correcto. Después de los globos, tiene que apretar las tortillas, otra cosa que tiene que ser así (unas mujeres puedan hacer las tortillas sin la máquina de apretar, solo con sus manos, WOW!) Aun con la máquina de apretar, yo hice muchas tortillas malas - tan gorditas, tan gruesas, tan delgaditas, o que pegaron con el pedazo chiquito del plástico y se rompió en una pequeña disastre sucia en el comal. Los/las veracruzanos/as se rieron mucho de mis esfuerzos gringos de tortillar! Peleando las tortillas fuera del pequeño hoja del plástico y ponerle en el comal requierió una manera diestra y delicada. Después, esperando exactamente la cantidad de tiempo para doblar la tortilla rápidamente y sin un espátula - solo los dedos! OOO! CALIENTE! No TE QUEMAS! RAPIDA! Y después esperamos tiempo - pero no sin hacer nada! Mueve los frijoles hirviendo sobre el fuego, haz mas globos de masa, atiende los niños, llama a los hombres que ya es la hora de comer, que estés ocupada!!
Lily, la esposa del primo de mi amigo, 3 años menor que yo, y una experta en las artes de la vida cotidiana, dijo a mí, con un espíritu juguetón pero con expectaciones, "Kati! Trata hacer las tortillas más bonitas por favor!"
Las mujeres siempre sirven a sus esposos primero, y claro, el trabajo que tardó mucho de hacer las tortillas y comida están consumidos en minutos como esposos y hijos hambrientas se sientan para comer!
Mientras este ritmo tiene su manera de funcionar, yo pregunto qué opciones hay para las mujeres quienes no tienen interés en hacer las tortillas. Durante la preparación por la boda del tío de mi amigo, Saúl, yo estaba de pie por muchas horas haciendo las tortillas en una cocina con el cielo para el techo y la tierra para el piso, con más de 20 mujeres indígenas. Mientras el humo y vapor de la cocina se arrimolinararon, las mujeres también movieron es espirales en un ritmo inconsciente y practicado ~ de la cubeta de la masa a la máquina de apretar a las tortillas, de la maquinita al fuego, espera, espera, espera, DOBLA! RAPIDO! CALIENTE! espera, espera, espera, DOBLA! Rápido! Caliente! Camina, moverse en espirales entre otras mujeres, tira las tortillas calientitas en la cubeta de tortillas recién hechos, que pronto iban a estar consumidos por la familia y amigos también arrimoliandose en preparación por la boda.
Las mujeres también estuvieron un espiral de trabajo silencioso en momentos, y luego, de repente, risa y el chisme empezó a sonar. Todo el tiempo que yo estuviera allí, una mujer estaba a pie y sola en la closet, escondida de la vista, en una aislación extraño y sin explicación. Aun, casi todas las mujeres sabían que ella estuviera allá, y unas aun intercambiaron susurros sobre ella. Yo miré a ella y sonríe unas veces para reconocer su presencia. Yo estaba pensando, posiblemente su decisión estar allá fue una manera de ser rebelde en silencio? Quien podría saber? Yo no tenía la valentía ni pensé que será apropiado para mi preguntar.
Unas veces durante mi tiempo en Veracruz, yo pregunté a unas de las mujeres si ellas les gustaban cocinar y hacer a las tortillas y unas me miraron como si fueran diciendo, "Que tipo de pregunta es esto? No es algo que cuestionamos, solo es una manera de vida para nosotras. Mientras muchas hombres en los pueblos hacen una cantidad enorme de trabajo difícil y físico, la diferencia es que las mujeres hacen los quehaceres cotidianas que nunca terminan: lavando los platos, lavando la ropa, cocinar, limpiar, y cuidar a los hija/os, niñas/os, y nietas/os.
Mientras hay tipos de trabajos que parecen reservados para los hombres, me parecía que las mujeres aprenden hacer casi todo. Yo estuve sorprendida a estar quitando las plumas de pollos recién matados , y volteando las tripas de los cerdos - ambas veces con las mujeres - quienes obviamente no escapan de la sangre y las tripas de la vida.
Los tíos de mi amigo Saúl, Iris y Paoli, tienen un negocio familiar de hacer chorizo y también un refaccionario para los carros. Mientras el chorizo le da a la familia un ingreso más alto que la mayoría de la gente rural de Veracruz, el trabajo causa que toda la familia están ocupadas 6-7 días largos de la semana, y tienen muy poco tiempo o no tiempo para vacaciones. Yo tuve la oportunidad a ayudar a la familia en el proceso de romper y pelear el ajo, remojando y cortando la cascara del maíz, amarando el chorizo, mientras Tonio, el primo de Saúl mezcló el chile y los especies con el carne crudo, y Tía Iris medió el peso del chorizo. Lily me enseño el arte difícil pero también interesante de voltear la tripa de un cerdo.
Mujeres trabajan y trabajan duro. También trabajan los hombres.
Como una mujer, yo quería ayudar lo más posible que yo podía, de manera egoísta, para aprender y experimentar y de mayor importancia, sentirme incluida. Para mí, trabajar con alguien es una de las maneras más significativas para sentirme incluida. Fue un regalo para mí estar permitida a ayudar barrer los pisos, colgar la ropa, cuidar a los niños, y hacer las tortillas y el chorizo.
Fue una manera pequeña por un tiempo breve sentirme que yo pueda aliviar un poco el trabajo para las mujeres quienes estaban enseñandome tantas cosas.
Haciendo los quehaceres me dio tiempo para reflejar sobre como marianismo y el machismo afectan a las vidas cotidianas. Mientras muchas de las mujeres y hombres yo conocí parecía acostumbradas en sus papeles, yo estaba pensando que hay efectos de la desigualdad de género no puedan ver tan obviamente. Hay muchas maneras que la desigualdad de género cuales afectan a todas/os de nosotros/as, internamente y externamente, en pueblos y en ciudades.
Por ejemplo, en México, especialmente, hay un estándar diferente en la ética de las relaciones para los hombres y las mujeres. En México en general, si un hombre sale con varias mujeres, o aun tiene relaciones extramaritales, este le da un aire de "Don Juan," pero si una mujer sale con varios hombres, puede destruir su reputación.
Yo tenía una conversación interesante con un refugiado de un país de África que voy a dejar anónimo. El dijo que en su país, las mujeres y hombres son iguales pero en maneras diferentes. Los hombres, por ejemplo, puedan tener muchas amantes, pero las mujeres tienen que estar loyal a un solo hombre. Cuando yo pregunte, "Y porque las mujeres no podían disfrutar los mismos privilegios de los hombres?" el hombre empezó a reír fuertemente. Pero, también, el dijo que en su cultura, las mujeres tienen un posición de honor y mucho respeto en su sociedad porque está reconocida que las mujeres son muy poderosas.
Otro ejemplo de la desigualdad en la sociedad es la manera en que los cuerpos de las mujeres estan en todos partes en muchísimas advertencias en el D.F. Es común ver mujeres desnudas o prácticamente desnudas en el frente de las revistas en lugares donde todos puedan verlas. Estos cuerpos de las mujeres están idealizadas hasta el último: parecen perfectas. Pues, claro muchas mujeres tienen problemas con autoestima. Yo me doy cuenta de aun las advertencias mexicanas tienen imágenes de mujeres güerras con pelo rubio y ojos azules y piel blanco. Esto le hace el ideal más imposible a lograr para las mujeres mexicanas y se enfatiza un esteriotípo de una mujer blanca hipersexualizada. Uno puede encontrar imágenes de los hombres también pero no con la misma frecuencia ni cantidad de desnudez que en las mujeres. Los contrastes entre los imágenes de las mujeres idealizadas y hipersexualizadas que están inevitables ver entre la vida cotidiana y la ideal de iglesia de la virginidad puede causar mucha confusión, vergüenza, y temor para las mujeres.
El poder de nuestros cuerpos es grande. Y, podemos transformar miedo a curiosidad, viviendo con respeto saludable para este poder interno. Nuestra vergüenza necesita ayudarnos vivir con responsabilidad, no negación.
Fui a una conferencia de la Historia de los Africanos a la universidad de Luther. Allá había un hombre Africano Americano quien es experto en "52 Bloques," un tipo de arte marcial defensivo. El pregunto al grupo de nosotros estudiantes, "Que es la cosa más poderosa del mundo?" Este hombre grandote y poderoso le contestó a su mismo enfrente de todos/as de nosotros/as: "La Mujer," y el continuaba explicar cómo las mujeres les hacen a los hombres hacer cosas locas y chistosas, muchas personas miran cuando una mujer pasa, las mujeres dan la luz, las mujeres trabajan, las mujeres puedan hacer paz y inspirar a los demás. Las mujeres son poderosas, el afirmo. El también sorprendí muchas de nosotras porque explicó en un combate de arte marcial, la mayoría del tipo de energía que se usa uno es femenina. Solo en el momento de pegar se usa energía masculina. Entonces, el explicó, es importante para todos de nosotros tener una conexión fuerte con nuestra energía femenina. El poder de la femenina es que nos sostiene por la mayoría de un combate o un lucha - literal o figurativo.
Durante mi tiempo en Veracruz, Cuernavaca, y el D.F., yo he visto el poder de muchas mujeres mexicanas. Las mujeres quienes ofrecen su servicio voluntario en el Espacio Mujeres tienen compasión poderosa para acompañar las quienes vienen al centro. Y estas mujeres tienen valentía a buscar dentro de ellas mismas, el coraje de cambiar, fuerza en su vulnerabilidad, y curiosidad sobre su creatividad. Las mujeres con quien vivo que quien yo conozco fuera de mi trabajo son inteligentes, creativas, compasivas, hospitalarias, y trabajadoras. Las mujeres quienes yo conocí en Veracruz me parecían alegres, resistentes, y listas. La mama en la familia con quien yo viajaba, Ángela, es un deleite para conocer. Su espíritu brilla con inteligencia, bondad, y una fuerza animosa.
Ella me enseño como lavar mi ropa en el rio usando una piedra por una tabla de lavar. Ella caminó con su esposo y yo por la selva, inspirándome por gatear bajo de vallas de alambre después con una agilidad que yo espero tener cuando tenga más de 50 años. Ella me enseño como vivir con la hospitalidad y espíritu, recordándome constantemente, "Estás en tu casa," cuando visitamos su familia en los pueblos rurales.
Ella rio amablemente y le gustaron mis esfuerzos a tortillar y cocinar. Ella sabe cómo hacer y cocinar y hablar sobre todo tipo de cosas, y mientras ella sigue muchos papeles tradicionales de las mujeres, ella también es muy inteligente y autosuficiente. Aun, ambas de nosotras no sabían cómo usar un machete, pero este año nuevo pasado, los dos de nosotras aprendimos! Entonces, para cerrar estas reflexiones sobre el género, aquí esta una historia de
COMO APRENDIMOS USAR UNA MACHETE:
Uno de mis momentos favoritos del viaje a Veracruz fue caminando por el bosque con Ángela y Alfonzo, los papas de Saúl, en la tierra silvestre y como una selva, donde Ángela crecía. Nosotros subimos una sierra cubierto con vegetación en un día caliente y soleado, Alfonzo quitando nuestro camino en las sierras más verde que verde con su machete, que yo aprendí de Saúl, es una herramienta esencial para los hombres aprender usar. Finalmente nosotros llegamos más arriba en la sierra, y nosotras sentamos en las sillas que hicimos rápidamente de las ramas de los arboles de palmitos. Hoo! Descanso! Alfonzo empezó a cortar a propósito con una machete al árbol de palmito, finalmente llegando al centro donde una fruta dulce y cilíndrico que estaba esperando. Todas de nosotras compartimos la corteza como un coco y resbaloso. Yo no me gustó mucho el sabor, pero mientras Alfonzo empezó a trabajar otra vez golpeando fuertemente otro de los arboles palmitos que parecían muy abundantes, yo quería tratar cortando. Pareció como una manera buena a descargar la agresión. Pues, tal vez no debo preguntar, yo pensé. Probablemente, voy a lastimarme, y no es una cosa de debe hacer las mujeres...
"Puedo probar hacer?" yo pregunté, antes que mis pensamientos podrían ir mas por allá. Alfonzo doblo y levanto sus cejas con una mirada confusa pero orgullosa. Yo había probado casi todo lo demás en las semanas pasadas, pues, porque no? parece que estaba diciendo. El me dio la machete y yo la tomé tímidamente en mis dos manos y chocando contra la corteza del árbol, que me pareció como cemento en mi primer golpe. Este no fue tan fácil como parecía! Yo cortaba y cortaba por un tiempo, sudando mucho pero haciendo muy poco progreso, mientras Ángela y Alfonzo sentaba en sus sillas de las ramas de los palmitos, posiblemente un poco entretenidos por esta gringa un poca loca.
"Funciona mejor así," mostró Alfonzo. El tomo la machete en un mano y con un movimiento llena con un impulso, se dio un golpe preciso al árbol, y después el seguía explicando cómo cortar el árbol en la manera más eficientemente y que puntos de la corteza yo debo aspirar a. Cuando yo agarré la onda, yo realmente golpeé este árbol, descargando un poco de enojo viejo con los golpes de la machete. Mi momento favorito fue cuando Ángela preguntó si ella podía probar hacerlo! Ángela es una mujer tan audaz, autosuficiente, independiente, y inteligente que yo estuve sorprendida que ella nunca había usado una machete en su vida! Entonces, allí estuvimos nosotras, tomando turnos golpeando el árbol del palmito con una machete, los 3 de nosotros/as, Angela, Alfonzo, y yo, celebrando los aspectos masculinos y femeninos en todas y todos de nosotros/as!