In 1981, a massacre happened in El Salvador. I remember this as a time when nuns were brutally raped and an Archbishop named Romero was assassinated by CIA sponsored death squads. Very few outside of groups such as Amnesty International and Catholic Activist groups did anything about this.
I also remember this as a time when my late friend Rajah Singh worked overtime to raise awareness of the atrocities that were committed in Central and South America by American backed death squads fighting, apparently, to save the world for “democracy”. Some salvation, some democracy.
For me, this time was made all poignant because Rajah, a student from Guyana who was earning his Masters in History at Guelph, died of brain cancer just a year later. He was his family’s hope for the future. They put all their money into his education and his future. At the same time, Rajah put all his energy into raising awareness of human and civil rights violations all over the world.
For me, Rajah’s influence was formative and even today, I am still in possession of all his academic papers. I think of Rajah often when I teach students who fled Central America - Guatemala, El Salvador, The Honduras literally minutes ahead of pursuing death squads.
I think too of the student I taught whose family walked 1,000 miles to flee El Salvador hoping to live in the United States - an opportunity they were denied as the US borders were as closed then as they are now - no wetbacks (literally) need apply. That student shared with me how the baby sister he was carrying on his back saved his life by giving hers when a bullet hit her as he her carried across a river between one country and another.
In Iraq, Afghanistan, Haiti, Iran, Venezuela, Nicaragua, we are seeing the same American government committing the same lies and atrocities again just 25 years later. This makes the invitation from Lucy Reid which appears below all the more important.
For those of us who “Think Globally” and want to “Act Locally” we have a chance to do both on November 3rd and 4th . Read Lucy’s invitation and put aside a couple of hours to listen to the story of one family in El Salvador. By doing this you will help to train one doctor for that still impoverished and torn country.
“The Road From El Mozote and Post Civil War El Salvador”.
This past March Break a group of United Church youth and leaders from Waterloo, Kitchener, Guelph and Cambridge travelled on a social justice tour to El Salvador. In preparation they examined social justice issues in our local community and then in El Salvador.
We called the trip “Two Countries–One World”. One of the people they met in El Salvador was Rufina Amaya who has an appalling story to tell.
She was the sole survivor of the El Mozote massacre of December 11, 1981, during the brutal Salvadoran civil war. Her husband and four small children were killed, along with over one thousand villagers. The participants on the trip were so moved by her story that they are bringing her here to relate it to Canadians.
It is something we all need to hear. If the issue of justice concerns you, you need to attend.
This your invitation to come to hear Rufina Amaya and Alvaro Carias (social activist and cultural educator in El Salvador) speak. Afterwards you will have the opportunity to meet them.
Salvadoran snacks will be available and then we’ll have some latin music and dancing.
To ensure that many people have the opportunity to attend, we will be holding the event twice–in Guelph on Friday, November 3 and in Waterloo on Saturday, November 4.
Please plan to attend and invite anyone else you think who would be interested.
Friday, November 3, 2006 7:00 pm – 11:00 pm (formal talks will be from 7:30-8:30 p.m.)
Three Willows United Church 577 Willow Rd West Guelph
Saturday, November 4, 2006 7:00 pm – 11:00 pm (formal talks will be from 7:30-8:30 p.m.) Emmanuel United Church 22 Bridgeport Rd. W. (uptown Waterloo) Waterloo, ON
Admission: Advance and reserved tickets $20 ($25 at the door), $15 for students.
For tickets call 519-837-4058 (Guelph) or 519-746-6282 (Waterloo).
Email: rufinabenefit@hotmail.com
This is a fundraising event.
Proceeds will go to the scholarship fund (through “Seeds of Learning”) for Maritza Amaya, Rufina’s daughter, who is attending medical school in San Salvador. Hope to see you there.
