‘Remember, Resist and Thrive’
Speaking tour, featuring three Mayan Guatemalans, will focus on issues such as food sovereignty, education
Three Mayan Guatemalans will meet with Islanders in Charlottetown on June 20 as part of a speaking tour, “Remember, Resist and Thrive — Rooting Education in indigenous Worldviews.”
All three are associated with the New Hope Foundation school in the Rabinal district of Guatemala, where the U.S.backed Guatemalan government perpetrated massacres in the early 1980s of Mayan communities during the country’s long internal conflict.
The school was built by survivors of the massacres who wanted to ensure the history of the Achi people was included in the educational curriculum. Lillian Bolvito, a young woman and former student of the school, will speak about food sovereignty and the school’s agricultural projects. Andres Colocho Chachai, an artist and current student of the school, will speak about Achi culture.
Sandra Lopez, director of the school, will talk about the school, its curriculum and its role.
The event will take place in the Faculty Lounge in the Main Building at UPEI at 7 p.m. Hannah Gehrels, a member of the P.E.I. chapter of the Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence Network, says Bolvito is a strong force in her community and carries the wisdom of Achi people with her when she teaches rural communities how to grow traditional and nutrition-rich food in a sustainable way.
“As Islanders, we can all relate to the importance of respecting the land and listening to the wisdom of indigenous cultures,” says Gehrels, who is from Charlottetown.
The school, which opened in 2003, has a P.E.I. connection as Gary Loo, Leigh Ramsay and Mike Page spent a month in Rabinal as volunteer carpenters to help build it.
Page, of Montague, remembers the community’s determination to keep the memory of those who had been killed alive despite the government’s designs to erase it. “Being exposed to this example of courage in the face of brutal repression was very moving for me and will always be a reminder to me of the strength that lies within human nature.”
The evening, co-hosted by the Guatemala-Maritimes Breaking the Silence Network and the Canadian Ecumenical Justice Network “Kairos”, will be of interest to teachers, educators, First Nations communities and anyone interested in food sovereignty and social justice.
Admission is free. Everyone is welcome.
For information, call 902652-2646.