Shopping and sightseeing were a minor sidelight in this whirlwind visit to beautiful Guatemala. We had important work to do, learning by listening to women who are living there, to individuals and groups involved with solving the sever social difficulties there, and telling what we learned to two Guatemalan Congresswomen and several U.S. State department officials.
he No Violence Against Women March
Societal change is always started by small passionate groups, and our delegation fit that description perfectly. We had students, people active in fighting for women's rights in the U.S., and college professors in our delegation. All were very passionate about the situation for women in Guatemala, and showed they were willing to work to make their views known. We ate breakfast at 7 or 7:30 am most morning and out the door a half hour later, traveling, marching, learning, and making our presence felt.
After the No Violence Against Women march, we met with Congresswoman Nineth Montenegro
Before the trip, some in the group were considering leaving us for a day or so to do the tourist thing, but the work we were doing was so powerful, so compelling, that they decided to stay with us for the whole time. This was a powerful testimony to how worthwhile and valuable the delegation was.
Several of our delegates have told us they will be returning for future delegations, and some promise to bring students or friends with them. We invite you to consider joining our next delegation. If you are thinking about joining, contact us and we can give you a chance to talk with some of the participants of previous trips.
click here to see more photos of the 2007 delegation
No comments:
Post a Comment