Pop Wuj
I started school three days ago, and my brain is a mishmash of broken Spanish words and ambivalent english. I feel like I am walking through soup when I speak, and have a new found understanding and compassion for non native English speakers in the US. The only difference here, is that I have a feeling that I am being treated with much more compassion, understanding and patience than they would in the States.
I was placed with my family on Sunday. Sandra, her husband Wilifred, and four children, Jason (14), Axel (8), Brian (7) and Michelle (5). They have welcomed me into their humble home with open arms and a warmth that I find astounding. My early introduction to Xela on Saturday was a huge procession of Guatemalan evangelicals through the city. Loud music, 20,000 people and preachers on megaphones were all it took to scare the living bejesus out of me. I was worried my family was going to be one of those people and that I´d find a bible on my pillow when I went to bed.
When I met Sandra, she brought me to her home and handed me a key with a key chain that says "Smile, Jesus loves you". But the popularity of evangelism in this country reflects a complex dynamic of colonialism, political, economic instability, and popular culture. I tried to keep an open mind while I was a little concerned about what lay ahead. But Sandra was warm and friendly, as were the kids, with a propensity of shyness. Her husband works as a radiological technician at the hospital, and they have hosted students for 16 years. Their extended family has hosted students for 25 years. The Pop Wuj school is well respected in the community, and the Riveras (my family) only houses students who do the medical program. My room and the house in general is very small. My room is about the size of a closet, with barely room for a bed, but the house is well cared for and the bathroom is really nice and clean. Sandra takes a lot of pride in being a mom and homemaker, and her kids really reflect it. When we eat, she makes sure everyone is fed first, then sits and prays with a white scarf on her head, after we have begun eating.
She has been soo amazingly patient and gracious with my broken Spanish. There is no pressure from her or her family about religion or politics. The School makes it a requirement that students and families stay away from such hot topics and I think it is a really good idea. My Spanish is so bad, that I doubt I could have an intelligent conversation about it anyway. I have been treated with extraordinary warmth by the Riveras and am really enjoying my stay. Jason, the oldest is an amazing artist, who showed me his drawing yesterday. He wants to be an architect. Michelle likes Mr Sophie, as I showed her pictures on my camera. The kids love Chihuahuas and really liked taking pictures a lot, so I had them take photos of themselve, their mom an their home. They were laughing the whole time...
Political discussion may not be occurring in the house, but it is definately apparent in the school. It's really a pleasure to speak with teachers about the history of the region and its current government as well as relationship with the United States. All of the teachers are very highly educated. My one teacher travels internationally and lectures on the current situation in Guatemala. He says that there is suppression by the government against those who speak out. I was reading that thousands disappear every year in this country due to their resistance agains government suppression. I worry about what the future holds for these amazing people who run this school.
Im so thankful I am at Pop Wuj school. It is a teacher´s cooperative that was founded two decades http://www.pop-wuj.org/. Four of the school´s founders still are a part of the cooperative today. The school was named after the ancient Mayan mytho-historical text "pop wuj". One of the school´s founders gave us an amazing lecture last night about the history of the book and the town of Xela.
Firstly, if you want to read up on the Maya, you can check out http://wsu.edu/~dee/CIVAMRCA/MAYAS.HTM.
Pop wuj was written at the time of the Spanish conquest of the Maya, circa 1524. The Spanish specifically attacked the town of Xela before the offical capital of Mayan civilization because Xela was the symbolic cultural capital of the Maya. When they attacked, 10,000 Maya were waiting to defend the city. Approximately 250 Spaniards and 2000 allies attacked. at 7am on February 20th, 1524, there were already 2000 Mayan casualties. By 5pm, the Maya forces had been completely destroyed. They were no match for the technology of the Spaniards. By 9 pm, the Spaniards were taking control of the country, raping women and taking slaves. This was the first of the Mestizo lineage (mixed race) which now makes up the majority of the population of Guatemala. As one of my instructors stated the Mestizo is the villain of this country because of this sad history. He also said that this event exists in the heart of this country and manifests itself in a purely functional reality, where people just accept what is given to them by the government or church. The centre of Xela is a beautiful parque de centro America, and the surrounding area is a mish mash of cobbled streets with potholes and brick buildings. The farther you get from the center, the more the buildings leave a Spanish splendor to a shack like functionality of brick and sheet metal. This is the reflection of colonialsim. The European center of the parque de centro is stable, set. Its banks, church, and government buildings don´t change in their architectural majesty. But everything else does. The community of Maya is always in flux, in change, unstable, and only functional in its existance. It is at the whim of colonialism still.
Xela, in the mid 1800´s, was the capital of Central America. A resistance movement formed, and to my understanding (I need to read more on this), Chiapas and the highlands of Guatemala attempted to achieve independence from colonial rule, with Xela as the capital. Chiapas and the Guatemalan highlands share much of the same Mayan culture and experience. The two were split by Mexico and Guatemala and Xela becamed disarmed from its Chiapas brethren. Chiapas continues in its struggle, but Xela and the surrounding region has not shared that particular struggle.
But back to Pop Wuj, the book. It was written sometime during the Spanish conquest, here in Xela, by quite possibly an academic at one of the Mayan colleges (but no one really knows, more about that Mayan college later) in the Mayan language. It was a history of the Maya, that the writer recognized was in danger of disappearing- Over the next 400 years, the book was mis translated and the orignal was destroyed. However, a copy of the original transcription appeared in a Chicago library in the 1800´s and was properly translated from the Mayan quitsche language by an author by the name of Chavez in 1960. Chavez could not get the book published because there was no money or interest and the book still lies in obscurity. He did however do lectures at Universities as an academic and those students who heard him speak took a tremendous interest in seeing the correct version of pop wuj published. Those students also decided to open a language school for "gringos" to help pay for the publication of the book, and also to begin various socially conscious projects around Xela. So the Pop Wuj school was born, and it continues with its accessible medical clinic, stove building broject, and a day care center for the poor.
The book was published in Costa Rica, and today is only available in Spanish. Those very students who studied the book with Chavez are some of the current instructors at Pop Wuj today. One of my instructors was one of those students. He is a professor of Antrhopology and has been giving me morning lectures on the history and culture of the Maya before I begin volunteering in the clinic.
The medical program here is really highly regarded. UCSF and many other medical schools actually accept academic credit from their program. There are students here from UCLA, UCSF, and fancy med schools back East.
Evidently, there have been problems at the school with medical students coming from the states and being really arrogant and culturally insensitive with the local indiginous population. Many people in the outlying rural communities still use traditional medicines and some of the younger medical students don´t respect these methods. They also don´t reflect on the colonial nature of their presence, and how westerners and western medicine is perceived. I´ve been spending my mornings with cultural sensitivity training and am the only one, as there are no other new students in the program. There are several other medical students who are about to leave and they are all from California. I feel really lucky to be taught one on one by an academic expert in Mayan anthropology.
Farther down the street is another school. It is a school for Guatemalan children and it is only a couple of blocks away from Pop wuj school. It is also the school where Jacobo Arbenz Guzman studied as a young boy. Arbenz would eventually become president in 1951, assuming leadership for the first time in Guatemalan history where there was no violence. He was elected peacefully. His government was a leftist government with a strong intent to re empower the indiginous population. He was much like Bolivia's Evo Morales. He proposed a redistribution of land to the poor where there was an unprecedented inequality against peasants by the small percentage of well connected elites. It was estimated only 2 percent of the population controlled 72 percent of the arable land until 1951, but only 12 percent of the land was being utilized. Much of this land was owned by powerful US corporations like the United Fruit Company, now known as Chiquita Banana. With the help of the famous Dulles brothers, a.k.a. for their orchestrated overthrow of Musadech in Iran, and the airport in DC, the US invaded Guatemala and overthrew Arbenz. The school that Arbenz attended in Xela, sits on the EXACT site that the ancient Mayan University sat before European conquest, the Mayan school where academics wrote and recorded history. It is quite possible that the book, pop wuj was written by an academic at that school. When my instructor told me this, I began to cry. He told me that Arbenz grew up in Xela and was born here, in this cultural center of Maya. I asked if I could see his house and if there is a museum. He said that the history of Arbenz has been erased and that the house is now a Bank.
I will try to upload some photos, but my cheapo camera is not plug and play and need to download software. The computers here are old and slow, so I do not think I will have much luck, but who knows. People here are so kind and open, and willing to help. I may have some luck.
I was placed with my family on Sunday. Sandra, her husband Wilifred, and four children, Jason (14), Axel (8), Brian (7) and Michelle (5). They have welcomed me into their humble home with open arms and a warmth that I find astounding. My early introduction to Xela on Saturday was a huge procession of Guatemalan evangelicals through the city. Loud music, 20,000 people and preachers on megaphones were all it took to scare the living bejesus out of me. I was worried my family was going to be one of those people and that I´d find a bible on my pillow when I went to bed.
When I met Sandra, she brought me to her home and handed me a key with a key chain that says "Smile, Jesus loves you". But the popularity of evangelism in this country reflects a complex dynamic of colonialism, political, economic instability, and popular culture. I tried to keep an open mind while I was a little concerned about what lay ahead. But Sandra was warm and friendly, as were the kids, with a propensity of shyness. Her husband works as a radiological technician at the hospital, and they have hosted students for 16 years. Their extended family has hosted students for 25 years. The Pop Wuj school is well respected in the community, and the Riveras (my family) only houses students who do the medical program. My room and the house in general is very small. My room is about the size of a closet, with barely room for a bed, but the house is well cared for and the bathroom is really nice and clean. Sandra takes a lot of pride in being a mom and homemaker, and her kids really reflect it. When we eat, she makes sure everyone is fed first, then sits and prays with a white scarf on her head, after we have begun eating.
She has been soo amazingly patient and gracious with my broken Spanish. There is no pressure from her or her family about religion or politics. The School makes it a requirement that students and families stay away from such hot topics and I think it is a really good idea. My Spanish is so bad, that I doubt I could have an intelligent conversation about it anyway. I have been treated with extraordinary warmth by the Riveras and am really enjoying my stay. Jason, the oldest is an amazing artist, who showed me his drawing yesterday. He wants to be an architect. Michelle likes Mr Sophie, as I showed her pictures on my camera. The kids love Chihuahuas and really liked taking pictures a lot, so I had them take photos of themselve, their mom an their home. They were laughing the whole time...
Political discussion may not be occurring in the house, but it is definately apparent in the school. It's really a pleasure to speak with teachers about the history of the region and its current government as well as relationship with the United States. All of the teachers are very highly educated. My one teacher travels internationally and lectures on the current situation in Guatemala. He says that there is suppression by the government against those who speak out. I was reading that thousands disappear every year in this country due to their resistance agains government suppression. I worry about what the future holds for these amazing people who run this school.
Im so thankful I am at Pop Wuj school. It is a teacher´s cooperative that was founded two decades http://www.pop-wuj.org/. Four of the school´s founders still are a part of the cooperative today. The school was named after the ancient Mayan mytho-historical text "pop wuj". One of the school´s founders gave us an amazing lecture last night about the history of the book and the town of Xela.
Firstly, if you want to read up on the Maya, you can check out http://wsu.edu/~dee/CIVAMRCA/MAYAS.HTM.
Pop wuj was written at the time of the Spanish conquest of the Maya, circa 1524. The Spanish specifically attacked the town of Xela before the offical capital of Mayan civilization because Xela was the symbolic cultural capital of the Maya. When they attacked, 10,000 Maya were waiting to defend the city. Approximately 250 Spaniards and 2000 allies attacked. at 7am on February 20th, 1524, there were already 2000 Mayan casualties. By 5pm, the Maya forces had been completely destroyed. They were no match for the technology of the Spaniards. By 9 pm, the Spaniards were taking control of the country, raping women and taking slaves. This was the first of the Mestizo lineage (mixed race) which now makes up the majority of the population of Guatemala. As one of my instructors stated the Mestizo is the villain of this country because of this sad history. He also said that this event exists in the heart of this country and manifests itself in a purely functional reality, where people just accept what is given to them by the government or church. The centre of Xela is a beautiful parque de centro America, and the surrounding area is a mish mash of cobbled streets with potholes and brick buildings. The farther you get from the center, the more the buildings leave a Spanish splendor to a shack like functionality of brick and sheet metal. This is the reflection of colonialsim. The European center of the parque de centro is stable, set. Its banks, church, and government buildings don´t change in their architectural majesty. But everything else does. The community of Maya is always in flux, in change, unstable, and only functional in its existance. It is at the whim of colonialism still.
Xela, in the mid 1800´s, was the capital of Central America. A resistance movement formed, and to my understanding (I need to read more on this), Chiapas and the highlands of Guatemala attempted to achieve independence from colonial rule, with Xela as the capital. Chiapas and the Guatemalan highlands share much of the same Mayan culture and experience. The two were split by Mexico and Guatemala and Xela becamed disarmed from its Chiapas brethren. Chiapas continues in its struggle, but Xela and the surrounding region has not shared that particular struggle.
But back to Pop Wuj, the book. It was written sometime during the Spanish conquest, here in Xela, by quite possibly an academic at one of the Mayan colleges (but no one really knows, more about that Mayan college later) in the Mayan language. It was a history of the Maya, that the writer recognized was in danger of disappearing- Over the next 400 years, the book was mis translated and the orignal was destroyed. However, a copy of the original transcription appeared in a Chicago library in the 1800´s and was properly translated from the Mayan quitsche language by an author by the name of Chavez in 1960. Chavez could not get the book published because there was no money or interest and the book still lies in obscurity. He did however do lectures at Universities as an academic and those students who heard him speak took a tremendous interest in seeing the correct version of pop wuj published. Those students also decided to open a language school for "gringos" to help pay for the publication of the book, and also to begin various socially conscious projects around Xela. So the Pop Wuj school was born, and it continues with its accessible medical clinic, stove building broject, and a day care center for the poor.
The book was published in Costa Rica, and today is only available in Spanish. Those very students who studied the book with Chavez are some of the current instructors at Pop Wuj today. One of my instructors was one of those students. He is a professor of Antrhopology and has been giving me morning lectures on the history and culture of the Maya before I begin volunteering in the clinic.
The medical program here is really highly regarded. UCSF and many other medical schools actually accept academic credit from their program. There are students here from UCLA, UCSF, and fancy med schools back East.
Evidently, there have been problems at the school with medical students coming from the states and being really arrogant and culturally insensitive with the local indiginous population. Many people in the outlying rural communities still use traditional medicines and some of the younger medical students don´t respect these methods. They also don´t reflect on the colonial nature of their presence, and how westerners and western medicine is perceived. I´ve been spending my mornings with cultural sensitivity training and am the only one, as there are no other new students in the program. There are several other medical students who are about to leave and they are all from California. I feel really lucky to be taught one on one by an academic expert in Mayan anthropology.
Farther down the street is another school. It is a school for Guatemalan children and it is only a couple of blocks away from Pop wuj school. It is also the school where Jacobo Arbenz Guzman studied as a young boy. Arbenz would eventually become president in 1951, assuming leadership for the first time in Guatemalan history where there was no violence. He was elected peacefully. His government was a leftist government with a strong intent to re empower the indiginous population. He was much like Bolivia's Evo Morales. He proposed a redistribution of land to the poor where there was an unprecedented inequality against peasants by the small percentage of well connected elites. It was estimated only 2 percent of the population controlled 72 percent of the arable land until 1951, but only 12 percent of the land was being utilized. Much of this land was owned by powerful US corporations like the United Fruit Company, now known as Chiquita Banana. With the help of the famous Dulles brothers, a.k.a. for their orchestrated overthrow of Musadech in Iran, and the airport in DC, the US invaded Guatemala and overthrew Arbenz. The school that Arbenz attended in Xela, sits on the EXACT site that the ancient Mayan University sat before European conquest, the Mayan school where academics wrote and recorded history. It is quite possible that the book, pop wuj was written by an academic at that school. When my instructor told me this, I began to cry. He told me that Arbenz grew up in Xela and was born here, in this cultural center of Maya. I asked if I could see his house and if there is a museum. He said that the history of Arbenz has been erased and that the house is now a Bank.
I will try to upload some photos, but my cheapo camera is not plug and play and need to download software. The computers here are old and slow, so I do not think I will have much luck, but who knows. People here are so kind and open, and willing to help. I may have some luck.
posted by Mr. Sophie at 10:37 AM
1 Comments:
Hey the school looks great, and pretty cheap for so much! maybe i'll do this next year too. thanks for the interesting write up. i'll drink a hot chocolate in your name this weekend.
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