La Lucha Sigue:
US Grassroots Coordinator's Perspective on El Salvador Today
By Sara Skinner, US Grassroots Coordinator, SHARE Foundation
In July, I traveled to El Salvador for the first time as part of my orientation for my new position as the SHARE Foundation's US Grassroots Coordinator. For two weeks I traveled around the country with SHARE delegations and staff members to learn more about SHARE's projects, communities, and El Salvador itself. Now that I have returned and have had some time to reflect on my visit, I am reminded of the importance of  perspective. US history textbooks often demarcate any given Latin American country's history into three parts: pre-colonization, colonization, and post-colonization. In essence, El Salvdor's history is typically seen only within the framework of domination by some outside force, be it the Spaniards, the United States government, or neo-liberal economic policies. This history provides only one incredibly narrow perspective of the tiny, yet densely populated Central American country. Salvadorans tell me that their history books are often written from the perspective of the Salvadoran oligarchy. Their history books tend to omit the systematic murder of indigenous peoples by colonists and even the Salvadoran military, and many even suggest that the Salvadoran Civil War was nothing more than violence perpetrated by extreme Communists. Absent from both of these perspectives are the luchas populares (popular struggles) led by women, campesinos, indigenous groups, and other historically marginalized people. Contrary to these dominant perspectives, I saw Salvadoran communities en resistencia (in resistance): resisting patriarchy, contamination of the environment, neoliberal economic policies, and domination from both external and internal bodies in the face of extreme violence and poverty. I saw women leading community organizations, entire communities taking on foreign national gold mining companies, and skill sharing between communities. Below I provide examples of these extraordinary yet daily acts of resistance.
In the community of El Salto, in the Southern part of El Salvador, I had the opportunity to visit a SHARE-sponsored women's vegetable garden cooperative. When we arrived in the community, I saw a dozen women from the ages of twenty to sixty with machetes in their hands weeding their garden and harvesting beans. After surveying the robust, glistening cucumbers and the ruddy tomatoes, the members of the El Salto cooperative, their CRIPDES San Vicente representative, and the SHARE staff sat down in a circle to discuss the progress of their garden and the cooperative. The women spoke not only of the importance of having a garden to feed their families, but also of the pleasure and the sense of empowerment that come from organizing themselves into a cooperative. One woman gave an example of how the cooperative has encouraged its members to think strategically and creatively. Noting the exorbitant amount of time and energy spent on collecting water from a community spigot or well, the women's cooperative approached a male engineer from a local university to discuss the possibility of installing running water in all of the houses in El Salto. The engineer agreed to help them install running water but when he realized that only women were in charge of the project, he doubted their abilities. "How can you women possibly complete this project?" he asked. The women overcame the engineer's blatant sexism, and now running water is available in every home in El Salto.
During my stay in Teocinte in the Northern Chalatenango department along with SHARE's Youth Delegates, the youth from the community led a hike up a mountain and hosted a discussion about mining at the summit. Ricardo, Teocinte's youth representative on the directiva, revealed to us that the very mountain we hiked was in danger of gold mining exploration. Carlos explained that the mining companies promised jobs to the community, but he said that it was not worth it to work for a mining company for a few years when the cyanide would contaminate water and crops. As the delegates and I gazed at the horizon across towns and the Río Lempa, we shuddered at the thought of the damage that gold mining would cause. The youth talked to us about the events and manifestations that had attended and organized against mining, and Abel, a community leader in Teocinte, assured the group that the only reason the department of Chalatenango had not yet experienced mining was because of the resistance from small communities like Teocinte.
One community in the Bajo Lempa region combined community organizing, women's empowerment, and environmentalism in the structure and projects of their cooperative. Sitting in a circle in  the community center, the cooperative members smiled in anticipation as they told the SHARE staff about their new organic farming techniques. A mysterious barrel was placed in the center of the circle, and as they opened the barrel, a strange yet pleasant odor not unlike a tangy salad dressing filled the air. We all peeked in and saw a strange mixture of natural products. The cooperative members explained that a neighboring cooperative taught them how to make organic pesticide out of common plants and household products, including garlic, ginger, and vinegar. The women in the cooperative piped in that now that they know how to make the pesticide, they are teaching other cooperatives, led by men and women, how to make this healthy, cost-effective pesticide. "We don't want to rely on harmful chemical-based insecticide," they said, "and we feel good that we can teach other communities how to make their own!"
As a new member of SHARE Foundation, I am proud to be a part of a group of people in solidarity with El Salvador's communities in resistance in order to create more sustainable, healthier, and independent societies. The time, energy, and funds from the base allow us to continue to accompany Salvadorans in their struggles toward liberation and ultimately broaden the perspective on El Salvador. Thank you to all the SHARE and CRIPDES staff members, delegates, and community members who made my trip inolvidable - unforgettable! If any of you would like to share your own stories of Salvadoran resistance and resilience, feel free to send them to me at skinner@share-elsalvador.org and I will be happy to post them on the website or on Facebook!
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