The shirt reads "I will move mountains to be with you." The drawing asks, "Where are they?" |
It is hard to believe that it is going
to be two years on September 26 that 43 students from the teachers’ college in Ayotzinapa were disappeared—and it’s even
harder to believe that the families of the young men are no closer to knowing
what happened than they were two years ago. The logo on the shirt of one of the
fathers expresses the determination of the family members: “I will move
mountains to be with you.”
A march in Tlapa by family members, friends, and supporters of the 43 disappeared students |
The families attempt every avenue (including
marches, as in the photo above, and Masses, as in the photo below) so that the
government will investigate every possibility to determine exactly what
happened that night of September 26, 2014, but it has been like running into a
brick wall. Just this past week the government’s lead investigator, who is
accused of planting false evidence so that everyone would think that the 43
were burned at a remote garbage dump in Cocula (a theory debunked by a committee of international experts), was named a member of the federal
government’s National Security Council. That is not exactly an encouraging sign
for the families and those who support them.
The 22nd anniversary of the Tlachiinollan Human Rights Center began with a Mass in Tlapa for the disappeared students from Ayotzinapa and their families |
One of the organizations that has
most supported the families of the Ayotzinapa students has been the Tlachinollan Human Rights Center of the
Mountain. Tlachinollan recently celebrated its twenty-second anniversary.
The founding director, Abel Barrera (theologian and anthropologist), is one of the most respected spokespersons
for the causes of the indigenous peoples in the mountains, and he and Tlachinollan have received several international awards. Mission Mexico is honored to partner
with Tlachinollan in some of its projects.
Abel Barrera with Father Juan: Abel with Bidulfo, one of Tlachinollan's lawyers; Abel with Arturo (singer and poet and activist, from Cuernavaca) and Mike |
September is also the month in
which the Champagnat High School of the
Mountain, located in the village of Potoichan, opened its doors again for
another academic year. An extension to the dormitory for women meant that
eighteen more young women could study there this year; the total number of
students is presently 258. The school is specifically designed for indigenous
students who come from impoverished families in villages where there is no high
school. Mission Mexico helped to build this school, and it continues to support
the school in different ways.
News students at the high school; Mike with Marist Brother Salvador, who has worked at the school since it opened in 2004; Yarabi and Nohemi check out the new dormitory |
The rainy season continues, and the roads seem to get worse and worse. There
are days when no travel is possible, due to landslides or roads simply being
washed away. And there are other days that the mud makes downhill and uphill
travel rather difficult. But such is “normal” life here in the mountains.
Photos taken on September 14...the road to Zitlaltepec and San Marcos |
For example, on Wednesday I went to
San Marcos to bring Juana to Tlapa
so that the doctors could check her burnt foot. The doctors are pleased with
the healing process, although they did remove yesterday the bones on a couple
of her toes. On Sunday I will bring Juana back to her village. The five photos
above show parts of the road that I traveled on Tuesday. I am hoping that the
roads will be no worse on Sunday. The Mission Mexico truck comes in handy for
medical situations like this one.
Juana at home; one sees her mother and father and brother and little cousins |
And last weekend I went to Mexico
City to visit Edgar, the young man
who fell down a ravine on April 29 while bringing school supplies to children
in the impoverished indigenous village of Aguaxoco. Four and a half months
later, Edgar has more freedom with his upper-body movements, but he still has
no sensation below the waist, and he still can't sit up at a 90-degree angle. Mission Mexico helps with some costs and assists
some of Edgar’s poor friends from the mountains so that they can visit him (and
encourage him) in Mexico City. Today happens to be his 23rd birthday. Happy
Birthday, Edgar.
Edgar on September 11; the CAT scan from September 4 shows how serious his injury is |
Another priest arrived this week to
join the pastoral team in Xochitepec.
Father Hector (nicknamed Tato) has joined Fathers Juan and Vicente in accompanying
the mephaa indigenous people in the 28 villages
of that isolated area of the mountains. Mission Mexico supports this pastoral
team in its efforts to work with the people for a life with greater dignity and
justice.
Father Juan, Father Tato, Father Vicente—from a congregation called Missionaries of the Holy spirit (MSpS) |
And the violence continues. Another fine young man (and friend),
Francisco, was recently murdered. Francisco’s sister and her husband and their
two children are among my closest friends here. What can one say at times like
this? Just “being there” is probably more important than any words that can be
expressed.
Francisco, the friendliest and kindest person one might hope to meet—recently murdered |
So life goes on. Tomorrow I will visit a sewing
cooperative operated by a group of students studying accounting here in Tlapa.
The students come from different villages and wanted to support the poorer
families in their villages. So Mission Mexico helped them to buy a couple of
sewing machines and some initial materials, and they are now busy producing
school uniforms, dresses, shirts, etc. Maybe I will have photos from that
cooperative in my next blog. Thank you, everyone who supports Mission Mexico.
Enjoy the rest of this month of September.
An early-morning sunrise in the mountains |