Community Solidarity in La Grecia

There have been many examples in the past few weeks of the community of La Grecia coming together in solidarity. The trial of December 13th was very significant in this way. Also, a large community gathering at the Padilla´s house a few nights after the hearing was a very powerful. The event was religious, with one man reading passages from the Bible, and a group of musicians playing as others sang. (see pictures)

I was told It was the first time in years the community had come together, for fear of upsetting the landlord (McEwan). Most of the Campesinos do not own their land, they do not have formal title as Vicente does. The members of the community fear that if Vicente loses the case, their small farms and homes will be next. It is commonly believed that Vicente´s property was ¨attacked¨first because he is the community leader. If his land is under the control of McEwan, the land of his neighbors will be easier to obtain.

Also, a series of Human Rights workshops have been taking place in the community. The first was for adults and youth of La Grecia and San Ramon. The second two were smaller and included only the youth of the community of La Grecia, children from ages 10-20. It was inspiring to listen to many of the young adults speak about their rights and the rights of the people of their community. As many of them witnessed or where victims of the police brutality of December 29th, their passion to change the situation was especially heart felt. (See Pictures)

The next human rights workshop is scheduled for Feb 28th, if anyone is interested in attending or supporting the workshop financially, please contact Grace at msgracecary@comcast.net.