Recently, I visited an organization called "Flor de Piedra" (Flower in the Stone) that works with female sex workers in the country. The objectives of Flor de Piedra are not to get women out of the sex worker industry (which for a small NGO, isn't financially possible) but rather to educate and empower women to make their own choices and protect themselves while doing it.
Both of the women who spoke with our group were themselves former sex workers, and were willing to share parts of their own stories with us. One of the main reasons women enter into the sex industry, the informed us, is because they are single mothers. This was the case for both women we met. One's partner left her with a daughter when she was 15, and another's partner left her with five small children when she was 21. (Her eldest child had been the result of a rape.) Both women entered into the sex industry as a way to support their families. "It is not the glamorous life some people say it is," one woman said. (Given our surroundings in central San Salvador, which one companera referred to as "the pits of hell," I had to wonder who could hold such a belief.) "The life is hard -- physical, mental, verbal abuse, and little pay." ($12-$15 is the high end of the pay scale for a sexual act; $2-$3 the low end.) Not to mention the social discrimination, guilt and low self-esteem that accompany the work, as well.
As we were sitting there, a group of twenty-five students from some of the best universities in the country (Boston College, Marquette, etc.), it dawned on me: this is the consequence of our lifestyle. This is the outcome of the goods we consume in the United States, the other end of the global digestive tract. It is quite a different picture, following capitalism and globalization all the way through to their ends.
A friend of mine here in El Salvador, Sam, returned recently from a trip around the world. He was able to visit the red light district of one of island of Cebu in the Philippines. Here is a link to his blog, and another perspective on female sex workers around the world: http://theadventurecapitalists. blogspot.com/2008/09/father- to-hundreds-of-daughters.html .
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Another friend reminded me, after my last post, that there is another side to this coin. In response to my rather cynical entry about the complacency poverty perpetuates, he asked if living without resources immediately on hand doesn't also create resiliency and patience, and he was right. Thank you, Jay, for saying this!
I had a growing sense that this blog was becoming a venting chamber for me, and I want to balance that. It's only fair to share the beauty, faith and hope that I get to experience every day here (alongside all the other things) with you all. I apologize for not doing so sooner.
Something beautiful that I saw today, maybe for the thousandth time, was the San Salvador volcano. It's huge, right in the middle of the city. I was traveling to the other side of the volcano with a friend and both of us just let ourselves be in awe. The sun was just beginning to set, and it was the time of day where everything is a little more graced. For a few miles while driving along the "falda del volcan" (skirt of the volcano) we just watched the volcano and took it in in silence; it's massive slopes looming above our windows; it's grey-blue hues that rise, roll and fall, like you might imagine the ocean floor to do; a puff of white smoke coming from a fire somewhere. The sheer size of this land mass is amazing to me, still. Families that live on the volcano are vulnerable to landslides, especially now in the rainy season. I see that, too, when I look at the volcano. It's beauty and it's hardships, all in one. Maybe there is no need to separate it all out...maybe doing so wouldn't do justice to either one. Flowers in the stones.
... pues, I am calling it a night for now. thank you for reading along and sharing, and I hope to have more for you soon. For anyone that is wondering, the recent coup d'etat in Honduras, while calling the world's attention, hasn't had much of an (immediate) effect here in El Salvador. It seems that travel to Honduras is unadvisable at the moment -- which may mean no trip to Nicaragua in a few weeks -- but other than that the general sense is that the social and political problems resulting from the coup are isolated in Tegucigalpa. Hopefully the military junta will not last long. Personally, I do not see how they can being economically, socially and politically cut off from most countries in the hemisphere, but one never knows. Actually, the entire action to me seems rather short-sighted, and ironic. Those who took over power did so in part to protect their business interests from suffering under the current populist president. But who will their business partners be now that the world is refusing to recognize their government's legitimacy? It seems as if they themselves tied the knot, and if they don't concede power soon, will likely hang.
On another note about the coup though, please keep the country of Honduras in your prayers and thoughts. At least two demonstraters have been killed and dozens injured thus far.
love for now,
elizabeth
p.s. I tried to upload a picture of the volcano to share with you, but could not get it off my camera... maybe next time!
Honduras, like all other countries in trying times, should be in our prayers. Sometimes we forgot in the convenience of our home that other people across the world need at least our sympathy. Let us continue to make the world better in our own little ways. I am so proud of what you are doing, Elizabeth. Keep it up. There's so much about life that you let us see.
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