Well, it’s official: we have been in Oaxaca for over a month! We have thoroughly enjoyed our first month in Oaxaca, and we are all excited for what is in store ahead. As usual, this past week was filled with Spanish classes at Soléxico. This week we conducted interviews with local Oaxacans for class. It was a great opportunity to converse with locals here in Oaxaca and learn more about their culture and views.
In our Community, Culture and Change class we discussed the market system and how it functions in Oaxaca. Ron Waterbury is an expert in this field, and provided us with an abundance of information on the topic. We learned that most of the products grown in Oaxaca are also consumed within the country. Ron also spoke about Market Place Peace, which allows isolated communities to function well economically, despite any problems villages might have between each other. This system permits communities in Oaxaca to have their own individual markets and remain relatively autonomous. We visit markets frequently here in Oaxaca, and most of us purchase our food from several markets within the city, so it was fascinating to learn about how these markets function and their role in the community.
On Tuesday in our Radical Pluralism class with Gustavo Esteva, we had a heated discussion regarding health and healing. We talk about the concept of health and its meaning within the United States. We also discussed Wendell Berry’s concept of health, and learned that the word “health” comes from the same root as “heal,” “whole,” and “holy.” To Berry, to be healthy is literally to be whole. This idea was discussed further in our class, and we had a very engaging conversation on the topic.
On Thursday we took a trip to San Antonino del Valle with Ron Waterbury. Our first stop was to visit to Radio Calenda, a local community radio station. Here we met with one of the station managers. Radio Calenda gives a direct voice to the people of Oaxaca. The station is not paid or funded by the local government, and for this reason, those who voice their opinion on the radio have a true freedom of speech. There are over 100 local community radio stations operating in the state of Oaxaca.
Our second stop was to the San Antonino city council, where we were fortunate enough to speak with the municipal president, who was the first elected woman for the position. We also spoke with several of the other council members. We learned about the problems that need to be addressed in the municipality, such as water scarcity and system problems, issues with the education system, the preservation of the indigenous Zapotec language and culture, and woman’s rights and equality. It seems as though this council is truly working for the benefit of the people in the municipality.
Becky C. y Jocelyn
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