Tribal Tensions

So we built a few beds for the people at the "concrete village," or well, wooden frames to hold a sleeping mat, all in an effort to get them off the concrete floor and the cardboard that they often share with 8-10 others in their families.

However, even in communities of poverty there are prejudices, biases, racial profiling so to speak. In the village are basically two tribes of native peoples, who in Mexico are on the lowest rung of the social strata. They are overlooked by the government, receive less than a living wage in many cases, and often don't even speak Mexican Spanish, let alone America English, so communication is greatly impaired, but we managed.

Two tribes primarily inhabit "concrete village," and most of the village is from one tribe, with one family of about 14 from the Oaxacan tribe of south-central Mexico. The children of this family are often ostracized by their peers. Stone throwing is a hobby for many of these children, and the target of some of those stones are the Oaxacan children. Their mother is often excluded when others "go to town," for food and other supplies, and they are often ignored by others in the village, even excluded from using the stone wash slab in the village courtyard.

The Oaxacan family was one of the first to warm to the staff from Lantern Hill, and as such the relationship with this family has grown more quickly. So they were the first to be offered a new bed frame, but this came with some serious politicing on our part as we needed to offer the woman who is perceived by the others to be the head of this village, and from another tribe, a similar bed frame.

We needed to finish a number of bed frames and even attempt to install them simultaneously to help keep the peace in the midst of these tribal tensions. The bed frames took longer than we expected as some were larger than others and a few were made to be mounted on ladders, similar to bunk beds, to accommodate the many members of each household. It took us the better part of a day and a half, working on bed frames and the trench (see the Water is Flowing post from yesterday), and the install went fairly well.

The process was frustrating at times, but not without it's rewards. Frustrating to see the conditions in each family home, and to navigate the cultural challenges even within this community, but rewarding to know that some 40+ people may sleep more comfortably tonight. Additionally, we had made progress in strengthening the trust and growing relationships with the entire community as four more families ask for beds, and we may have even helped take a few bricks from the wall ethnic wall that divides these tribes...God willing.