Martes en Oaxaca

Tuesday began with another run at 6:30. This time, we let Jeffe lead the way. He took us up this mountain (and I was initially annoyed because we were finally in a place that doesn’t throw mountains at you at every turn, yet we were running up this steep mountain). But, it was worth it! When we got to the top, you could see the entire city of Oaxaca below. And because it was early, we were able to see the sunrise. It was beautiful to see the dark sky and lights of the city transform into daylight with different shade of colors and the perfect amount of clouds.

We had breakfast back at the hostel. It was jello, bread, eggs and beans. Because the coffee served at the hostel was essentially brown colored sugar water (just like Guatemala), we headed to a coffee shop to get some real coffee before our first activity of the day.

At 9:30, we walked to COMI, a shelter for immigrants located just outside of the main part of Oaxaca. This experience was incredible!

We first had a lecture from one of the leaders of the shelter. Here are some of the facts we learned:
• COMI began March 9, 2004
• Immigrants from all countries come through Mexico, but the leading country is Guatemala, composing 42% of the immigrants. Honduras and El Salvador follow.
• Most immigrants stay for 3ish days before continuing on their journey.
• Many immigrants that arrive at the shelter don’t understand that grand size of Mexico or the United States… they think that once they have reached Mexico, they are almost there, when in reality Mexico is the hardest part of the journey.
• The center provides opportunities for immigrants to work so they can earn money for their journey.
• COMI is known by word of mouth. When immigrants arrive in Oaxaca, they will ask around for a place to go. Churches and the general population tell them how to get to COMI.
• May and June are the most “popular” months
• In the past, it was more common to see just men pass through the shelter. Now, entire families are becoming more common.
• We learned about a huge scandal at Finca San Fransisco on August 26, 2010 where 72 immigrants were killed in one day because they refused to join the Zetas (a very powerful and evil drug cartel).
• The shelter can fit up to 40 people at one time, but there are usually around 12 people at one time. The shelter receives about 2 new people each week.
• The shelter gets money from organizations. Neither the government nor churches provide support.
• Right now, the government kind of turns a head to illegal immigrants because it doesn’t really care, but in the past there have been worse, harsher government systems. In addition, Oaxaca is pretty relaxed, so people who work at the shelter don’t live in fear of being punished for what they do.
• Immigrants receive necessary healthcare from Centro de Salud (public healthcare). The three most common health problems are stomach illnesses from eating unsafe food, foot pain from walking excessive amounts, and injuries from dangerous falls.
• When immigrants come to the shelter, they are interviewed so that all relevant information can be collected. Collecting this information helps people get where they need to go, but it also helps identify immigrants when they die and their bodies are found (pretty morbid, but true).
• Most immigrants travel by train… riding on the top or squeezed between train cars. It is extremely dangerous and leads to numerous severe injuries.
• The shelter doesn’t believe in coyotes and therefore won’t help people in figuring out how to use one. The woman expressed that most experiences with a coyote turns into deception, lost dreams, a black hole of money and failed attempts.
• She finished with this thought: She told us to remember that immigrants are people. Their only crime is that they were born in a place without the opportunity to live a prosperous and secure life.
• The presentation included pictures of people who had passed through the shelter. One story that sticks out is a woman who was 8 months pregnant and wanted her child to be born in the United States. She used a taxi to cross the border, and successfully had the baby in the US.

After the lecture, we got a tour of the grounds and then had the opportunity to talk with immigrants at the shelter. This was one of the most moving experiences I’ve ever had. The immigrants were difficult to understand. They spoke in low voices and many had accents to which we were not accustomed. Despite this, you could see the honesty in their body language and the pain they have endured.

We first talked with Miguel, a middle aged man wearing dark jeans and a black Micheal Jordan t-shirt. Miguel is from Honduras. He lived in the United States for 5 years in San Antonio, TX with his brothers before he was deported. He originally moved to the United States to make money for his family because it was impossible to find work in his country. He described unlivable conditions in Honduras and kept saying life was very “duro” or “durable.” He has two children, a 12 year old girl and a 15 year old boy, both who live in Honduras. These are his motivation to keep moving forward. He said he just wants to work and earn money- he doesn’t smoke or drink. He asked us to tell others his story, that the journey is extremely difficult and not for everyone, and that he is a good person just trying to live a just life.

We then spoke with Louis from El Salvador. Louis lived in Maryland for 3 years with his daughter until he got deported. On his second trip to the United States, he fell off the top of a train and sliced half of his foot off. He was lucky to make it to a hospital, where his entire foot was cut off, I think due to infection. He has been at the shelter for 1.5 months waiting on a prosthesis from the Red Cross. When he gets his new foot and goes through PT, he will continue his journey. He has a wish similar to Miguel.

After these discussions, we did some volunteer work separating clothing donations. It was pretty simple work, and we wished we could have done more to help the immigrants and the shelter.

We had lunch at the same place, this time it was salad for me (for the vegetarians). After, we walked through the market for a bit and Rachel and I bought the most delicious mango. The lady literally would cut it for you as you were waiting for it. So fresh and naturally sweet! And a great surprise considering it really is not possible to get mango here since it isn’t in season. I also visited the trail mix lady for a mix of almonds, chocolate and craisins.

At 4 PM, we had a conference. Just like every day we were there, the afternoon/evening rain was crazy strong. By the time we made it to the location for our conference, we were absolutely soaked. Then, during the conference, we were freezing.

Our conference was with a midwife who works with Nueve Lunas, a small organization composed of 3 women that has been functioning for 8 years. We had learned the Spanish word Comadrona is used for midwife in Guatemala, but in Mexico, Parteria is also used.

The conference was pretty short. We talked a little about Mexico and births. As of now, there are 22 million Parterias in Mexico, and 370 million births each year. Not exactly numbers that match up too well! In rural or indigenous areas, 25% of births are assisted by a Parteria.

Next, we watched a really weird movie that depicted the uncomfortable situations that a women may have to through if they have a birth in a hospital… things like language barriers, having to be alone, the cold “raw” feel of a hospital, yelled instructions, lack of explanations, forced into a lying down position, etc.

This organization is trying accomplish an effective combination between traditional medicine and modern day innovations. Their goal is to achieve equality between cultures so that women have access to needed healthcare services, but can also choose what makes them most comfortable, such as picking their own positions and locations for birth. Their idea is that when a women is comfortable and not stressed, the birth goes more smoothly.

She was also clear about explaining two items. One is that it makes more sense for a women to have birth in a position where gravity is helping them. Because of this, most of the births she assists occur in a vertical position (although she ultimately leaves the decision up to the mother). She also expressed the importance of allowing the mother to hold the baby before the umbilical cord is cut. She explained that the cord should not be cut until it stops pulsing, otherwise the baby loses an important connection with the mother.

This conference was not my favorite. I think that because I was freezing, it was difficult to pay attention. But, I did learn a bit about the organization, and I liked the idea of working to combine tradition with technology to create better healthcare for all. If you want more information, check out www.nuevelunas.org.mx

That night, we went to a restaurant that apparently had the best steak in the world. I obviously didn’t try it, but it is a meal that is still being talked about. Instead, I had a bean/tortilla soup that was pretty good. After, we went to a really creepy/weird bar that I would not recommend to anyone! All of the drinks were super sweet, and I wasn’t a huge fan. Nevertheless, we stayed there for a while and went back to the hostel pretty late.