Thoughts on the death of Brother Tim

It is a tribute to Brother Tim that I'm so affected by his death. I hardly knew him--not long at all. I never met him. I guess we connected through some mutual blogger friends. I think he looked me up...he is a registered "follower" of Border Explorer, commented here sometimes. Occasionally he'd email. We played games together on Facebook.

Through all these seemingly superficial interactions, I came to know him. And like him. Better than I like most people.

Tim had a clear-eyed view of how this world works, the "dirty rotten system" part that Dorothy Day spoke of. He did not shirk from that. Or pretend it wasn't there.

When I first met him, I was a bit skeptical of his "Jesus is my boss" cap, and the "Brother" moniker. But he was authentic, of that I came to be sure. Those who know him better than I attest to the fact that he was one of the few "real" Christians, in the sense of Gandhi's comment about Christianity might be a good religion if anyone ever tried to live it. They tell me that Tim was one who did. He is the kind of Christian I believe in.

I feel really bad for his family. If I'm hurting this much at losing Tim, what must they be going through?

Brother Tim, I feel really lucky that I got to glimpse your presence on this planet for a bit. You have earned a rest. May your karma, your spirit, remain here and infect the rest of us with your passion for justice and peace.

Billionaire landowner's thugs serve death threats again

[I don't have the photos uploaded, and won't--until maybe tomorrow--but getting the info out there anyway.]

Seven armed men arrived on horseback at Alfredo Piñón Valenzuela's residence in Lomas del Poleo at 9:30 AM last Monday. One of them aimed a gun at Alfredo Piñón and threatened: "Get the [expletive omitted] out of this house or I will drag you out dead, because this land is mine." ("Te me vas a la [XXX] de ésta casa ó te saco muerto, porque éstas tierras son mías"). That man is the employee of a local billionaire who claims ownership of the disputed Lomas del Poleo property.

The Amnesty International (AI) Mexico Team reports that these armed men were hired by a local landowning family. AI calls on the public to advocate the Mexican officials to protect inhabitants of Lomas del Poleo, an area just outside Juarez, who are at risk of further similar attacks.

Alfredo Piñón Valenzuela has been living in the residence of his neighbor, Adelaida Plasencia Sierra. She is recovering from broken ribs, the result of gunshot wounds during an armed attack in December at the same residence. Fearing further attack, she subsequently fled Lomas del Poleo. Alfreda Piñon resides in her house to protect it from being destroyed by those who claim to own the disputed property. Vacated houses in the area are routinely razed [photo 245, 246].

The desolate land of Lomas del Poleo, once available for squatters' acquisition, grew in value tremendously since a group of businesspeople began plans to develop a nearby area into a new urban and industrial area.

Men employed by a local, wealthy landowner have harassed and attacked the people living in Lomas del Poleo since 2003. In 2004 these men erected a barbed wire fence around the area [photo 238, 272]. Security guards employed by the alleged landowner patrol its only entrance, turning the area into a twisted reversal of a gated community [photo 270]. In 2005, according to residents, the "security guards" set fire to 40 homes and beat a man to death. Although they claim they reported these events to the local Public Prosecutor's office, no serious investigation has ever ensued.

Only 17 of the original 256 settling families still live in the area. More than 150 families were either evicted from Lomas or were hounded into "negotiating" the sale of their property out of exhaustion and fear. All this has transpired with the complicity of the state and city government, according to the report of Rev. Bill Morton, a U.S. Catholic priest who knows the residents and has witnessed the process.

A Mexican Agrarian Tribunal has been considering the dispute over the ownership of the Lomas del Poleo land for the past several months. Meanwhile, during that time, the residents have experienced more threats and intimidation. The Tribunal will reach its conclusion in the near future, leading some to believe that the recent threats are an attempt to intimidate the people still remaining in Lomas del Poleo into relinquishing their claim to ownership.

Since the December attack on Adelaida Plasencia Sierra, security guards have repeatedly approached the house of her two daughters, advising them that the land on which it's built is not theirs.

After reviewing the facts of the matter, Amnesty International is calling on the general public to write and fax Mexican governmental officials immediately--and prior to March 17--to advocate for the safety of the residents of Lomas del Poleo. Letters and faxes should urge government leaders to order independent investigations into the attacks and bring those responsible to justice. Amnesty International further asks the public to request those leaders to prevent any attempt to drive residents of Lomas de Poleo off their land and to ensure the dispute is resolved fairly and satisfactorily in the agrarian tribunal.

As this incident is so recent, and the contact information is not yet available onAmnesty's Lomas del Poleo file, it is reprinted here for your convenience:

------------------------------------------

PLEASE WRITE IMMEDIATELY in Spanish or your own language:

Urging the authorities to ensure that Alfredo Piñón Valenzuela and other residents of Lomas del Poleo who have been attacked and threatened by security guards working for local landowners are given appropriate protection according to their wishes;

Urging them to order independent investigations into the attacks, and bring those responsible to justice;

Urging them to prevent any attempt to drive residents of Lomas de Poleo off their land, and to ensure the dispute is resolved fairly and satisfactorily in the agrarian tribunal.

PLEASE SEND APPEALS BEFORE 17 MARCH 2010 TO:

Governor of Chihuahua State

Lic. José Reyes Baeza Terrazas

Gobernador del Estado de Chihuahua, Palacio de Gobierno, 1er piso, C. Aldama #901, Col. Centro,

Chihuahua, Estado de Chihuahua, C.P. 31000, Mexico

Fax: +52 614 429 3300 (then dial extension 11066 when prompted)

Salutation: Dear Governor

Attorney General of Chihuahua

Patricia González Rodríguez

Procuradora del Estado de Chihuahua

Procuraduría General de Justicia del Estado

Vicente Guerrero 616, Col. Centro

Chihuahua 31000, Mexico

Fax: +52 614 415 0314

Salutation: Dear Attorney General

Mayor of Ciudad Juárez

Lic. José Reyes Ferriz

Presidente Municipal de Ciudad Juárez

Unidad Administrativa Benito Juárez. Primer piso, ala norte.

Av. Francisco Villa # 950 Norte, Cd. Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico

Fax: +52 656 615 0690

Salutation: Dear Mayor

Senseless Savagery: The U.S. connection to the Juarez Student Massacre

Caption: Carlos Marentes ponders the gravity of the violence in Juarez.

Sixteen Mexican youth were gunned down at a high school party by multiple, heavily armed killers, who reportedly filed away in silence. A horrified world views photos of Sunday morning streets running red with innocent blood. And the neighboring United States watches silently, with widened eyes, wondering: “How do we respond to this? How should we respond?”

Clearly, violence in El Paso’s twin city has escalated to an unbelievable level. Known in 2007 for the murder of women, the city of Juárez now claims a dubious record: first in the world in homicides per capita with 2,600 assassinations just last year. And with 227 assassinations already this year, 2010 stands a good chance of topping anything we’ve seen yet.

Expressions of sympathy and wishes of solidarity may be appropriate. But words not backed by deeds are only empty words. What does a neighbor do in the face of such savagery? What now, United States?

Human rights activist Carlos Marentes, native of the border cities of Juárez /El Paso, suggests that reconsideration of the Merida Initiative, the U.S. package of drug war aid to Mexico, is a good place to start. “The Merida Initiative is the main source of revenue for the war,” asserts Marentes.

But, doesn’t Mexico need this assistance more than ever now?

“Juárez is frozen in a climate of fear. The citizens can not differentiate between criminals and authorities. For most of the people, they are one and the same. They are acting together.”

According to Marentes, the climate of violence in Juárez is a direct result of the drug war, an anti-trafficking initiative of the Bush Administration. This strategy functioned conveniently for the U.S. because the casualties occurred on foreign soil (Mexico) thereby keeping the U.S. public largely unconcerned and uninvolved.

Through the Merida Initiative, the U.S. provides resources—a pledge of $1.6 Billion--to strengthen the Mexican military. But increasingly the war casualties are innocent civilians. Mexican authorities, who once asserted that the fatalities were related to the drug trade, can no longer deny that violent crime has ended the lives of many ordinary citizens, including children, journalists—with already 3 three reported 2010 deaths--and human rights advocates.

Ironically, a recent story in the Mexican El Universal reports that 70% of Merida Initiative resources remain in the United States as profits from contracts for military and intelligence equipment. The U.S. corporations reap the profits; Mexico reaps the corpses.

As early as July 2009, Human Rights Watch called on the U.S. Department of State to disallow Merida funding until alleged Mexican military human rights offenses are tried in civil, not military, courts.

This cry was reinforced this weekend at the National Latino Congreso, held in El Paso. A number of the resolutions they approved addressed the violence. One is particularly noteworthy. It “vehemently urges” the U.S. to tie Merida Initiative funding to demonstrated respect for human rights in Mexico. It was sponsored by the coalition Mexican Journalists in Exile (PEMEX).

The people of Mexico survive in a state of on-going grief, frozen by the paralysis of mourning. Bizarre and ruthless warfare, operating on several levels, has spun out of control. U.S. funding is fueling the fire. U.S.-manufactured weapons are killing and intimidating the innocent. U.S. demand—consuming 25% of the world’s drugs—drives the dynamic.

Merely shaking a finger at Mexican corruption, or sending a sympathy note about Mexican violence is not enough now. These responses are easy, but they are not honest. The U.S. needs to consider its own role in the Mexican bloodshed.

Senseless savagery will continue unabated if we don’t.

Worse than nothing: New bipartisan proposal blocks immigration reform

Taking a "tough on illegal immigration" stance appeal to elected officials who are eager to please constituents. But simplistic solutions to complex problems are almost always wrong.


Yesterday Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) along with several Republican and Democratic Congressmen introduced an immigration-related resolution. Its non-binding statement will attempt to put representatives of both parties on-the-record in support--not only of securing the borders --but also of these two propositions:

* All employers must check every prospective employee they hire against a federal government database called "E-Verify" to ascertain that the person can work legally in the U.S.
* No one now in the United States illegally can attain legal status.


Those may sound like reasonable propositions to many who are concerned about illegal immigration, but they are both quite problematic, each in its own way.

E-Verify, deeply flawed

The government database E-Verify does not effectively prevent immigrants here illegally from working, but too often it stops legal immigrants and U.S. citizens from getting employment because the database on which it rests is so inaccurate. Moreover, prohibiting people currently here illegally, regardless of what restitution or process they are willing to do to make amends, ties Congress's hands. It guarantees we'll continue to have a millions of immigrants here illegally for the foreseeable future and beyond. Keeping people illegal inhibits economic growth and jobs while playing into the hands of terrorists and international criminals.


A fact sheet on E-Verify from the National Immigration Law Center succinctly outlines its difficulties. Reliance on E-Verify will booby trap the U.S. economy, do little to rectify the situation of unauthorized workers in the U.S. workforce, and further erode the privacy of our workforce and citizenry.

Outlawing legalization
Banning legal status for immigrants here illegally appeals to those who are against "amnesty." However, its underlying premise is that Congress either

1) supports a policy of mass deportation or

2) tolerates a vast underground of undocumented workers in this country that will continue on into the unforeseeable future.


Let's take a closer look at these two choices.

1) Mass deportation: It is generally estimated that there are 12 million undocumented persons present illegally in the United States. Forcibly removing a population equivalent to the state of Pennsylvania involves hearings, detention, and transportation costs with the U.S. taxpayer footing the bill. At the same time mass deportation eliminates 12,000,000 consumers (and many tax-paying immigrants) from an economy that is already weak. The cost to deport just 10 million immigrants in 2005 would have been approximately $41 billion dollars, reported the Washington Post. The cost of deporting 12 million now will be significantly higher.

2) Maintain the status quo: Barring a mass deportation, Congress must then tolerate the presence of 12,000,000 undocumented immigrants in the U.S., thereby pushing their contributions off the books and their presence farther underground. Do we want to allow an underground economy and a black market of smuggling, false documents, and unknown identities? Does that contribute to the safety of our citizenry and our republic? Outlawing a legalization process for people who are here already and would like to be in the U.S. legally means we are living with immigrants among us who have never passed a criminal background check.


Benefits of legalizing immigrants

Legalization of those now present illegally offers several advantages worth mentioning here. It would

* benefit the U.S. economy, adding $1.5 trillion to the gross domestic product and government tax rolls over ten years.
* force immigrants to register, pass a criminal background check (weeding out serious criminals), and pay fines and taxes to get their documents.
* promote fair wages and employer respect for U.S. labor laws for all workers, eliminating hiring under-the-table or off-the-books.
* align our laws with the will of the American people: 63% of whom favor a pathway to legalization according to a poll by the Pew Research Center (May 2009).

Unfortunately what Chaffetz's bipartisan group offers is not bold leadership tackling complex social and political realities and addressing the challenges we face as a nation. Their proposal is not even legislature; it is merely a non-binding resolution. It's an attempt to circumvent a vital discussion of immigration reform before it has even begun. And that makes it worse than nothing.

Arpaio's America IS NOT Our America

Organizations and activists plan to march on Phoenix, AZ on January 16 to definitively announce: Arpaio's America is not our America!

Puente Movement organizers say this marks "a new phase" in the struggle for justice and dignity in Maricopa County, Arizona and in other communities suffering severe civil rights abuses due to the failure of United States immigration policy.




From the group, Puente:
"The nation has watched with disbelief as Sheriff Joe Arpaio has carried out a systematic reign of terror disguised in the name of immigration enforcement, but directed against all communities of color in his jurisdiction. 
In the process, he has become a symbol of abuse, bigotry, and intolerance. The Obama Administration's recent endorsement of Sheriff Arpaio - through the renewal of his 287(g) authority and its expansion of local immigration enforcement initiatives proven to cause racial profiling - is an affront to this nation's struggles for equality and justice.



Not since the days of Bull Connor has this country seen a public official abuse his authority in order to terrorize and intimidate communities based on the color of their skin. The hatred and extremism that Sheriff Arpaio breeds is felt from Phoenix to Washington DC. It is an extremism that, left unchallenged, threatens to disrupt communities, destroy lives, and undermine bedrock constitutional protections for us all.
"

The group lists six specific demands:

· A termination of Sheriff Arpaio's 287(g) contract, which grants him federal immigration law enforcement authority.


· An end to the controversial 287(g) program, the so called " Secure Communities" initiative, and others like them that spread racial profiling and civil rights abuses across the nation.


· An end to criminalization of migrants and communities of color in the name of immigration enforcement.


· An end to family separation.


· The passage of comprehensive immigration reform legislation that provides legal status and political equality to undocumented immigrants.


· A restoration of constitutional rights to all people.

Dolores Huerta and other civil rights and labor leaders will attend the event, as well as artists like Zac de La Rocha and Linda Rondstat. Organizers invite members of the public who are unable to attend the march to endorse the event: Click here to endorse the march



Currently, in other parts of the nation, immigrants and their supporters are conducting an indefinite fast that centers in Florida and has participants across the country. College students are marching over one thousand miles to Washington DC. in a walk designed to draw attention to the need for comprehensive immigration reform. Clergy and community activists have been arrested in acts of civil disobedience in New York to free Jean Montrevil, an immigrant rights leader. These actions share a common goal: immigrant rights groups are moving hard and fast to pressure Napolitano and DHS to respect the rights of immigrants and people of color, and stop destroying communities and separating families with immigration raids, detention and deportations.

Postville--When good things emerge from disaster

Longtime readers of this blog will remember that I started writing here just prior to the major ICE raid on a meat processing plant in tiny Postville IA. It was a multiple layer disaster: wave after wave of bad news emerged from that "action hero movie"-style event (complete with Blackhawk helicopters and cop car caravans).

In a story entitled "Postville detainees embrace role as rights advocates" the Cedar Rapids Gazette newspaper reported on how the immigrants themselves were changed by the experience.

They have become human rights advocates and activists!

The YouTube video at the top of this post illustrates the article. Pastoral minister at St. Bridget's explains how God works through disaster when people step up to the plate.

Globalize hope in 2010!

...Where the Treetops Glisten...

Injustice can be eliminated, but human conflicts and natural limitations cannot be removed. The conflicts ... cannot be controlled or transcended. They can, however, be endured and survived. It is possible for there to be a dance with life, a creative response to its intrinsic limits and challenges ...

[Sharon Welch, A Feminist Ethic of Risk]

Here in the Chihuahua Desert, Christmas presents a different face from its holiday song and the winter carol image. December here is dry and mild. No snow. No sleighs.

Trees, when nurtured, can grow in our sandy soil. But there are almost no traditional evergreen trees in our yards.

We celebrate the season, nevertheless.

One humble home in Central El Paso displays a creative response to annual seasonal decorating, even starting before Thanksgiving each year. The branches of its front yard tree glisten in the Sun City's daylight beams, catching the sun with sparkle and color that is reflected from an array of ordinary cans...something others might merely discard.

By night, the branches' twinkling lights illuminate the yard.

Life will never be without challenges, conflicts, and limitations. But we can always choose our

response, making the most of what we have with

creativity and joy.

And maybe that is a message of the season.

Obama's Nobel war speech By John Dear SJ

Created Dec 15, 2009 (copyright info at bottom)

President Obama’s speech last week in Oslo, where he received the Nobel Peace Prize, undermined the example of all the peacemakers of the ages. Standing before the world, he defended America’s military misadventures, dismissed nonviolence and endorsed the just-war theory as the way to peace.

The peacemakers Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. received particular attention. With a kind of rhetorical sleight of hand, Obama admired and scorned them at the same time, saying in effect: here are good men but, in our modern world, impractical men. With that, Obama undercut his own soaring campaign rhetoric espousing audacious hope. Hope withered on the moment. Here is yet another American president beating the drums of war in the name of peace. Nothing makes the heart sink like the notion, a very Orwellian nightmare: “the way to peace is through war.” His speech was a veritable call to despair.

I leave it to others to comb through the speech’s details. I prefer to regard matters more broadly. Namely, Obama struck me as a modern-day Constantine who, in the fourth century, pulled off the unthinkable. He beguiled the early church into renouncing the nonviolence of Jesus. And he placed in the church’s hand something more “practical”--the pagan Cicero’s justifications for war. Pure legerdemain.

Obama reminds me, moreover, of Augustine, who himself embraced Cicero’s notions and hoodwinked further with the idea that sometimes “the best way to love an enemy is to kill him.” Just as Constantine banished the nonviolent Jesus, Obama has, in effect, banished Gandhi and King. And he did it oh so subtly, like a New York pick-pocket, giving with one hand and taking back with the other. His speech has been a big hit here in Washington, where I write this.

Obama cited an excerpt from King’s Nobel acceptance speech in 1964. “Violence never brings permanent peace. It solves no social problem. It merely creates new and more complicated ones.” And he paid King due respect: “As someone who stands here as a direct consequence of Dr. King’s life’s work,” Obama said, “I am living testimony to the moral force of nonviolence. I know there is nothing weak, nothing passive, nothing naive in the creed and lives of Gandhi and King.” But then Obama branded both as ineffectual and naïve. Nonviolence, he said, could “not have halted Hitler’s armies” or convinced “al-Qaida’s leaders to lay down their arms.” And my heart dropped when he concluded: “Instruments of war do have a role to play in preserving the peace.”

On both counts I disagree. King and Gandhi were not naïve. When actually put into practice, when enough of us do the hard work, nonviolence works. Hearts change and structures of injustice and war begin to unravel. From India to South Africa we have seen how nonviolent change happens.

I disagree on the second point, too, the point that says war makes for peace. The chief axiom of nonviolence says the very opposite. The ends lie within the means, just as the tree exists within the seed. How can the anguish of war -- destruction, displacement, hunger, terror, torture, martial law, summary executions, civilian casualties, oceans of grief -- how can these ever favor us with peace? The only way to peace is through peaceful and loving means.

Obama has arrogantly overstepped his bounds. If Obama is right, then St. Francis and St. Clare were wrong. If Obama is right, then Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. King, Dorothy Day, and Mother Teresa were wrong. If Obama is right, then the nonviolent Jesus is wrong. And we should put his memory aside.

But no, Obama is wrong. We as Jesus’ followers need to insist on the Way of nonviolence. We need to practice and demand love for enemies. We need to renounce the just war theory. It’s inapplicable because no longer can its conditions be met, if they ever could. The fire power of modern warfare had made the theory obsolete. But even so, it is inadmissible because Jesus commanded otherwise.

I realize mine is a minority voice. Sarah Palin applauded Obama’s speech. So did Newt Gingrich. One wonders how many Catholic bishops, priests, religious and lay leaders did the same. To their minds nonviolence doesn’t work. Sometimes you must destroy a village to save it. Apply the right rhetoric and every war can be justified.

These are the notions of our times; they hang in the air. But I urge people not to believe the president’s war rhetoric. More, I urge church people to take up the work of making nonviolence more widely understood and accepted.

Ken Butigan, a teacher of nonviolence with the Franciscan group Pace e Bene (see www.paceebene. org [1]) writes this week that Obama was able “to discredit nonviolence -- and thus buttress his argument for war -- because there is no sturdy conviction in the mind of the larger public that nonviolence is anything but limited, weak, passive, utopian and ineffective.” The zeitgeist deprives our imaginations of alternatives to war.

We need, Ken says, to “mainstream nonviolence.” That is, to launch a systematic campaign to educate. Only then will the stigma of nonviolence be lifted. “Just as we have gradually mainstreamed the rule of law, human rights, and the vision of democracy,” he says, “we have the opportunity to mainstream the power of creative nonviolence.”

Then would the world learn how nonviolent resistance, when put into practice, did indeed impede Nazis killing; how it brought down dictatorships in the Philippines, Chile and Serbia; how it led the Velvet Revolutions throughout Eastern Europe in 1989 and brought down the Soviet Union in 1991; how it informed successful movements in South Africa, Ukraine, Georgia, Indonesia, and East Timor.

Then we would all begin to become aware how people around the globe, this very day, are engaged in nonviolent movements. (See, for example, Eric Stoner’s daily Web page, www.wagingnonviolence.org [2].)

I agree with Ken. The world urgently needs good people to take up this ministry of teaching Gospel nonviolence. Ken’s program, “Pace e Bene,” offers an excellent course on nonviolence that can be taken over a weekend or a semester; participants can later become facilitators to bring the course to their local communities.

If we are to widen the understanding and practice of creative nonviolence, many more people will have to teach it. We need to teach nonviolence -- its history, its methodology, its spirituality, its daily practicality -- widely. It needs to be taken into our schools, our churches, our libraries, our government offices, our workplace, our media, our prisons. And this ministry needs to be equal with every other church work, if not central.

Advent reminds us that the whole point of life is God, love, compassion, and peace. Each Advent, we hear eloquent speeches that contradict the president’s. The voices of Advent espouse the wisdom of nonviolence which bears good fruit. Isaiah speaks of a world where swords will be beaten into plowshares, where the study of war falls away, where everyone lives in peace. Mary of Nazareth, in her noble Magnificat, proclaims God’s nonviolent transformation of the world. John the Baptist calls us to prepare a way for the God of peace. Angels appear, a heavenly choir, and sing during a brutal season of “peace on earth.” Thank God for these Advent voices! Our true hope lies with them.

As Christmas approaches and I prepare to leave for Gaza, I pray that we will hear their voices, heed their words, and take hope from them. Let us embrace their message and give our lives anew to the nonviolent Jesus and his way, even if we do not understand it all.

The Baptist King and the Hindu Gandhi both walked the nonviolent path of the Gospel. As for Obama, he is set to go the way of all presidents. The lives of King and Gandhi, by contrast, still bear the fruit of peace. Their words and teachings are worth following for they point us back to the methodology and life of Jesus himself.

I hope we can reject the eloquent despair offered last week by President Obama and choose instead the hopeful examples of Gandhi, King and our Advent messengers. As we prepare for Christmas, we turn from war and empire, and look to the margins, among the poor and powerless, the humble and childlike. There we will discover the meaning, presence, wisdom and power of peace.

***

John Dear’s latest book, Daniel Berrigan: Essential Writings, along with his recent autobiography, A Persistent Peace, and his collection of essays, Put Down the Sword, and Patti Normile’s John Dear On Peace, are available from www.amazon.com [3]. For information, see: www.johndear. org [4].

On the Road to Peace
Copyright © The National Catholic Reporter Publishing Company
115 E. Armour Blvd., Kansas City, MO 64111
(TEL 1-816-531-0538 FAX 1-816-968-2268)


Source URL: http://ncronline. org/blogs/ road-peace/ obamas-nobel- war-speech

Links:
[1] http://www.paceeben e.org
[2] http://www.wagingno nviolence. org
[3] http://www.amazon. com
[4] http://www.johndear .org

Firearms used against the poor who defend homes against the rich

caption: Typical home in Lomas del Poleo (April 2008)

On Friday evening, December 4, Adelaida Plasencia Sierra was gravely wounded by a firearm during what seemed at first just a common robbery. But things aren't always what they seem in her poor neighborhood just outside of Juárez: Lomas del Poleo.

At 6:00 PM two men arrived at her house, claiming they had run out of gasoline. Oddly, they then tried to sell her a cellular phone, and she replied that she had no money. But the mood quickly turned ominous when the two strangers abruptly asked if "Vicente" (her husband) or "Aurelio" were around.

Lomas del Poleo is no ordinary slum neighborhood. Aurelio, Adelaida's neighbor, is the Plascencias' companion in a civil struggle for the land they live on and believe they own.

***********

Years ago some poor, formerly landless citizens had squatted---a time-honored and lawful method of acquiring land in Mexico---on the worthless desert wasteland of Lomas del Poleo. It was a remote mesa top that nobody wanted. Gradually these poorest of the poor constructed dwellings of their own, huts that were often built of warehouse pallets covered with cardboard.

Now, however, in the wake of NAFTA, Lomas del Poleo property lies directly in the path of proposed international economic development interests. The real estate value of the land has risen exponentially.
And now their ownership of the land is in dispute.

***********

Adelaida then noticed that the men had their faces covered and were carrying a pistol. The supposed thieves grabbed her by the arms, pulling off her jacket. However, she managed to free herself and retreated into her house. As she was standing in the doorway, the assailants fired nine shots at both her and the house and then fled in the car.

Earlier that day, a white car without license plates parked in front of Adelaida's house for over three hours. Now, this same vehicle was silently circling Adelaida and Vicente's property.

***********

After NAFTA passed, Pedro and Jorge Zaragoza Fuentes of the Mexican billionaire family claimed ownership of the land that comprises Lomas del Poleo. Two years ago, a group of Lomas residents initiated a legal process against the Zaragozas, disputing Zaragozas' rights to the land and asserting their own ownership. In 2008 and 2009 this group suffered various acts of aggression perpetrated, they say, by paid guards employed by Pedro Zaragoza.

Amnesty International issued this statement in January 2009:

"People living in an area northwest of Ciudad Juarez called Lomas del Poleo, are being harassed and attacked by private security guards hired by landowners who dispute their ownership of the land. The incidents appear to have intensified since the end of last year, and the safety of the inhabitants is at particular risk as the Agrarian Tribunal in charge of deciding who the lands belongs to, started a series of hearings."

In the last few months the Mexican Agrarian Tribunal has issuing rulings in favor of the residents of Lomas in their legal case. The case is in its ultimate stage and the Zaragoza Fuentes family as of yet has not successfully demonstrated their ownership of the land to the Tribunal.

***********

Adelaida is in the hospital, still, recovering from the bullet wound to her chest, according to Rev. Bill Morton, the Catholic priest who has been accompanying the Lomas community.

Father Morton framed the incident optimistically:

"The doctor said if it had been just a couple centimeters lower she would have been dead. That she is alive is a miracle, then, and a sign of hope that violence and aggression will not always win the day."

***********

This video, taken in April 2008, is of the landscape seen while driving through Lomas del Poleo. Shortly after the video was filmed the property was closed to any but those who occupy homes in the area. Gatekeepers employed by the Zaragosas screen any would-be entrants. Non-residents are prohibited from entering the area:

Farley, Iowa

Caption: Looking toward Farley, Iowa (on the horizon) from Bankston, Iowa.

Farley, Iowa is my hometown: population 1,000. My great grandfather is buried in the Farley cemetery.

This is the November 20, 2009 poem from The Writer’s Almanac, Garrison Keillor’s website:

Farley, Iowa
by Christopher Wiseman

The farm is gone. The Comer farm is gone.
Your mother's brother, Uncle Joe, has sold it.
He's old now and his kids don't want to farm,
Have different lives in towns. He has coins, too,
From Somerset. His grandfather's. We sit for the last
Time in the farm kitchen, driven for days
To get here before he finally moves out,
Summer lightning starting, the way it does,
The evening air heavy, full of growth.
Joe will move. There's sadness in us all.
And you, my wife, drinking all of this in,
Talking about our children, asking Joe
About the Iowa you left, the people,
The whole big thing that was your life, your childhood.
You used to bike here, on the gravel roads,
From Cascade, for lemonade and ice cream, to see
The barns, the animals. Back in the fifties.
He got to here from Somerset, that man.
Joe talks about the richness of the soil,
Blizzards, tornadoes, heat beyond belief,
Guesses about ships and wagons, breaking the land,
Clearing stones from grass. His grandfather.
What will you do without the farm, you ask him.
I'll be fine, he says. Live somewhere else.

"Farley, Iowa" by Christopher Wiseman, from the longer poem "Standing by Stones" from Crossing the Salt Flats. © The Porcupine's Quill, 1999. Reprinted with permission

Hat tip to my friend, John Donaghy/ Hermano Juancito for sending me an alert on this poem!