J-Term Practica, 2016
March 29, 2016
After spending a few wonderful and informative days in Santiago, the Chile J-Term group all boarded an overnight bus headed south to Temuco. During our time there we met with many community members, heard many stories and traveled around quite a bit. One beautiful, sunny afternoon we took a dusty and bumpy, albeit fun, ride on another bus an hour northwest of a town called Galvarino. The town is named after the fearless Mapuche warrior Galvarino who fought bravely and fiercely in the Arauco War. Unfortunately, the Mapuche are still fighting for rights that they were fighting for in the 15th century during the Arauco War.
We gathered by a freshwater river and took shade under tall and aromatic trees to hear stories from Mapuche community leaders. I had no idea, and it took me a little bit longer to understand what was being said since I needed an interpreter, what we were about to be told. As I was listening to the interpreter I was beginning to understand why the expressions on the faces of my cohort looked the way they did, somber and full of disbelief. We heard about cemeteries being robbed, about land ownership loss and destruction, and about the very river we were standing by and how it no longer belonged to the Mapuche. The land of the Mapuche is a fundamental part of their heritage, culture, and way of living, so it makes perfect sense why they are sill fighting to get it back and protect it. I felt sadness in my heart after hearing those stories, but I was also feeling appreciative because those stories were shared with me. The unwavering perseverance of the Mapuche is inspiring and noble.
After our discussion by the river, we went to a lovely cooperative store filled with artisanal goods made by local women. We were told about how the store operates and about how all of the profits from sales go directly to the women who crafted the goods. As we all perused the goods in the store I started to think about how resourceful these women are and how great it is that they come together and support one another.
Our day in Galvarino was a day of storytelling; there were ups and downs filled with discouragement and encouragement. My biggest takeaway was recognizing the resilience of the Mapuche and how passionate they were when sharing with us. I feel fortunate that Dr. Jan Black has made such great contacts and has established a deep level of trust with the Mapuche. Those contacts and that deep trust allowed us to be listeners. I wish I had something more to offer to the Mapuche than spreading awareness about their past and current conflicts. I hope that in the future there are more opportunities presented that will enable us as listeners to do more for the Mapuche.
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