Sunday, September 11, 2011

Common Ground

So readers, it's September 11, 2011. I have a lot of experiences still to write about, but since today is the day that it is, I have chosen to go this route. Lest you think I am jumping on the fleeting Patriotism bandwagon that this day creates, let me assure you that I wouldn't write about September 11 if it didn't play an important part in my daily life in Peru. Are you confused? You should be. I mean, I was when these this first happened to me:

Peruvian: Y de donde es usted? (And where are you from?)
Me: De los Estados Unidos. (The United States)
Peruvian: Ah, Estados Unidos. ....Y las torres gemelas? (Oh, the United States. ...And, what about the twin towers?)
Me: *blank stare*

How do I respond to something like that? Furthermore, of all the things that a person who does not live in the United States could choose to say to a person who is from the United States, how does that person decide to ask first about a painful day in our country's recent history? I would welcome the question as to whether I know Michael Jordan personally or not and would happily clear up the misconception that all we eat is packaged foods but, why that question?

Ever since that day in 2001, the date "September 11" is said quietly, with reverence, almost with fear that in speaking it, we will cause events to repeat themselves. The day has been memorialized and united Americans out of love for their country. It has also created division, intolerance, ignorant fear and some would argue unnecessary wars. I don't want this blog to turn in to a discussion of the politics and human rights that we find in the United States. It has been and will continue to be a forum for me to let you know the situation in Peru as I see and experience it.

It turns out, as big a deal as September 11 is for Americans, the terrorism displayed on September 11, 2001 was just as big a deal for Peruvians. In case you didn't know, Peru is all too familiar with terrorism.

From 1980 until the group leader's capture in 1992, Peruvians were subject to terrorism enacted by the group known as Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path). This was an offshoot of the Peruvian Communist Party that enacted militant Maoism to obtain their goals. They gained power first in the small villages in the Andean highlands and made their way towards the coast and their guerilla war operations were often funded by cocaine trafficking. They were looking to replace Peru's democracy with a "dictatorship of the proletariat" and to advance these goals they would, upon arriving in a town, publicly execute elected officials, teachers and other authorities without restraint.

When the government became involved in its war on terrorism (sound familiar?), it often times did not treat the town any better than the terrorists had. It was difficult if not impossible to distinguish who was in league with Sendero Luminoso from someone who had complied to save his life. As a result, government soldiers executed their fair share of innocents in order to maintain their tough on terror stance. And although the president from that time, Fujimori, is now in prison for these crimes against humanity, many Peruvians still revere him as the man who caught the leader of the terrorists, ending its great reign.

Now, as I live in a town in the Andean highlands, the recent history of terrorism is present in the minds of everyone I know. Many of them remember when Sendero Luminoso arrived in my town and could tell stories about it, if they could gather the strength to speak of it.

And so I realize, when I am asked by Peruvians about September 11, it is not because that is the first thing they can think of that they know about America. Nor is it that they want to talk about a timely news story involving the United States because a lot of other things have happened since then and the news does make it here in a timely fashion. It only took Peru a week after the fact to find out about Amy Winehouse, for crying out loud. It is none of those things. They, as fellow victims of recent terror, are looking for that common ground for which we are always searching. Something in which, although we are from different countries, cultures, and languages, we can find that connection.

Ten years ago, we Americans were shocked by one day of large scale terrorist acts and were pulled together, seeking a brotherly connection with our fellow patriots. For 12 years, Peruvians experienced a constant fear of attack as much from the terrorists as from their government seeking to end the terror. Let's remember today to think beyond our country and to the conditions of the world beyond. Let's join together in the sense of Patriotism that every special shown on tv today will incite and use that unity to affect positive change in our own hearts and country as well as beyond our borders.

And let's not throw a pity party today. Let's make new positive associations with this date. Today, since I am not in the United States, I am far from the television specials, ceremonies and memorials that will be taking place. I see this as a good thing. Because although it is important to remember, it is also important to celebrate the lives of those that are still present. And today, my host sister's son turns 2. Look at this guy.
And I will celebrate his life out loud while I remember the lives and deaths of others in my heart.
Here's a quote for you:
"This is the way of peace - overcome evil with good, falsehood with truth, and hatred with love."
~ Peace Pilgrim


Blessings.