Social Injustice In Guatemala

Constantly heard about on the news, repeatedly read about in the paper, but somehow often blocked from our minds. Unfortunately, it plagues all corners of the world from Canada to India from Russia to Mexico. It is timeless. Worst of all, so far, no one has completely stopped it. But what is this ‘it’? Social injustice, specifically poverty. I’m going to be honest, up until the summer before my junior year this issue meant nothing to me. Absolutely nothing. Not necessarily because I didn’t care, but simply because of the life in which I was blessed to be born. Where I come from, it’s so easy to isolate myself from injustices in the world. As human beings it is only right that we are all accountable for these problems. However, as a child, I didn’t see “other people’s

I knew deep in my heart that after last summer’s trip to the southside of Chicago, where my passion for injustice was sparked, that I had to take it one step farther. That’s right, I’m going global this time. Before I know it, I am lying on a sunken 2 inch mattress at my host family’s home. It is over 95 degrees in Malacatan, Guatemala and sweat is my blanket. I peer through the holes in the mosquito net above me, unable to fall asleep. Fast forward and I’m playing soccer with a bunch of young Guatemalan boys. They appear to be having more fun than I do when playing varsity soccer on my school’s new turf field wearing my $100 Nike cleats. Throughout my entire trip the people of Guatemala consistently displayed uncontainable joy. The brother and sister in my host family gave up their bedroom for me; they had to share a mat together on the floor. While this would have been a sacrifice for me to do, it was an honor for them. With so little, the Guatemalan people still managed to wear beaming smiles everyday and show overwhelming compassion and hospitality towards others. I was there to help them and yet, they were teaching