Migrants: Butterflies to the South and Campesinos to the North

This is a beautiful male butterfly

As I have come to find during my studies here in Mexico, there are a number of reasons for migrating. For some, it is safety from political regimes and violence within the country. For others it is the chance to live, not just survive. After visiting the Piedra Herrada Sanctuary, the winter resting place for over 200,000 monarch butterflies, this past weekend, I have come to find that these migrating butterflies and the poor campesinos of Mexico have a lot in common. The butterflies migrate from the north to mate and provide a safe space for their offspring to flourish. They travel for thousands of miles, in dangerous conditions, to reach their destination. How is this any different from many Mexican families who migrate to the U.S. to provide a better chance of living for their children and wives? Men, women, and children cross the U.S.-Mexican border every day in order to make a life for themselves. It is extremely hot in the day and many die of dehydration. In the evening, it cools off but there are rattlesnakes, scorpions, and other dangerous animals that make sleeping impossible. Not only do they have nature to combat, but they also work with coyotes, experienced guides in crossing the border, who are known for their brutality. Many times women are raped and abused, they stack migrants on top of one another like boards in vehicles, and they demand more and more money from the very people who are migrating to gain some form of capital. It is a dangerous journey, but many continue to make this trip because they feel it is the only way to make any success.

These clumps of "leaves" are actually butterflies crowding
together on trees. There are more than 200,000 in this
sanctuary, so there are easily thousands of butterflies
on a single tree.

We climbed the mountain, at the butterfly sanctuary, using horses from local campesinos. The higher we climbed, the quieter it became; I could practically hear the flapping of wings. At the top of the mountain, the butterflies resided on the trees that have been holding their ancestors for hundreds of years. They appeared as leaves on the trees, all bunched together, becoming one community. Just as these butterflies stayed together, migrants who come to the U.S. find others in their community and stick with them, a survival tactic to help improve their chances of finding jobs, learning the language, and understanding the rules of the land. Often families and people from the same small towns (pueblos) migrate to the same city in the U.S. because they have a connection there and feel safer and more comfortable. The young man who allowed me to ride on his horse told me that after he graduated, he planned on joining his brother in the U.S. His mom was not pleased, but he said, "She knows what to expect. No one can make it here and she knows the best thing for me is to join my brother."

The butterflies were in flight! It sounded like a
 thousand leaves falling from the trees. It was a magical
and powerful moment.

The only similarity I could not find with both of these migrants is that one receives a residing place protected by the country, the other does not. The Mexican migrants continue to be mistreated in the U.S. As a future social worker, this experience opened my eyes to the needs that this particular population has. I know that I must fight for them to have a safe resting place in the U.S. and fight for rights within our country so that they can easily leave when they have done what they need to do, just like the monarch butterflies. They always return to the north. Mexicans do not, not because they don't want to, but because they have no other choice. I hope to change that.

Written by AnnMarie Eliason

Mi Casa es Tu Casa

On Friday night, the CGE house was packed to the brim with Social Work students and their new host-families. Everyone gathered together to meet and greet each other, play getting-to-know-you games and eat the most delicious tinga tostadas in Cuernavaca lovingly made by our cook, Don Victor. The students served the families coffee and tea, mingled and practiced their Spanish while they tried to "Find someone who likes waking up early" or "Find someone who is involved in their community." As a larger group, families gave advice to the students on how to enjoy and feel at home in their new environment while students gave advice to the host-families about how to be patient with their language skills and to help them learn cultural norms and traditions so as not to be unintentionally offensive. Both groups seemed pleased to learn from each other and excited to begin the next step in their CGE experience.

By the end of the night, students and families happily left together to start their four-week long intercultural adventure together. Now, after a weekend full of quality time in their new homes, the students seem relaxed and content to spend a month with their Mexican families. Here are some of their initial thoughts:

There could be no better saying than "mi casa es tu casa" to describe the welcome I received from my host family. I have gone to the market with them, attended their local church, and watched my host brothers' soccer game; I already feel like part of the family and feel right at home. I can't wait to continue to spend time with each member of the family.


My host mom is very friendly and willing to share valuable time with me. I love it!

The weekend was just like returning home. Saturday was a day of getting settled and reuniting with my host-mom, Doña Irene. She is famous for her tortillas and other specialties.  I, unfortunately, have a long way to go in the department of tortillas.


I have had a great weekend! It has been so fun to practice my Spanish and get to know my new family through wonderful conversations about life, faith, family, and Mexico. I was nervous to start the month long homestay but now that it has started, I am so happy to be here.


I returned to Amatlán de Quetzalcóatl for my month long homestay. I enjoy smelling the fresh air, looking at the stars in the night, and reflecting on my Mexico experience this far. I'm excited to help work on the farm, ride horses, hike up the mountains, and start teaching ESL classes!


Have you stayed with one of our host-families here in Cuernavaca? If so, tell us about your experience!

Travel Tips from CGE-Minneapolis

CGE has several upcoming travel seminars in Mexico. We’re also gearing up for sending off summer study abroad students to Mexico in a few months. We thought some of you traveling with CGE might be looking for travel tips. CGE-Minneapolis is here to help.While we may not have the in-country expertise of our colleagues in Cuernavaca, we are the folks that often have to travel to and from CGE locations around the world.Sometimes frequently! So we thought we’d put together a list of our top travel tips. We hope they help you as you plan to study abroad or travel abroad in Mexico.

From Olee Amata, Program Assistant, International Travel Seminar:

“I always carrying toilet paper with me. Travel-size tissue paper works great! I also like to bring wet wipes, and hand sanitizer too. When traveling, you don't want to be caught without TP!!! Toilet paper is not always readily available like it is in the U.S. and if it is, sometimes you have to pay for it!”

“When traveling internationally, always make sure that your passport does not expire for at least a year out. If your passport will be expiring soon, or the same year you are traveling, I would suggest applying for a new one. Most people don't know that some countries require you to have your passport valid for a least six months before the date you will be departing from their country.”

From Fatimah Panemalaythong, Administrative Assistant:

“It's always handy to have a few of plastic bays around for certain items such as toiletries or dirty clothes.”

“Don't draw attention to yourself, avoid wearing flashy jewelry and don't display large amounts of cash. Carry only enough cash and leave the rest in a safe.”

From David Hamilton, Director of International Travel Seminars:

“Travelers often don't realize they have a different standard of tolerance until they are in another country. For instance, if we told students that they will have to bathe with a bucket in a rural homestay, they might complain about it. However, nobody ever complains about doing these things after the trip. After students get in another environment and get welcomed by a family who is often giving up their bed for the students, they can easily adapt to it.”

From Regina McGoff, Director of the Center for Global Education:

“Zip up everything once you're done using it so you don't take unexpected guests home!”

“Eye masks and earplugs are your friends for sleeping better in loud areas, shared rooms, etc. (as well as a little Tylenol PM!!”

From Emerald Tribuno, Program Associate for International Travel Seminars:

Carabiners. I always bring at least 2 and they come in handy so often. I use them to:

1) air dry clothing if you don't have any hangers

2) clip my purse to a loop on my pants in busy areas filled with people when I am worried about theft (use a locking clip for this one)

3) hook my carry on and rolling suit case together or shopping bags

4) keep hair binders in one place

5) hang a hammock

6) clip muddy shoes, a hat or water bottle to my backpack

7) emergency zipper if yours breaks on your luggage, zipper pulls, additional layer of security to detour theft (hooking 2 zippers together like on a backpack)

However, note that if you pack them in your carry on and go through Munich security they will search your bag looking for your brass knuckles.”

“I always bring a couple of packets of dry-mix gatorade with me to countries where I anticipate intestinal distress. After one trip to Mexico where I was too sick to leave my room and go in search of something with electrolytes, I've carried them with ever since.”

From Jesse Haas, Coordinator of Recruitment and Promotions:

Skip the souvenirs. As people go through life, souvenirs can’t always come with– especially if you’re young and have many life transitions ahead of you. When you’re packing up a tiny Toyota to move across the country for a new job, you will more than likely choose your pots and pans (or your dog, in my case) over boxes of items purchased while abroad. Souvenirs often get donated or left behind. Instead of souvenirs, keep a journal. They take up less space and nothing is more valuable than your thoughts and reflections from your time abroad. If you want to support the local community, purchase a few gifts from artisans to give to others upon returning home.

CGE-Mexico would like to congratulate our frequent guest speaker Dr. Susan Smith, Director of Atzin Desarrollo Comunitario in Mexico because the Canadian Nurse Journal recently published a super article about Susan and Atzin. Anyone interested in international health can read the article here: http://bit.ly/susan_smith_atzin  

Have you visited Atzin and/or Tlamacazapa? If so, please post your comments regarding what impacted you most about your visit. Also, please share the article with others. 


Thanks! Ann  

The Rural Homestay in Amatlán

Last week, all of the residents of Casa CEMAL and Casa Verde loaded our suitcases into two vans and headed off for a five-day rural homestay. By the end our visit, I think that everyone in the Social Work and MG programs would agree that the tortillas that we ate in Amatlan were some of the best of our lives. Some of us even got to try our hand at making tortillas of our own. Personally I did not excel in this area, but I enjoyed eating the delicious, if lumpy and misshapen, results of my labor. In addition to our culinary adventures, we also had some really important experiences that will inform our careers as social workers.

Host families and Students

For me, the most influential part of the visit to Amatlan was hearing about the experiences of two men who had spent time working in the United States. It really felt like an honor that they were willing to share their emotion-laden stories with us. One had crossed the border without documents and one arrived with a work visa but, despite their differences in immigration status, they were both subjected to many hardships during their time in the U.S.

Amatlán

Seeing both men weep while recalling memories of injustice and mistreatment in the States along with the pain of separation from the family that they had been forced to leave behind in Mexico was moving. For me, it was enlightening to learn that these men did not plan on settling in the U.S., they didn’t even really want to be there, but poverty and a lack of jobs forced them there. Our experience in Amatlan opened a door to a different world- the world of Mexican workers in the U.S.- which will allow us to be both more informed social workers and more compassionate human beings.

 By Lauren Cummins

Tlamacazapa

One of the important themes of week three was understanding and working with rural or indigenous communities. One of the things that impacted me the most was the talk with Xochil and the visit to the small town Tlamacazapa (Tlama for short).

Xochil works with the nonprofit, Atzin. The nonprofit works primarily with the village of Tlama.  The organization consists of several leaders and a number of organizers from the community. Everyone involved works very hard in many different areas. Some of these issues include domestic violence, malnutrition, alcohol and drug addiction, and various diseases due to unclean water.

Xochil has a lot of knowledge about the community and shared a lot of information with us. We also learned a lot through visiting the town. Tlama is a small town of about 6,100 people in the state of Guerrero. The main economic income comes from weaving palm. This is an age old practice that the people of Tlama have been doing for generations. In order to make a living this way, many of the men travel to larger cities to sell the baskets and other goods made by the women.

Another challenge in Tlama is getting enough clean water. In order to get water today, the residents must walk to one of three wells. All of these water sources naturally contain lead and arsenic. What’s worse is that because of the incline, water from dirty streets runs into the wells. The bottom two wells are generally used for washing, while the top one is where people get their drinking water.

Well in Tlamacazapa

We got to see some of the other work Atzin does within the community. They provide a school and a health clinic as well as other various resources. The organizers of Atzin are all members of the community who see a need for change and are trying to do something about it. They also work to educate others in the community.

While we were in Tlama, we had many different experiences. Upon our return, we discussed them and while everyone had a unique perspective on the trip, there were some common themes. For example, many shared stories of being called out for being an outsider. Saying things like “So you want to be one of us?” as the group took turns carrying water. Or, “You lost?” as a student walked by.

For me, this was the first time I felt completely like an outsider in Mexico. Because I cannot understand everything people yell out on the street means, I can usually ignore it. But in Tlama I felt as though I was really intruding. The combination of learning about the extreme poverty and injustice along with these feelings, gave me a much different perspective on my role here.

The experience of seeing how much physical labor was required just to survive was very eye opening. I am often unaware of all the privileges I have. Seeing the way of life in Tlama reminded me that not everyone has all the luxuries that I take for granted. I hope this experience will help me work for change in the ways that I can.

By Stephanie Nelson

Let the Semester Begin!

Hiking the pyramids in Xochicalco

Welcome to the Social Work in a Latin American Context blog! The new semester Social Work students arrived a little more than two weeks ago to sunny, warm weather here in Cuernavaca. It's been an eventful couple of weeks jam packed with orientation activities, the beginning of classes and excursions.

During the first week, the students visited ancient pyramids at the UNESCO World Heritage Site called Xochilcalco, spent a couple days at the gorgeous ex-Hacienda Santa Cruz, viewed the Diego Rivera mural at the Cortes Palace, hiked the pyramids of the Sun and Moon  in Teotihuacan, and spent a day in a rural, indigenous town in the state of Guerrero called Tlamacazapa.


This weekend we are heading to the campo to spend a week in the town of Amatlán. Everyone will stay with local families to have an opportunity to use their newly learned (or recently honed) Spanish skills. The Social Work students will visit a local school, meet with the head of the Mexican version of the Department of Human Services, listen to a talk from former migrants to the United States and take part in local traditions and rituals. It will be another busy week, but we'll all be able to enjoy the gorgeous views and fresh air.

Ex-Hacienda Santa Cruz

Please check back for more updates. It's going to be an exciting semester! If you'd like to receive our updates via email, just put your name into the gadget on the right. Each time we update, you'll get have an email waiting in your mailbox from us!