The Anthropology Of Genocide - WNLibrary

genocide in guatemala 307
now only in bones. Nonetheless we feel a little bit more tranquil. But, only when justice
is done, then, our souls and their souls will rest in peace. When I heard the news
I cried a lot, everything came back to me, and I felt as if all had happened yesterday.
Then, after all the crying, I began to feel calm again, but I do feel a thirst for justice.
I think that only with justice will we feel more secure that it would not be so easy for
it all to happen again....
My family has not been found. The exhumations continue and I hope they will
be found....
I want to tell you that at the University I am involved in a research project and I
chose the theme of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity. I am very interested in
this and pushing along....All of this gives me more courage to get involved. I am
becoming more conscious of the situation in Guatemala. Next month I will give my
testimony before a prosecutor and then the public debate will begin.
I want to tell you also that a few days ago the video of the Santa Maria Tzejá
play, “There is nothing hidden that will not be discovered” was presented here in
Guatemala City. A lot of people came, the place was packed for two nights.
This message is an example of villagers bridging the painful and unjust past—
with a hope for justice and a better future. The charge of genocide against army generals,
the planners of appalling savagery, is one step families have taken toward justice.
The words of Edwin Canil tell us that moral strength can defeat intimidation;
that courage, understanding, and hope can undermine silence.
I would like to acknowledge and thank the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
for their Research and Writing grant, which supported the writing phase of this research.
I am grateful to two University of California, Berkeley, students, Monica Pons and
Carina Carriedo, for their dedicated and first-rate assistance. Both took part in Berkeley’s
Undergraduate Research Apprentice Program. Pseudonyms were used for some villagers to
protect their identities.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Adams, Richard N. 1970. Crucifixion by Power: Essays on Guatemalan National Social Structure,
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Annis, Sheldon. 1987. God and Production in a Guatemalan Town. Austin: University of Texas Press.
Archdiocese of Guatemala. 1999. “Guatemala: Never Again!” The Official Report of the
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Arendt, Hannah. 1968. Between Past and Future. New York: Viking Press.
Berryman, Phillip. 1984. The Religious Roots of Rebellion: Christians in Central American Revolutions.
Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis Books.
Black, George, with Milton Jamail and Norma Stoltz Chinchilla. 1984. Garrison Guatemala.
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