World Social Forum - Montreal, 2016

The International Committee has determined that Montreal will host the World

World Social Forum, Dakar, Senegal, 2011

Social Forum in 2016. This will be the first time a WSF has been hosted in a country of the Global North. Originally held in Porto Alegre, Brazil, the first WSF outside Brazil was in Mumbai, India. Since then several forums have been held in Africa and other parts of the world. However this is the first time in the North andit represents distinct challenges. Montreal is a good choice: Quebec is the only part of North America where French is the official language. Its place as a cultural minority has lead to many social movements to defend its traditions. In 2011-2012 Montreal was the centre of a vast social movement that began with the Occupy movement, passed to a student movement for free tuition and now is witness to Idle No More. The tradition of social mobilization in view of a fundamental transformation of society, is nothing new to Quebec where Montreal is situated. here is a long history of movements to defend workers, democracy and social rights. The challenge will be to find ways to make sure those of the GLobal South are able to participate. It will be a costly business to bring people from Asia, Afria and Latin America to Montreal. Moreover, the visa requirements imposed by the Canadian government are very strict and difficult. Nevertheless, no one doubt the creativity and commitment of the organisers. It should be a formidable event. In the meantimes a Canada-wide social forum is now being organized lto bring together English, French and Aboriginal activists in 2014. The success of this event will be an important indicator for the planning of the forum in 2016.

The Parish in Canto Grande

I worked in this area for a time. The building is new.

    For several years I lived in Canto Grande (and for others in Ancash to the north).
     When I arrived it was to assist with the work of the parish in Canto Grande. Later I became responsible for the formation of Peruvians who wanted to join our community. I also developed a human rights defence coordination for the entire area during the time of the greatest violence (1987-1991).
     I watched the development of this parish from nearly the beginning. It has obviously grown. Youth have always been at the centre. In the early years we had 800 confirmations each year.
   In the following video link the current pastor of the parish explains the life of the parish as it exists several decades later.  (The music toward the end was written especially for the parish as its anthem.) To see the video in Spanish, presenting the parish, click here.

For more on the parish, see its web site: click here.

Peru in the 1980s : a photographic display

      During the first week of January, 1980, I arrived in Lima, Peru, actually on the outskirts, in a relatively new land invasion that had begun with 5,000 people, mostly young couples from the city, who had invaded a piece of public land near downtown. After negotiation, the government came to an understanding for them to be resettled in an uninhabited valley several kilometers away. Within weeks the population had grown to 45,000 and then just kept going throughout the 1980s until it reached more than 500,000 people. Today the entire valley is inhabited, there are roads, electricity, water and sewage, bus transportation lines, a hospital and medical clinics, schools (primary and secondary). None of this was present when I arrived. The people I worked with estimated that the mortality rate for newborns was about 250/1000. The basic problem was hygene.
      I offer you 15 photos, taken at that time. Actually they were prepared by the Communications Office of the Peruvian Bishops' Conference and they are views of various communities around Lima, noteably Villa El Salvador, a similar experience in the southern end of Lima just three or four years earlier. That experience was the model for the development of our area: Canto Grande. They show the story at various stages and also the struggle of the people to survive: hauling cargo, shining shoes, selling stuff on the street.
    If you go to Youtube there is a video of Huascar, where I lived, as it is today. The quality is poor but it give an idea of the change. Click here. There isn't much I have found to give an idea of the story.  Somehow or other, I think it would be important to tell the story. But I leave that for another moment.

 Meanwhile here are the pictures: (Some are taken in the city where they went to find food, sell something or work. The difference between the city and Canto Grande at that time is startling.)

The video is also on Youtube:  here


If you want to download any of the pictures, here are the links:   (Just click on the link and the photo will open. They are a bit large so it may take a few seconds.)

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Time has passed; the area has changed but, most of the people are still there; they deserve our admiration for their courage and capacity to organize.

Satan, Lucifer and God

(Well, here's one way to look at it:)

   Satan is a symbol for the dark side, our unbridled impulses. Satan resists all attempts at control.   

   Lucifer is a symbol for our highest ideals and principles that repress unbridled energy and condemn us when we let loose. 

   Neither Satan nor Lucifer is God though each would like to have full sway. Fundamentalist and integrist religion tend to the side of Lucifer.   

   God is a symbol for the force that guides our choices as we attempt to manage the tension between Satan and Lucifer. It is our choices that forge our real identity.