March 2002

The Israelites groaned under their slavery, and cried out. Out of their slavery, their cry rose up to God. God heard their groaning, and God remembered God’s covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. God looked upon the Israelites, and God took notice of them.
(Exodus 2:23-25)

Dear Friends,

The God of the Exodus heard the cries of the Israelites and heeded those cries for justice in the face of a powerful and oppressive pharaoh. The same God, the God of the Exodus, must also be listening to the cries from Bolivia.

In Oruro, in Potosí, and in many communities throughout Bolivia, the people have been crying out for centuries.

For 500 years, Bolivia has provided the raw materials that generated wealth in other countries. From the tin and silver-rich mines of Oruro and Potosí, Spain filled its pockets, establishing a pattern that would define Bolivia’s economy, reshape its landscape and marginalize its indigenous peoples for centuries.

Bolivian miners bore deeply into the mineral-rich earth, hauled rock and moved mountains. And that wealth built palaces for pharaohs in Europe, and later, America.

That is Bolivia’s history: Export raw materials, exploit natural resources and human beings. The ecological balance of the high plains has forever been altered by intrusive mining practices and the growing use of toxic chemicals.

As many as eight million slaves and indigenous people died from diseases like pulmonary silicosis during the mines’ most productive three centuries. Six thousand children between the ages of eight and eighteen continue to work in the silver mines of Cerro Rico, Potosí’s "Rich Hill."

Almost none of the wealth generated by such human and environmental destruction has remained in the country or returned to the people. New plans to exploit and export natural gas in the forested eastern region threaten to follow this same pattern.

Last week I spent an intense day listening to testimonies from local indigenous leaders and people from the community of Oruro as they confronted representatives of a gold-mining company with U.S. ties. They were using the only power they had—words.

The Center for Andean Peoples and Ecology (CEPA), a member of the Bolivian Joining Hands for Life Network, planned the public forum. They hoped it would encourage public discussion about the impact of multinational mining companies in Bolivia, including the ongoing use of child labor, toxins in the ground water and lakes, and terrible working conditions.

The company, a subsidiary of a large U.S. mining corporation, gave a sleek, polished, PowerPoint presentation, while members of the community could do little more than testify to what they had experienced.

The poor communities surrounding Oruro had no money to conduct scientific studies to see if the company’s past practices had led to environmental degradation. They had no team of experts, no sophisticated presentation. As I watched the "debate" unfold, I thought of how little we know about the practices of our companies in other countries. But I was also aware of how many Bolivian groups like CEPA are working tirelessly to confront injustices in their communities and speak truth to power.

Just as God heard the cries of the Israelites, that same God hears the cries of Bolivians. And we, too, should hear and heed those cries—after all, we were once slaves in Egypt. Our faith tradition demands that we recognize that we are connected to all peoples, especially those poor and exploited. It also demands that we educate ourselves to discover if we are contributing to that exploitation, through our lifestyles, our public policies, or our company practices.

And just as the Exodus story is one of hope—of pharaohs outsmarted by young girls, of communities lead to freedom by the most unlikely (and least eloquent) of people—there is much to hope for in Bolivia.

The Bolivian Joining Hands for Life Network challenges us to seek a new kind of relationship with the peoples and ecology of Bolivia—one that heals God’s broken creation and restores us to right relationship with one another.

In January, representatives from the nine participating non-governmental organizations, grassroots groups, and churches stated that the network’s mission is: "To promote a North-South and South-South solidarity movement that is an alternative to the current model of injustice, discrimination, and oppression."

But this new relationship requires that we in the North also be open to the challenges ahead, to learning from the South, to the possibility that in the process we will be transformed, and that in being transformed, we will no longer be willing to live as we have.

God calls us to respond. But how? We are all learning what it means to be good disciples in this increasingly interconnected world. This effort is ongoing; the first step is to become better informed.

Push your news media to cover events in Latin America and elsewhere in the world. Keep asking questions. When you hear about protests, violence, or other events in Latin America, ask whether they have any connection to the United States or U.S. policy.

Get involved in the Presbyterian "Enough for Everyone" program to learn more about the impact of U.S. lifestyles on others in this world: http://www.pcusa.org/enough. Topics include our energy consumption, the conditions under which the clothing we wear is made, socially responsible investment, and the new Presbyterian Coffee Project.

Make an appointment with the Presbyterian Washington Office to learn more about our faith tradition’s concern for public affairs: www.pcusa.org/washington or call (202) 543-1126. Subscribe to their electronic updates on the public policy issues that interest you the most.

Learn more about corporate responsibility campaigns. Do large companies in your community work in other countries? What are their environmental and labor practices?

Seek out interfaith organizations in your community dedicated to issues in Latin America or other regions of the world.

Often, the biggest challenge to addressing these issues is our lack of information. When we have that base, we can begin to map out a more concrete response to the injustices around us—and pretty soon, injustices that once seemed overwhelming become more manageable.

This story is a hopeful one. We find strength in knowing that God has been working throughout history to right broken and exploitative relationships. We have a responsibility to be active in this process, seeking out alternative relationships, learning about the practices of our companies and the impact of our policies. There is much to hope for, and to work toward: God’s kingdom here on earth.

Yours,

Susan Ellison