Team Bolivia

The multi-roomed mansion was an imposing structure in the midst of a working class neighborhood along the Blanco Galindo Avenue. Having once belonged to a drug trafficker, who must have surely hosted his share of lavish parties paid for by dirty money, the house now was in the hands of a church-based non-profit organization after it was seized by the government. Those who now inhabited the house were not members of the elite and wealthy, but rather children taken off the streets of Cochabamba, Bolivia. The staff struggled to keep the children on the road to recovery, as many of them had been addicted to sniffing glue having become accustomed to living and hustling on the streets. The house was full of life with children running around playing football, climbing the donated jungle gym, and adjusting to their new life.

The house also became my second home during one summer spent in Bolivia during a break from school. What had started as a way to pass the time, soon became a place where things became much more clear. The children would the source of a continous supply of questions. “Where are you from?” “What is your family like?” “Why are you so tall?”

Most of the children were from Cochabamba, the city where most of my family resides and the black-haired, brown-skinned children could have easily passed for members of my immediate family. The smallest and youngest boy in the compound was affectionately and ironically nicknamed “Abuelo” (or grandfather) and his energy resonated through the house. Watching him try to be a grown up amongst older boys, while clearly still being a child, it also occurred to me that those children could have easily been me had there been one small misstep somewhere in the past or unfortunate twist of fate. The degrees of separation were not so far apart, and I soon realized how fortunate I had been up until that point. The contrasts between our dreams were drastic in nature, as growing up in the States I was told on a daily basis that my goals and dreams had no boundaries, but the children that lived away from their families and struggled to regain some normalcy in their lives were content with the basics.

I can point to that three-month experience that pushed me along the road to where I am now, and which led to the creation of Voces Bolivianas. The organization that teaches the use of citizen media tools to underrepresented groups hopefully will open the doors and windows of possibilities to many more Bolivians and help even the playing field. Perhaps a child like “Abuelo” can use the internet to expand the possibilites of his dreams and he can see what else is out there in the world.

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1708 Responses to “Team Bolivia”

jogany

Jul. 27/2008/12:10 am

Thank you Eddie for sharing this special story with us. I had no idea this is the way how Voices Bolvianas started and wish you the best and more and more. You will always find in Foko and the Malagasy bloggers friends to lean on and have fun with !