Violencia en Nuestras Comunidades

by Teresa Molina/Reportera para Prensa POBRE

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Era una tarde humeda y fria como cual quier tarde del mes de diciembre. Estaba en la parada del autobus en frente de los projectos de Sunnydale en San Francisco donde vivo esperando para ir a trabajo. A mi derecha se encontraban dos personas que temblaban de frio igual que yo. En ese instante nos tiramos al piso sin importar que nos golperamos y que acabaramos ensima de uno y de otro.

Escenas como las que acabo de describir son frecuentes en los proyectos de Sunnydale. La violencia es tan usual en este vecindario que la gente ya esta acostumbrada a ver heridos, muertos, a esquivar las balas y a tener miedo. Lo ironico es que solo la gente que vivimos alli nos damos cuenta de lo que pasa. Los medios de comunicacion no se molestan en darnos la importancia de reportar sobre nuestras situacion. En esta sociedad, comunidades pobres y de color como mi familia son aislados y marjinados. Esta misma marjinacion y desolacion que existe en mi vecindario es en si violencia contra mi comunidad.

A simple vista el vecindario aparenta ser tranquilo. Es usual ver gente afuera sonriendo, sentados platicando como si todo estubiese bien. Pero todos los dias al salir de mi casa veo una escena que se contrasta con grupos de personas que beben cerveza y usan drogas en las calles. Al continuar mi partida noto que las casas son de colores verdes, azules y rosados como pasteles. La pintura de las viviendas estan descascaradas como la cascara quebrada de un huevo herbido al prepararse para comer. En la calle siempre hay bolsas de plastico de basura que hacen que el vecindario huela a ropa mojada y a comida echada a perder. La unica escuela que exciste en mi vecindario es una escuela primaria con paredes similares a las viviendas. Solo ay una tienda que suele vender verduras, carne y comida preparada a precios inflados. No tenemos bibliotecas, centros de recreaciones para niños y jovenes, no tenemos lavanderias, no tenemos nada.

“En lugares como Sunnydale la gente no tiene oportunidades economicas, de salud y de educacion. Los pobres somos vistos como basura y la pobresa se ve como un poblema psicologo”, nos conto Sharon Hewit, directora de la organizacion comunitaria Comunidad de Liderasgo Academico de Respuesta de Emergencia (CLAER).

CLAER es una organisacion de base comunitaria que da servicios directos a familias afectadas por la violencia. Tienen programas de abogacia, recaudan fondos para familias y hacen trabajo de capacitacion de liderasgo de su base. Esta organizacion esta localizada en una zona aislada del Sureste de San Francisco por el Cow Palace y de los proyectos Sunnydale que son los mas grandes de la ciudad. Pero sin embargo nunca se escucha sobre las condiciones en las que viven la gente alli. Segun Sharon esto es problematico.

Tensiones raciales son comunes en zonas como Sunnydale. Al preguntarle a Sharon que piensa sobre la violencia entre Latinos y Afroamericanos ella contesta " Pienso Mierda. No ay violencia de Morenos contra Morenos ni Latinos contra Morenos, ni Morenos contra Latinos. Lo que pasa es que eso nos hacen creer los medios de comunicacion. Nos dicen que la violencia la traemos en nuestros genes. La razon por la que se pelean es por que viven juntos y son vecinos. Si gente blanca estubiera en esa situacion economica ellos se pelearian tambien. ¿Por que no se habla de la violencia entre blancos?"

Sharon Hewitt nos informa que la violencia es un sintoma social que surge cuando ay falta de justicia. Para combatir la violencia, Sharon cree que necesitamos abrir espacios de dialogo y analisar los factores exteriores. Sharon nota que es dificil combatir la violencia que surje en las calles cuando tenemos un gobierno que se vasa en ella. Esta violencia es propagada por este gobierno hacia sus ciudadanos y las personas de Iraq pormedio de la guerra. Tenemos que analisar el papel de los medios de comunicacion y como toleran la violencia y los asesinatos. Segun Sharon tenemos que cambiar la constitucion de este pais, en particular el derecho de tener armas. Este articulo de la constitucion Estado Unidense es irrelevante ya que se usa contra nuestras familias.

Como madre de cinco hijos, e inmigrante de bajos ingresos, tengo que proporsionar vivienda economica a mi familia pese la violencia. Al analysar esta situacion de violencia, me eh preguntado ¿que es la violencia? La violencia no solo es propagada por los balazos y el miedo. La violencia se impone en nuestras comunidades dia tras dia y es la de no tener accesso a escuelas, a tiendas, a programas para jovenes y al cuidado de nuestra salud. Las raises de la violencia bienen de la marginazion, del racismo, de la pobresa y de la injusticia, que son impuestos por el systema. El gobierno nos muestra violencia y a la gente no nos queda otro remedio que sobrevivir al responder con mas violencia.

CLAER esta localizada en el 299 Sunnydale Avenue en San Francisco.

Violence in our Communities

It was a cold and moist afternoon like any other December day. I was standing at the bus stop in front of the Sunnydale Housing projects in San Francisco where I live waiting to head out to work. To my right there were two people shivering from the cold just like me. All of a sudden, we heard bullets buzzing next to our ears. At that moment we hit the ground without caring if we hurt ourselves while landing on top of each other.

Scenes like the one I described are frequent in the Sunnydale projects. The violence is so common in this neighborhood that the people are used to seeing people getting hurt, people dying and to dodge the bullets. Ironically, only the people who live in this area know of the situation. The media does not bother reporting our situation. In this society, poor communities of color, poor families such as mine, are marginalized and isolated. This kind of marginalization and desolation that has existed in my neighborhood is in of it self violence against my community.

On the surface the neighborhood appears to be tranquil. It is common to see people outside their homes smiling and sitting down while enjoying a conversation with out a worry in the world. However, everyday as I leave my home I see a contrasting scene of people in the streets drinking beer and doing drugs. As I walk on, I notice that the homes are of pastille green, blue and pink; the paint of many is chipped and cracked like the shell of a boiled egg that is about to be eaten. Out on the streets there’s always ripped plastic trash bags which make the neighborhood smell like wet clothes and spoiled food. The only school that exists in the neighborhood is an elementary school whose walls are similar to those of the homes. There is only one store that sells vegetables, meat and prepared food at an inflated cost. We don’t have libraries, youth centers, we don’t have laundromats, we don’t have anything.

“In places like Sunnydale people don’t have the economic, health and education opportunities. Poor people are seen as trash and poverty is seen as a mental problem” said Sharon Hewit, director of CLAER (Community Leadership Academy of Emergency Response), a community organization.

CLAER is a community based organization that provides direct services to families who are affected by violence. They have advocacy programs, they raise money for affected families and develop member leadership. This organization is located in an isolated area in Southeast San Francisco by the Cow Palace and by the largest projects in the city: the Sunnydale projects. Ironically, we never hear about the conditions that people live in this area. To Sharon, this is problematic.

Racial tensions are common in areas like the Sunnydale projects. When Sharon was asked her opinion on brown and black violence she answered that she doesn’t think “Shit. There is no brown on black violence, black on brown, or black on black violence. What happens is that is what the media makes us believe. They tell us that we carry the violence genes. The reason why they fight is because they are neighbors. If white people where in the same economic situation they would fight amongst each other too. Why don’t we ever hear about white on white violence?”

Sharon Hewitt informs us that violence is a social symptom that surges when there is a lack of justice. To stop the violence, Sharon believes that we must open up spaces for dialogue and that we need to look at outside factors. She notes that it is difficult to fight the violence that surges in the streets when we have a government that is based on violence. This violence is perpetrated by this government towards its people and the Iraqi people through the war. At the same time we need to analyze the role of the mass media and how it tolerates violence and homicides. According to Sharon we have to change the constitution and the right to bear arts for this amendment in the US Constitution is archaic and is constantly used against families.

As a low income immigrant mother of five children I have to provide housing for my family regarding of violence and fear. While analyzing the issue of violence, I have asked myself, what is violence? Violence is not only propagated by bullets and fear. The violence we live in our communities day in and out is manifested by the lack of schools, stores, youth programs, and health centers. The roots of violence come from the marginalization, racism, poverty, and from the injustice that is imposed by the system. The government shows us violence and as people we don’t have any choice but to respond with violence.

CLAER is located on 299 Sunnydale Avenue in San Francisco.