Tape #509 - Lideres Campesinas Theatrical Play

 

And start breaking the stereotypes people have about latinas and farm worker women.  We 're not the type exactly and our reality is that we don't necessarily with our bear feet and have children and that our children are just in gangs, and things like that.  That's not necessarily our truth, and we want to change that.  Every time we present the model, we present models of and we talk to you about and we share the skits.  We present the barriers, the problems, the need that farm worker women face like farm worker or farm women face in their community also.  There's a lot of discrimination, sexual discrimination, there's a lot of racism, there's a lot of classism, and there's a lot of isn’t that go within our community and we are breaking a lot of that.  We're taking with our people about our culture, we talking with our people about breaking those barriers in terms of what harms within our culture and why it's important that we see our culture is valuable, by the same time, whatever is that's negative, turn it into a positive.  So, the farm worker women that participate are from 12 different communities, we have more than 250 farm worker women leaders from our communities that represent many, many years back of activism.  Leaders de Composers did not necessarily convince them to be active in the communities, they were already active, they're key women, they are organizers in their communities and what they do is they have formed local networks and from there, we formed a statewide network.  Leaders de Campesura is a state wide organization of 501 C3 now, and when the international conference in 1995 happened, 4 of us went and presented at 8 different panels, that's thanking many, many or our sponsors, like OxVam, RBL Ed, who put together the delegation, the Farm Workers Justice Fund, everybody has believed in t farm worker women and the importance of development.  And providing the guidance that's needed and providing the support and encouragement for us to do something in our community.  Thank you.  Thank you very much.  Now, what we're going to do is present Vihinia Ortega.  Vihinia Ortega is one of our founders.  She a farm worker woman, she's been in this country since 1966 and she's been involved in her communities since 1966.  Actually, Vihinia know each other and I know each other for 23 years now?  And Vihinia, I remember her as one of my models.  If you don't see the difference, she's a little bit older than I.  but she's very mature in terms of everything, in terms of giving all the appointments that women need to receive, and the encouragement.  This is one that has helped us develop the different programs.  Throughout the 5 years that we have existed, we have been able to organize, as I said, 12 communities around the state.  It has not been easy.  Whoever has the experience of organizing women to form groups, you know it's not easy because we have not been educated to work together.  We have not been raised with the idea of helping each other as women.  We have been raised with the mentality of serving men, and we all know that.  And we're breaking a lot of those barriers.  We want to work with men, not for men, and that's very, very important for every single one of us because that helps in terms of the development.  And several or our programs that we have developed is 1) is domestic violence, the sexual assault, the pesticides, the field sanitation, breast cancer, HIV aids, sexual harassment and in the skit and while you're watching the skit and listening to some of the women talk, they're gonna talk about all these issues.  The women have been able to present this skit at every single neighborhood conference that they organize, and the conferences are like 3 or 4 hours in the afternoon, then we have dinner and that's we attract people when we have dinner, they bring their family, everybody's there and we're able to, and the majority of the people that are there are women, and they are able to talk about their issues because they identify with what we present, that's how we open dialogue.  We don't talk domestic violence is this, domestic violence is that, we present the skit and the women start talking and from there on, we're able to open the dialogue.  So, Vihinia Ortega is now and one of our goals has been for Liberes Composers is to start hiring farm worker women to be the ones to take over the organization, even though I started working in the fields when since I was 8 years old, I did not have any high school, I did not because I was one of the oldest of 10 children, I was able with the support of the women, to go through college, with the support of a dear Lord, to go to and to have gotten my BA with honors.  Very happy too and I like to always share this in terms of.   And Vihinia gonna be our next person that will start doing this.  She is now our state wide coordinator for the domestic violence program.  She helped us develop that program and she will sharing with you culture, barriers and after that, she will be part of the skit.  Thank you.

 

Como esta?  How are you?  It is an honor to be here.  This morning I'd like to share with you what is part of our lives.  When you see a farm worker, female farm worker or you see a very nice and appetizing salad at your table, there's a story behind it.  We're going to share with you that story, that reality.  We have barriers.  We call obstacles barriers or walls.  Barriers that prevent us from fulfilling ourselves as women.  In our countries, we are the people who have the least power here in this country where women have more freedom.  We still are the least empowered.  We are referring to our culture in the past.  In Latin America, we were fighters.  People who used to fight for our people, the midwives and the medicine women were very wise, but men have always felt threatened because they feel that women will control them.  So, they started putting us in a place where we would supply them with sex, with children and we would serve them as good cooks, and to rear their children.  Culturally, it is very important for men to be the masters at home without any arguments about it.  We, in our culture, have to teach girls to respect their older brothers, their father, their grandfather or godfather, male figure anyway and go to Church.  We are encouraged by our families to be that person who respects authority and who never wants to be on the same level as men.  Religion itself teaches you no matter what you're married for life and you belong to that family and you belong to that culture and you belong to your faith.  You have to be a good Christian.  You have to sacrifice.  The other component is something that is very unique to our culture and that is taboos.  And that is the lack of communication when it comes to sexual issues.  We do not talk to our children, we do not talk to our daughters about sex and we do not even utter the names of sexual organs.  It is very unusual to discuss sex with your children, be it daughters or sons.  Millia's just reminding me that when she was a child, her mother did not allow her to remove her panties and her bras when she was going to take a shower, because it was very indecent to do so.  You never tell your daughter what is going to happen in a sexual relationship.  This is a taboo, it's a shameful thing.  You have to preserve the innocence of a child, because the more she is innocent, the more she is valuable to a man.  When a woman loses her virginity because of an accident, because she was raped, she might be 5, this girl will be treated differently from other girls.  Why, because she's no longer a virgin.  She will no longer be allowed to play with other girls.  The parents of the other girls will think that this dirty child will teach secrets to their daughters.  When a girl gets married, parents expect the daughter to marry in white and if the woman, the girl, gets pregnant, it's her problem.  She chose that.  The other problem is economic dependency.  Almost always, it is the father, the male, who runs the economic aspect of a household.  He takes the money, he collects checks and so on.  Women, when they faced with domestic violence, they have no where to go.  Why, because they are economically dependent on their husbands.  If she is documented, or does not have any legal papers, it's even worse.  She has no way out.  Women given their culture are not free to leave their homes without their husbands.  Women cannot dream to learn English as a second language, therefore, they will not learn English easily.  When they want to ask for help, who's going to give them help.  There's a social worker doing outreach work looking for victims.  I don't know any, any social worker doing this.  However, that is why leaders are going to the grassroots, were going home by home to talk to the women about all of this.  The other component are barriers.  We do not know the law in the United States.  In Latin America, if a wife leave a household, then she is guilty of abandonment.  Why?  Because she's guilty, she's guilty for abandoning the household and she loses everything.  But women do not know that they have a different option, that they have the option of leaving the household.  We teach them that abandonment does not exist in the United States, it exists in other countries but not here.  Here, we are free from that.  Immigration status, maybe she's an undocumented person, it's an even worse barrier because it will condition whether she will get her papers or not.  She has no rights.  The other barrier is our sister resources.  Why?  Because service providers don't do any outreach.  If they don't, women are not going to call the police.  Psychologists say that she has to face 7 beatings minimum to dial the police phone number.  So these are the barriers we have and I hope that you will all be able to spot them in our sketch.  Thank you very much, we'll being with a sketch now.

 

This is a drawing that Vihinia Ortega put together for us and every time the dry back here for our logo was also done by her.  We have informal professionals within Liberes Compesuras.  The majority of the women had no formal education like myself.  I basically am one of two staff members that have had the opportunity to go to higher education.  The women after the first year, Liberes Composers have gone back to school, they're going to ESL classes.  Some are taking college classes because they are learning that they can make a difference, knowing both languages aside from doing their involvement activism in their community.  So, right now, we're gonna start and to have it all together, I'm going to read the introduction and this is basically how it's going to go. 

 

This is the true drama of our daily lives of that of farming women in the states of California, Texas, Arizona, Oregon, Washington state, and throughout the USA, where we are struggling for daily survival, struggling together with men and our families, struggling for a more dignified life and dreaming for the sake of our children who will have a tomorrow that will be better than our today.  Thanks to the creativity and the true valor of many, this history has come up which is our own history and by presenting it, we wish to bring awareness among the public about the barriers which exist on the cultural family and social anticircle level. which prevent farm working women from developing fully.  Hoping that there will be a new dawn where these barriers will be eliminated for the betterment of the Composers women.  We have presented this sketch then for your benefit and its name is Doing Away with Barriers.  The first part is an idea which was created by one of our colleagues, Espiranza Ortello.  This play was then corrected and modified by Vihinia Ortega further and by the ideas and suggestions made by several of our colleagues in Liberes Composers.  The characters in the first act, it is early morning in the countryside and the character is a person who is victimized by violence at home as well as other of her colleagues are being victimized also at work. 

 

[This is the text of the skit]

Oh, my God.  I'm so happy I got here on time to the field, otherwise my boss will fire me and this husband of mine doesn't help me at all with lunch, nor with the babysitting.  Oh, my God.  I'm suffering so much.  I work, day and night, where's the money?  Where's the money? 

 

Good morning, Maria, good morning.  How are you? 

 

Fine.

 

Are you sure?  Well, why didn't you come to work yesterday?

 

Because I wasn't able to.  I took my children to the doctor.

 

Well, we missed you. We waited for you.  Don't start work, yet, Maria.  Let's chat for a bit.

 

Well, we're going to work.  There's, the boss is here.

 

Work.  To work, everybody to work.  Where are the other women, aren't they here yet?  They always get in late.  Good morning.  Good morning, get to work, come on.  Good morning, women, how are you, we're going to start working. 

 

How are you, Olga?

 

How are you feeling today?

 

Too much talking, too much talking.  I hope that you will get to work because you always do your work wrong.

 

Good morning, darling, how are you?

 

Hello, cutie.  You're always so pretty.

 

Please, don't bother me.  I'm fine.

 

Oh, you're really tight.  I was going to invite you to a movie but you're so tight, that I will not take you.

Very well, that piece of work is very well done.

 

Don't be so stubborn.

 

Where's the water, where's the water.

 

Ah, my helper will bring the water in a few minutes.

 

Will it be cold?

 

What did you say?

 

We're very thirsty, we want the water now.

 

You're only getting to work and you already want some water.

 

It's very hot.

 

Wouldn't you like some air conditioning too.

 

But the water this week has been warm, there's never ice, it's very warm.  We can't even drink it.  And there's one cup for everybody.

 

But this is not your home where you have plenty of glasses in the kitchen.  What do you think it is?

 

It's not good, it's not hygienic.  We have...

 

Too much talking, come on, get to work.  Forget it.

 

Where are the restrooms?

 

I don't know, but ask the boss.  He's right here.

 

Boss, boss, where are the restrooms?

 

What do you want?

 

I want to go to the bathroom, I need to go.

 

You've been here for 15 minutes and you already want to go to the bathroom?  Didn't you go at home?

 

I need to go right away, I need to go.

 

My helper is going to bring some container in a few minutes.

 

But, there the same 2 weeks ago and the week before, it stinks, you haven't cleaned them 

You want new latrines or want do you want?

 

But at least you should clean them.

 

No, these hags, they're nagging me all the time.  They don't do good work but they want plenty of stuff.  You're just nagging me all the time.  This is why I want to bring more people from Mexico who will come to work and who will really want to do the work.  They've been here so long that they no longer want to work.

 

You know, that I feel bad this morning.  I have a headache I feel dizzy.  Didn't you see that sign at the entrance, it said something about pesticides.  Maybe pesticides are affecting you.

 

Hey, you.  If you don't know, shut up.  Keep quiet, you know nothing about that, stop gossiping. 

 

Boss, boss, boss. 

 

What' wrong with you?

 

I feel awful since this morning when I started work I've had a headache.

 

So what did you take?

 

Nothing.  Nothing, I don't drink anything anymore.

 

You don't drink.  Why do you feel bad?  Only when people drink, feel bad.

 

I don't know.  As soon as we got to the field, I got a headache and I feel awful.

 

Perhaps, you're pregnant?

 

No, no, I'm fine, I'm not pregnant.  But I saw a sign when we got to the field and it said something about pesticides

 

Yes, your friend there, on the other side of the furrow, is always causing things.  But, she was here ever since last year.

 

I feel awful, I feel very, very poorly.  I truly, I have a bad headache.

Maybe you should go home.  Maybe you drank last night.

 

No, I did not.  I feel awful.

 

What's wrong with you?

 

Take care of her, please.

 

I think this woman must be pregnant or something, and they drink, and they come with a hangover.

 

Do you feel bad?

 

Please, boss, take care of her, give her some attention.

 

Come on, continue to work, I'll take care of you.  Come on, what's wrong, I can help you, are you feeling bad?  I think that you were drinking last night, that must have been.

 

No, I did not, I did, no.  I didn't drink last night.  I feel bad.

 

I'm sure you had something to drink, for sure.

 

Come on, it's time.  Go, go away, that's all for the time being.  You can go away.

 

I'll call you tonight, that's all for the day.

 

[end of first part of sit]

 

If we had curtains, you wouldn't be seeing us. 

 

The second act will be where Maria, which is, we call her in our community, the solfrita, which is, the suffering woman.  She comes home, she has her child who is ill, her baby who is ill.  After coming back from work, she has taken her child to the clinic and found that she did not have enough money to buy medicine.  She disposes herself to go away to prepare a sena at home with her child.

 

                                                               [continuation of skit]

 

Oh, my God. Ah, I am in a hurry.  I'm going to start cooking.  Theogornio is coming and he will hit me again and with a kid in my arms, I'm not able to cook.

 

Hurry, hurry!

 

My child doesn't let me cook.

 

Let your books on the table and hurry up.

 

I have to study.

 

Didn't your father say that you shouldn't go to school anymore?  Drop your books and take care of the child.  Your father is coming quickly.

 

Oh, my.  What am I going to cook?  I don't have any food, I didn't go to the grocery stare to buy food.  What I am going to cook?  Maybe I have some beans, otherwise, the jerk is going to get here, and the jerk, he really abuses us.

 

Oh, Mom.  Oh, come on, come on in.

 

Good morning, Mom.  Fine, Mom. 

 

I'm fine, how are the children?  How are you?  How are you, sweety?  Oh, I'm happy, I'm glad.  Let me have the baby, I haven't picked him up in a while.  Oh, my daughter, what's wrong with you, you seem sad?

 

No, I'm not sad.

 

Are you sure?

 

Yeh.

 

What happened to your eye?

 

Nothing, nothing.  I was cleaning in the kitchen and I slipped and fell.  But, it's nothing, Mom.  Don't worry.

 

Are you sure, my daughter?

 

Yes, Mom, I'm sure.

 

Listen, daughter.  You think you can lie to me but something is happening here.

 

No, Mom, thank you, nothing, nothing.  Nothing in my eye, there's nothing in my eye.

 

Are you still having problems with your husband?

 

No, he loves me very much.  He treats me very well.

You cannot fool me, daughter.  Something is happening here.

 

No, Mom, really, no.

 

Listen, daughter.  If this happens, well, we have to let's see, you have to face it.  You have that cross to bear.  We're married for life.  First of all, I want to give you a piece of advice and that is that you have to teach your daughters to be good wives once they get married.  That's there obligation.

 

Oh, Mom.  Thanks.

 

Hear, daughter.  I tell you, if something should happen.  Well, you have to face life, what else are you going to do, what else are you going to do, my daughter.  You don't have any papers.  What are you going to do with your children, with my grandchildren.  In this country, you don't have any papers, where would you go?  A woman, when she's alone, is worthless.  You have to put up with it.  Forgive your husband.

 

Thank you, Mom.  Thank you.

 

Come on in, come on in.

 

Good afternoon.

 

Good afternoon, my friend, how are you?  Fine, my friend. 

 

How are the children?

 

I'm leaving, my daughter, 'cause you have a visitor.  I'll be back later.

 

Thank you, Mom.  I'll come back later, ok?

 

Take care of the children, and they'll come back again.

 

Thank you, Mom. 

 

And you have to beg your husband, don't forget.  That's your cross to bear.

 

Good afternoon, how are you?  Are you alright?  Yeh?  And how's the baby, how's the baby?

 

Oh, good morning.  How are you?  How is he?  And you, my friend, how are you?

 

Are you sure you're alright?  Don't lie to me. 

No, no, I'm not lying, I'm ok.

 

No, I can see you, you're not well, I've noticed, you're not well.

 

Is he hitting you still?

 

No, he loves me very much, my friend.

 

No, my friend, you don't have to lie to me.  We're almost relatives.  I will be your baby's godmother.

 

But I'm ok.  I told you, I'm very happy with my husband.

 

Are you sure?

 

Yes, I'm sure.

 

I have come to invite you to a female farm workers meeting.

 

No, I'm very afraid of attending.

 

I've invited you many times.  Come on, let's go this time.  Com on, put something on and leave the children with your daughter and come with me.

 

No, another day.

 

No, come with me, you will not be sorry.  It's gonna help you and your children.

 

Maybe some other time.

 

No, this time.  Come on, get ready.  Get your children ready and let's go.

 

You know what?  We should go.

 

Ok, well, we can go.

 

No, don't be afraid.  Let's go.  Let's see what the women have to say.  Otherwise, they'll be mad at me.  Are you ready, let's go before it's too late. Come on, and I'll bring you back home later.

 

Heh, old hag.  Old hag, where are you?  I'm here, old hag.  Where is this old hag of mine?  Huh, what is it.   Who's going to serve my meal?  What does this women believe she is?  Where did she go?  Oh, I hate it, what's going to happen with me now?  This filthy, lazy, street walking woman.  She thinks that she governs herself.  She asks no permission from me.  Ah, here comes the bitch, I wanta teach her who is in command in this house so that she doesn't think too much of herself.

 

Are you hungry?

 

What do you think?  The food is ready, old man.  Sit down.

 

And where were you?  Who gave you permission to walk out?  Where were you?  What do you think, that you control yourself?

 

I went to a friend's, I went with a friend...

 

How do I know that you were not doing something wrong, and who's that friend of yours?  Crazy woman who is imbuing ideas in your mind.

 

No, she's a worker colleague.

 

Ah, don't kid me.  What are you looking at me for? 

 

Hold your brother.  Sit down over there with the baby.

 

Come on, tell me, where were you?  What do you think you are?  Because you live here in the U.S., I'm going to be on the side as a wimp?

 

No, that is not the case.  I didn't do anything wrong.

 

You'd better not do anything wrong.  Sit here and listen to me.  You are nothing here.  I'm going to call the INS if you continue doing this and I'm gonna take away the kids.

 

No, please don't.

 

That's enough, enough of this.  I continue to be the master in this house.  No woman is going to move me around.  No one controls me, I'm a man and your father must have told you this, and he said it to you when we married as well as the priest.  Don't forget it ever.

 

No, no.  I will never do this again.  Oh, my God.  He's always treating me like this. 

 

Hello, my friend.  Come in, come in, sit down, join me.  I love when my friends come visit.  Yes,  that's what neighbors are for, to visit your other neighbors.  So, how have you been?

 

Fine, just fine.  The reason why I've come to see you.

 

The reason why I've come to see...

 

What's wrong?

 

I've heard that you are having some problems with your wife?

 

What?  What do you mean problems, who told you that?

 

Well, you know, I live across the street, and I've been witnessing it. 

 

Don't you think that you're going into my own business? 

 

No, but this is what my friends used to tell me and I've had a very serious problem. 

 

I'm going to break your face.

 

No, please, don't be altered, I like you, you're my neighbor.  The thing is that the law is very harsh here in the United States.

 

Isn't it that you like my wife perhaps?

 

No, please.  We are very good friends, please, don't think of that.  Nobody knows what's happening.  Here there are no friends.  It is a crime to beat your wife.  I was doing that and they put me in jail for 3 years. 

 

Oh, my knees are knocking.

 

I told you this because I like you as a neighbor.

 

I'm fed up, I've been hearing this for a long time.  Go back home and don't get into my business.  Don't be an intruder.

 

As neighbors, we must take care of one another, remember.

 

Go on, go to take care, to mind your own business.

 

Ok, my apologies, I don't want you to be offended by this.  I'll go.

 

Yes, I'm not going to change so that my father will laugh at me and my compadre will laugh at me and all my colleagues at work, so that they all think that my wife is in control.  No way, I'm still the king.  I'm in control.  These are the laws in this country.  I love that.  Nobody is going to tell me how to control my family, and that woman of mine, that sloppy one, I know how to control her and how to manage her.  I'll be back in a few minutes.

Sit down, daughter.  Take your baby brother.  I'm going to start dinner because my husband will come back and hit us otherwise.

 

Old hag, old hag, my dear woman.  I think that I made a mistake.  I think that I did something wrong to you, this is why I brought you these flowers for you to forgive me.  Do you forgive me, dear one?

 

No, I will not forgive you because you always mistreat me.

 

Come one, forgive me.  I will never again do this.  I swear to you by the virgin.  Give me another opportunity.

 

Ok, I'll forgive you this time.  This is the first time, so I forgive you.

 

I know that you are my faithful wife, I know how you are.  Sit down here, let us talk.  Dear, you know that I love you very much.  I don't know what I would do without you.

 

Yes, I know and I forgive you, but you know what?  I saw on tv a program about condoms and they were saying that condoms protect people. 

 

What did you say?

 

You know, those rubbers, condoms.  I don't know what they're called but, anyway, I saw an advertisement saying that they protect people.

 

What people are you talking about exactly?  Are you trying to fight me?   What do you think you are?

 

To protect ourselves.

 

What from, do you want this to protect us from?

 

Well, the acid, I don't know anything about that.

 

Who told you that?  Who are you mingling with?  Those nasty things only whores know about.  Who told you that? What kind of friend do you have?

 

I saw this advertisement on tv.

 

You watched it on tv, my ass.  You're going to start having problems.

 

Oh, Mom, you always put up with Dad. 

 

You know what, go to sleep, you outspoken girl.  Go with your little brother, that's what you ought to do, take care of him.  Intruder, you're always giving ill advice to your mother.  And you sit down here.  I don't want you to speak again about those condoms and those nasty things.  I am the one as a man who knows things.  You know nothing.  Only women walking the streets do that.

 

Ok, whatever you say.  And I'm sorry, I'm sorry for what I said.

 

Stop, this is the law.  Stop this or I shoot, what happened, why are you hitting this woman?  What happened woman?

 

It's your fault. 

 

Please, don't take him, don't take him, don't take him away, please.

 

I have to.  I have to take him under arrest.

 

It is your fault. 

 

Please, don't take him.