This initiative arose because many communities like Peña Blanca have been continually abandoned by the state, left without schools, without road access, and in general without the basic services to which we are entitled as citizens and by right. Further, Mayan cultural expression and knowledge continue to be rejected and marginalised in public and private spheres such as education, health, politics, justice, legislation and employment.
Our communities also suffer from prejudice and discrimination. Institutions with mercenary, politically partisan or sectarian goals have reduced our status through paternalistic assistance projects which have caused families to become dependent.
Confronted with this situation, families and communities began to organise themselves to find a solution to the problems facing us. The initiative to organise ourselves arose from our own community, without State involvement, because we needed our own structure to carry out the important work of strengthening and supporting Q’eqchi models of culture, history, rights and holistic development.
Our goal is that member communities of the Q’eqchi Xch’ool Ixim Association know their rights and obligations so as to gain respect and recognition. We have learnt the important lesson that lack of knowledge of our rights means authorities and the dominant classes can breach them.
In the midst of this community action we realised that we lack not only teachers and schools, but also education and development models to resolve our community issues.
This is a children's song in Q'eqchi, composed by the heads of Xch'ool Ixim in 1995. It is still sung today in schools. We're sharing it so that bilingual teachers can sing it in their schools.
This is a children's song in Q'eqchi, composed by the heads of Xch'ool Ixim in 1995. It is still sung today in schools. We're sharing it so that bilingual teachers can sing it in their schools.
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