Oaxaca is a state that is celebrated for its cultural diversity. Not only does each region have its own identity, as the Guelagetza demonstrated, but also every pueblo from within each region has a unique cultural spirit. The Oaxaca Community Foundation supports community projects throughout the state, and believes in the importance of celebrating each community’s particular identity.
Beginning next month, the Oaxaca Community Foundation will launch its new video blog, called
Habla: La Voz de la Comunidad, or Speak: The Voice of the Community. The focus of the blog will not directly concern the community’s work with the Oaxaca Community Foundation; rather, it will provide a space for community members to discuss their thoughts and views regarding more generalized themes. Each video blog entry is comprised of a montage of interviews with community members, in which they are all asked to respond to the same question.
Doña Pastora, of the Galvain Cuy group, shares with usher ideas and opinion of the project Habla: The Voice of the Community.
For example, when the Oaxaca Community Foundation asked the women of the Vida Nueva weaving cooperative in Teotitlán del Valle where they see their community in 50 years time (Click here to watch the video) some of the women spoke about the importance of preserving nature and others about continuing the cultural tradition. Many of the women chose to speak in Zapoteco, the indigenous language in the region. The well-articulated answers seen in the video blog gives one a true sense of what matters to these women. The video blog gives the women the opportunity to share their greater vision of the future and gives the viewer insight into what truly matters to this particular community.
By enabling community members to speak publicly about issues in their own words, and in some cases their own languages, we believe that we can help create mutual cultural understanding. We invite you to listen, and, because the questions are universally pertinent, we also invite you to reflect upon your own beliefs as you hear the opinions of others. Together we can use technology to help build a shared language—a necessary step when speaking about development.
