The Book of Latina Women: 150 Vidas of Passion, Strength, and Success by Mendoza Sylvia

Author:Mendoza, Sylvia [Mendoza, Sylvia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sylvia Mendoza
Published: 2013-01-08T05:00:00+00:00

Elvia Alvarado (Honduras, 1940– )

Founder of the Federation of Campesina Women and head of the International Relations of the Union of Rural Workers, Elvia Alvarado is an author and worldwide speaker on the plight of the poor in Honduras.

“I would give my life for my people.”

~Elvia Alvarado

The peasant women she met on the back roads of Honduras were dying of malnutrition. For them, Elvia Alvarado was tortured, beaten, and jailed for twenty-five days without food or water. Her back carries deep scars and the weight of social justice.

In fighting for the campesinas’ rights, she was seen as a communist and guerrilla, a threat to the government. Trained and sent by the Catholic Church to organize women’s groups to combat malnutrition in rural Honduras, Alvarado had questioned why malnutrition was a problem in the first place.

As she traveled by foot, the reasons became clear. There was a great division among the classes and poverty was more than rampant. Although the campesinas helped to produce billions of dollars’ worth of sugar cane, rice, corn, bananas, beans, coffee, and textiles from the land, their income barely sustained them.

Military and corporate forces and Hurricane Mitch had stripped away their own lands. They suffered from abhorrent practices of sweatshops, no medical attention, and minimal education. Many women who worked in foreigners’ factories suffered lung diseases because of the air quality within the facilities.

Opening her eyes to the helplessness of women and children in her country, Alvarado founded the Federation of Campesina Women. She became a passionate voice for the women imprisoned within a machismo society, and who were also victims to military authority, corporate exploitation, and unfair employment practices. By speaking with these victims, she saw the need for change.

The majority of the campesinas had never ventured far from their villages. Despite Alvarado’s second grade education, her passion and commitment in improving the lives of her people propelled her to become politically aware and activist savvy.

As head of International Relations of the Union of Rural Workers, Alvarado travels the world and speaks eloquently of their fight against poverty, workers’ exploitation, and political oppression. As an organizer, Alvarado works with compassion and determination. She herself worked in the fields, raised a family of eight, and rallied Honduran campesinas to understand the importance of a labor movement. She has struggled for years to enforce an agrarian reform law so that they can recover their lands.

Empowered by her vision, she became a “Fair Trade coffee grower.” The Fair Trade Certified label guarantees that coffee importers pay a fair price to farmers and work with democratically organized cooperatives. She urges boycotts of products produced at the expense of peasant workers in Central America.

Her book Don’t Be Afraid, Gringo and the corresponding PBS documentary, Elvia and the Fight for Land and Liberty, take her on worldwide speaking tours where she shares her story about the injustices in Honduras and the plight of her fellow campesinas.

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