Bluegrass Community and Technical College: October 21, John Henry Gonzalez Duque co-founder of Movimiento Campesino de Cajibio

(Extra credit opportunity for all of my students: attend, listen, engage, write a response of at least 500 words and post on your blog)

Witness for Peace presents
JOHN HENRY GONZALEZ DUQUE
co-founder of Movimiento Campesino de Cajibio
with translator Carlos Cruz

After studying for the priesthood with Franciscan Friars, in 1990 John Henry helped found MCC (Movimiento Campesino de Cajibio, or Small-Scale Farmers Movement of Cajibio). MCC addresses issues such as human rights violations, armed conflict, coca production, the need for agrarian reform, and the effects of free trade on small farmers. John Henry has represented MCC in numerous human rights initiatives and participated in a variety of direct action campaigns, including a debate with the President of Colombia followed by a march of 50,000 people to the capital. In one initiative, MCC analyzed the effects of large-scale monocultural crop production by multinational corporations which threatened water quality, food security, and land ownership. This work resulted in death threats to MCC personnel, including John Henry. In another initiative, MCC accompanied small-scale farmers to a meeting with the national government to voice community proposals for voluntary coca eradication and alternative development projects. Currently, MCC is working to limit the harm of Colombia’s prolonged internal conflict on innocent civilians, and MCC recently led an action that included representatives from the United Nations.

Friday, October 21, 2011:
12:30-1:30 pm: Oswald Auditorium (230 OB) BCTC—Cooper Campus. Parking enforcement is off.
Presentation is free and open to the public.