The U.S. Involvement in El Salvador

On Monday, I attended "War, Gangs, and Migration: The Legacy of U.S. Involvement in El Salvador," a lecture given by Pat Adams and Erin Garcia. I also attended a similar talk last semester given by two students who spent their summers in El Salvador. And though I was only able to attend a portion of the talk given by David Simon on The Wire, it was not to difficult to see how these events tie in with the theme of Year of the City.
When many of us think of sweatshops, our first thoughts are of China, but few of us think of El Salvador. With the common text, Travels of a T-Shirt, we focused on economic injustice and free trade within the U.S., Africa, and Asia. But little of the book focused on South America. While the U.S. is involved in a war with Iraq, El Salvador is engaged in a constant struggle for peace amongst its own people. Only a few years ago, El Salvador was involved in a civil war, and though it has ended, the country is in worse shape. Before I attended the talk on Monday, I was not even aware that the United States is involved with affairs in El Salvador. In fact, I was not even aware that El Salvador ever faced a civil war and today faces even more conflicts. Recently, the United States was facing the issue of illegal immigration, and its effect on employment and few of us stopped to think about why it is that people are constantly crossing the borders into this country. The people of El Salvador face the constant struggle to live their lives safely with peace, while many of us take for granted the freedom and safety provided for us within the borders of the United States. The talks on El Salvador are always well attened, because it allows us to see outside of our own country and it also allows us to see what it is that we take for granted everyday. I attended a talk last semester on El Salvador similar to the one this semester. The talk last semester was given by two students who spent their summers in El Salvador, understanding the conflicts within the country. It was surprising to see that students were celebrating the theme of Year of the City outside of the United States.
I also attended the talk given by David Simon on The Wire, and even though I attended only a portion of the event, it was easy to relate the conflicts presented by him not only to Baltimore but also to El Salvador. The talk allowed us think about what we think when we hear Baltimore, and what the reality is. The event allowed us to understand how we tend to ignore our own surroundings and that being aware of the problems around us is something we need to achieve. He mentions that we are becoming more disconnected with what it means to be an American. We know that poverty and crime is a problem within Baltimore but how many of us go on with our daily lives without doing anything about it. It is too easy for us to ignore these problems hoping that someone else will take care of them. I have watched only one episode of The Wire and truly enjoyed the “other” side of Baltimore it portrays. The Year of The City is a theme that allows us to see outside of the barriers that we live within. We need to understand what it means to live in Baltimore from the eyes of those who do not have what we take for granted everyday as well as see what it means to have the freedom and protection provided to us within this country, when looking at people who do not have that.