Lucia is a compact fireball with direct, engaging eyes and an open
manner. She is 37, a Quiche Indian from the highlands of Guatemala who
married at age 17 and had four children who range in age from 9 to 17
years. During her marriage, which lasted 18 years, she and her husband
built a house using her money and his land. The marriage was disastrous;
when her husband was drinking, he treated her brutally. When Sarat left,
she had to give up her legal rights to her children and home. Lucy's
circumstances are common in Guatemala where women's legal rights leave them
at a disadvantage.
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Lucy had no place to go but her home village of Belen (Bethlehem), where
her parents reluctantly took her in and gave her a piece of land. She
immediately started a banana business to support herself, and obtained a
loan from the microcredit group already established in her village. The
group's loans are provided by FUNDAP, a Guatemalan organization affiliated
with ACCION International, which emphasizes education, training and credit
for women. The program's motto reads,"When you educate a man, you are
educating one person, but when you educate a woman, you are educating the
whole family." Lucy's loan has made possible a new concrete block house
with a new kitchen complete with pots and pans!
Text: Jennifer Potter
jchaden@speakeasy.net
