Poverty's Face

Cecilia’s sandals sent up clouds of dust as she walked from Mi Cometa to the organization’s truck, on her way to borrow tents from another social organization. The driver beeped at the kids playing nearby and drove off, down dirt roads between the rows of houses which line Guasmo, walls of cinder block next to cane next to cement, row after row, street after street. He turned onto a paved road running next to an open sewage canal and followed it to the highway leading to Guayaquil’s city center.

Larger homes in the neighborhood are tell-tale signs of which families have members abroad. Most houses are humble and full of people, though. Mi Cometa’s survey found the median income in the sectors of Guasmo Sur it serves for a family of six to be $105 per month. This averages out to less than a dollar per day per person, a standard definition of extreme poverty. Many sources estimate that more than half of Ecuador’s population lives below the poverty line,[2] and UNICEF reports that 70 percent of children and 90 percent of Afro-Ecuadorians and indigenous live in poverty.[3]

The Culture of Poverty

Many of these manifestations of urban slum communities were described by anthropologist Oscar Lewis in his famous 1946 article “The Culture of Poverty,” in which he looked at poverty as a subculture within the culture of capitalism. He identified 70 economic, social, and psychological traits which cross-nationally define this culture, such as people having and producing little wealth, having low education levels, and remaining outside societal institutions such as hospitals, banks, churches and marriage. He theorized that these characteristics are the result of factors including lack of economic resources, fear, apathy, suspicion, discrimination, segregation, and local solutions for problems.[4]

Guasmo Sur fits in Lewis’ description of the culture of poverty. Mi Cometa’s survey reported that only 43% of the adult population has elementary and 34% have secondary education. Legal marriages are uncommon, and personal bank accounts non-existent. Lewis theorized that remaining outside of institutions was people’s adaptation and reaction to their marginal position in society, how they coped with feelings of despair and hopelessness knowing they would not achieve success as defined by the larger society.[5] The sense of despair is evident in the robberies, gang activity, in hungry children’s eyes. It can be heard in mother’s voices as they lament not being able to feed, medicate or educate their children, and smelled walking next to the open sewage canals.

Breaking the Cycle

It was the morning of the Anniversary party. Staff members arrived early, untangling tent poles and setting up tables in front of Mi Cometa. Music blared from speakers on the roof, and Marjorie and Cecilia danced as they taped up balloons. Amelia teased Manuel as they pieced together a tent, and teenagers were eager to climb onto the roof to hang banners. Women from the Family Development Program appeared every few minutes with more decorations, and Marjorie pulled them over to dance. Laughter filled the street.

Its members comment that Mi Cometa has given them a place to belong, friendships, a sense of identity and the belief that change is possible. According to Lewis, this is one of the most effective ways to break the culture of poverty. He wrote, “Any movement…which organizes and gives hope to the poor and which effectively promotes solidarity and a sense of identification with larger groups, destroys the psychological and social core of the culture of poverty.”[6]

Social Capital

Robert Putman, professor of public policy at Harvard University, has made similar observations in his famous studies about civic community and social capital. Social capital is defined as “connections among individuals – social networks and the norms of reciprocity and trustworthiness that arise from them.”[7] He observed that these characteristics lead to easier problem-solving, communication, goal-achievement, and cooperation within communities, and in general allow them to advance more easily.[8]

These connections are evident in Mi Cometa. They are seen when the community gathers to build one family’s new home, when teenagers spend their weekends organizing and leading a children’s program, when half an hour is all it takes for Mi Cometa to summon 50 people to its doorstep to protest an injustice. The validity of these researchers’ findings, illustrated in Mi Cometa, is recognized and capitalized on by the Inter-American Foundation (IAF) in its emphasis on grassroots development.

Encouraging Grassroots Development

Through its work, the Foundation enables local organizations to expand their activities, serving local populations and building human and social capital as they do so. Another asset The IAF’s Grassroots Development Framework, the measurement tool used to assess both the tangible and intangible effects of its grantee organizations on their communities. The IAF is attentive to these projects’ impact on individual, organizational and societal levels.

Mi Cometa is an example of an organization with much social capital, and is well-known for its impact on the people of Guasmo Sur over the past fifteen years. For the past three years it has been funded by the IAF, the impact of that partnership provides an example of how the IAF affects the lives of people all over Latin America in tangible and intangible ways.

The History

The truck pulled up and stopped in front of the building, and Cesar Cardenas, the president of Mi Cometa, stepped out. “How’s everything?” he asked Cecilia amid the commotion. “Good,” she replied, introducing him to a reporter for an interview, after which several staff members approached him with documents, questions and news. Cesar has been recognized as a leader within the organization from the time he helped found it until the present day.

In 1990 Cesar, and two colleagues from a state agency were working with child laborers in Guasmo Sur, a neighborhood infamous for and marginalized by its gang violence and ruthless political leaders. The three men began organizing recreational activities for children, creating safe play spaces by working with local community leaders, gang members, and supportive parents. After a successful kite-building project, the kids began saying to each other, “Let’s go to My Kite,” and the name and organization were born.

The Community Base

The leaders soon realized that to truly change children’s lives, they must involve their families in the process. Movimiento Mi Cometa was formalized into an organization as more community leaders became involved, commitment to the movement grew, and funding was sought and received from outside organizations. The projects have changed name and shape over the years, but have always focused on human rights, children and youth, and improving the quality of life for people in marginalized communities.

In 2000 a massive project was undertaken to create what they call the “Plan of Indigenous Development.” Mi Cometa formed a team which created a community survey and a system of maps to gather information on the needs and wants of the people in Guasmo. 1,251 families representing 7,028 people were interviewed, and a database created. Community Day was organized and people voted on which projects they thought most important. The results compiled, an assembly was held to prioritize the projects and define the mission and vision of Mi Cometa. Since that time the organization has focused on implementing these projects while being guided by the mission and vision.

Mission

Movement Mi Cometa is a private community organization focused on social education and productivity. With children, youth and the inhabitants of popular urban sectors it promotes, develops, creates and re-creates alternatives to mainstream processes and organizations, promoting participation and self-reliance for the construction and realization of citizen’s rights.

Vision

To create a community of visionary citizens who advocate for their rights as a mental, physical and spiritual exercise, who propone and construct personal, familial, communal and societal well-being.

***

The Structure

By 11:00 people had begun to arrive. They walked between display tables showcasing Mi Cometa’s various programs. Women under a sign “Family Development Circles” sold earrings they had made. The “Adopt a Family” table boasted the model of the houses being built for that program’s participants. At tiny tables in the “Circles of Recreation and Activities” two- to five-year-old children had their faces painted and worked on art projects, guided by their instructors and mothers.

The structure of Mi Cometa is based around a board of directors elected every two years by popular assembly (composed of general membership), and a staff of volunteers who run the individual programs. These programs change as needs change, new ideas are formulated, and opportunities for grant money become available. Long-time members describe a sort of continuous re-invention of old programs as new issues and funding opportunities arise, but are emphatic that all programs remain grounded in the organization’s mission.

Mi Cometa's Programs

Adopt a Family: Health and housing program

Circles of Recreation and Activities: Early childhood development program

Children’s Community Animation Program

Youth League

College for Leaders of the Next Millennium

Circles of Family Development

Community Communication

• Radio Utopia: community radio station
• Internet Cafe

“Germinate” Program

• Auto-credit cooperative
• Exchange Network
• Alternative Economic System
• Commercial Services Network
• Family Orchards Urban Gardening Program

Community Security Program

Observatory of Citizen’s Rights

Why Such Success?

As the afternoon wore on, people retreated from the heat of the equatorial sun, going home to eat and rest. Cecilia, Marjorie, Wendy and the rest of the staff cleared the displays and tables from the street before going to warm up the meal they’d prepared early that morning for their families. Colorful streamers fluttered silently on the building until evening, when people returned, and large speakers were pulled outside. Members of the community radio team sat behind them, filling the streets with music as the crowd danced late into the night.

Much of Mi Cometa’s success as a development organization can be attributed to the relationships formed, the hope, sense of belonging and identity it gives its members. As discussed earlier, it creates social capital among its members, allowing all aspects of their lives to run more smoothly, and assuages the despair created by the culture of poverty. The education offered as part of many of the programs has raised people’s awareness on issues ranging from hygiene to human rights to the environment, and given them a sense of purpose and control in their lives.

Human Dignity and Networks

Long-standing members have seen the neighborhood and their neighbors transform over the years. They say that after Mi Cometa’s health and housing program began, there was an increase in home improvements in the neighborhood, even among non-program participants. They have also observed many women who after receiving the education and improved home that the program provides cared more for their appearance, which they interpret as an increase in self-esteem. Through their membership and the personal growth it creates, Mi Cometa’s members gain dignity, which is passed on through their interactions with others.

The inspirational stories of the people involved with Mi Cometa have captured the imagination of the public, and the organization has developed strong relationships with the national press, national and international organizations and universities, and is well-known by government leaders. It receives a steady stream of international volunteers who add to its human capital, and members of Mi Cometa have been able to travel to various countries representing the organization at events.

Community Base and Leadership

Another important reason for success is Mi Cometa’s foundation in the local community. From the beginning, the organization’s founders worked with and achieved commitment from established community leaders, utilizing their connections, knowledge and friendships to build membership and tap local needs and interests. A current challenge is to maintain those connections; as the organization grows in size it is harder for the leaders to know the people, and there is a sense that they are less attuned than when Mi Cometa was new.

Since its inception Mi Cometa has had strong leadership. There are a good number of people who have remained dedicated to the organization since its beginning and their vision, passion, and pure determination have led to many accomplishments and successes. Cesar is one of these people, and is generally recognized as the head of Mi Cometa leader by the general membership as well as people outside Guasmo Sur. Especially in Ecuador’s stratified patriarchal culture, this is sometimes problematic as members are afraid to voice dissenting opinions or disagree with Cesar, and the organization suffers from the lack of representation and healthy debate. Other times the organization’s democratic structure functions well and a richer perspective gained.

Education

Most of the programs have educational components, and education itself is a value that is espoused by Mi Cometa. From the pre-school program to the projects focused on children, youth and families, relevant skills, rights, and information are disseminated and taught. Limited scholarships to children and youth are given through the Adopt a Family program, and adults in the community are encouraged to see the adolescents wanting “something more” in their lives. Teenage pregnancy rates are much lower among women in the Youth League than the general population, and adults’ lives are noticeably transformed through the knowledge and self-confidence gained through membership in this movement.

One yet unresolved challenge regarding education is that of the staff. Most staff members are long-time members of Mi Cometa and residents of Guasmo Sur, and have lacked opportunities to receive the education and technical training they desire. The current leadership of Mi Cometa has not prioritized providing that education and training to their volunteers, resulting in frustration for both the organization and the individuals. Lack of steady funding and long-term financial management are also challenges, and while current leadership likes the idea of a volunteer staff, the lack of a steady salary makes it difficult for volunteers to feed and clothe their families and at times creates resentment.

The morning after the Anniversary party people arrived later than usual. Marjorie put on a pot of coffee, Wendy turned on the radio, Cecilia filled buckets with water and threw them on the floor to begin mopping away yesterday’s mud. The others grabbed brooms and joined her, and as they cleaned the floor they laughed at each other’s stories and jokes. Children ran through the building, then Cesar walked in with a newspaper in hand, pictures from yesterday’s event bright next to the black and white text. It was soon posted on the bulletin board by the door and as more people entered, they paused to smile at the images of their Movement. But then they kept walking, intent on today’s work: another day had begun.

Endnotes

- posted by little monk @ 1:44 PM