Brewing Solidarity

Leocadio Juracán (coordinator) and Francisco Coz Xiap (elder) of the Campesino Committee of the Highlands are coming to BC to build solidarity networks to support their efforts to maintain land rights and cultural vitality in the face of human rights and environmental abuses in Guatemala.

Our class is supporting the CCDA’s visit in collaboration with BC CASA. To this end, we are organizing a talk (with lunch provided) at the First Nations Longhouse on March 18th, open to the general public from 11:30am-1:00pm. Our goal is to create a space for networking and relationship building, while raising awareness about the social, political, and cultural work the CCDA does in Guatemala.

Come out and connect with the CCDA to support social justice and strengthen North-South solidarity networks!

Please RSVP on Facebook or via e-mail to brewingsolidarity@groups.facebook.com (preferably before Friday, March 15th, 11:59PM) so that we can prepare enough food for everyone.

When: Monday, March 18th 2013. 11:30 am – 1:30 pm

FREE Lunch will be served at 11:30 am

GEOGRAPHY 495: Brewing Solidarity invites you to a night of salsa dancing in support of our community partners, BC CASA & the Campesino Committee of the Highlands (CCDA) in Guatemala.

When: Wednesday March 13th, from 9pm
Where: Club 560 | 560 Seymour St. (778) 891.7644
Tickets are $10 ($4 go to our solidarity efforts) and include a beginner salsa class 9:15-10pm and a night of dancing!
Additionally, the students of 495 will be selling raffle tickets throughout the night and there are some great prizes!
Please comment below if you would like to pick up tickets, or send an email to:

brewingsolidarity@groups.facebook.com

or leave us a message on our FB page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/brewingsolidarity

BC CASA is a Vancouver-based volunteer group that works in solidarity with human rights and community organizations in Guatemala. The CCDA is an organization that works to defend the rights of workers on large coffee, sugar and cotton plantations, to recover lands taken from the Mayan communities over the past centuries, and to promote and recover Mayan culture and spirituality. Our goal vis-a-vis BC CASA this year is to support the CCDA’s BC solidarity tour in March. Visit our blog: https://blogs.ubc.ca/geo495 for more information and announcements about events.

We also invite you to purchase Cafe Justicia, which is produced by the CCDA farmers. You may order medium or dark roast, as beans or ground coffee.

Join us for the movie screening and follow-up discussion of this wonderful award-winning film, Heart of Sky, Heart of Earth. This will be a evening of Canada-Guatemala solidarity. After the film, we will be discussing topics of Mayan culture, Latin American mining, and Canada’s involvement with wicked problems.

Come out for a thought provoking and enlightening evening! You most definitely will be in good company!

Following the movie we will be hosting an amazing SOLIDARITY RAFFLE!
These are just some of our AWESOME prizes:

•  1 lb. of Cafe Justicia
•  $25 at The Storm Crow on Commercial
•  $10 at Eternal Abundance on Commercial
•  $50 at Havana on Commercial
•  3 x 50% off at Scandilicious on Commercial
•  1 month of Yoga at Semperviva Yoga in Kits
•  4 x $25 at Famoso on Commercial
•  2 x $20 gift certificates for Phats Bar and restaurant in Yaletown

Tickets for the raffle are:

1 for $1
6 for $5
15 for $10
32 for $20
50 for $30
100 for $50

We will also be selling Cafe Justicia!
1 lb. for $15
300 gm. for $11

All the proceeds will go to our Geography 495 Solidarity Project. Currently, we are collaborating with BC CASA, a solidarity group connected with a coffee co-op in Guatemala called the Campesino Committee of the Highlands (CCDA). Our goal vis-a-vis BC CASA this year is to help the CCDA raise enough money to bring a second member of their committee for their solidarity-network-building visit this March, in order to train and prepare members for future success of this social justice movement. We are also planning events that will allow the visitors to talk on behalf of their progress in Guatemala and to educate students here at UBC about the connections that exist between Canada and Guatemala.

You have you found the space in which we will interact, reflect and post our live discussions, ideas and goals for the course. Although the course blog is still in the process of creation, we would like to encourage your suggestions.

Please let me know if you have any ideas as how you would like to see our blog develop.

Some constructive feedback on the following would be ideal:

1. What pages (top left) you’d like to see. More specifically, what material we would like to include within these sub-pages.
2. Any preferences as far as layout, header, links, etc…
3. The overall theme of the blog can be easily changed. If you dislike it, let us know.
4. Last, but certainly not least: we are currently looking for someone to design our logo, which will eventually be placed on the site logo, solidarity packages, events and flyers.

Simply reply to this post with your ideas, you should soon have access to create drafts and eventually publish an entry. Soon, we will provide instructions on how to post your blogs, images and videos.

Hasta luego!