Different sides of El Salvador

Today was incredibly moving in many of the people that we met with.  First we met with a Stanford professor who was an expert of the murder of the six Jesuit priests at the university.  Hearing her experience working through the war and with the priests was informative and powerful.  We were able to walk through the the garden where the priests where killed and tour the Romero center at the campus.  Next we were able to visit with environmental lawyers for El Salvador.  They gave us an in depth perspective on the environmental situation and how the courts are dealing with protecting certain areas.  We discussed how environment needs to be of a higher priority in this country but the grave injustices have taken first priority in the courts.  Therefore this issue has been pushed to the back of the agenda and most likely will have many consequences in the future.  However the new Funes administration has been able to bring more attention to this, and are against the Pacific Rim mining company that poses environmental threats to El Salvador.  The next person we met with was the leader of a guerilla sector in the civil war.  He shared his experience and how the war has shaped El Salvador today.  The emotions and gratitude he expressed during his talk were very heartfelt and moving.  Lastly we met the Palo Alto Friends of El Salvador.  We were able to see how they have helped college students in El Salvador afford education and achieve their goals.  There were three young women college students who shared with us their ambitions and how the Palo Alto Friends of El Salvador have helped them reach these goals.  Ultimately we learned a lot today and were able to get different perspectives on the present issues.    Katie