Indigenous people in Guatemala face discrimination in all facets of their lives.
Everyone has a right to express their beliefs, find good work, have a safe place to live, speak freely, love who they want to, and meet their basic needs. Discrimination strikes at the heart of these core human rights.
Although Indigenous people living in Guatemala make up nearly half the population, they face discrimination in all facets of their lives. Because of this discrimination, accessing health care and education and becoming financially stable is extremely hard. Especially for women. According to the Guatemala Conference of Evangelical Churches, 43 percent of Indigenous women living in Guatemala are unable to read and write compared to 19 percent of non-Indigenous women.
That’s why your gifts through Mission & Service support the Conference in providing human rights education as well as business and agricultural training skills for women farmers.
Petrona is one of hundreds of women who have changed their lives after receiving training through the Conference.
She is a member of a gardening group of six women. Thanks to your generosity, these women receive seeds, tools, and agricultural training. Today, instead of making the long walk to the market to buy costly produce, Petrona grows tomatoes and chili peppers a stone’s throw from her home.
“When we need anything, we just get it from our greenhouse,” she says.
Catarina, another member of the group, says the greenhouse means children in the community are healthier.
“If we plant tomatoes, radishes, and chard, these are very good vitamins for our children. We don’t see malnourished kids anymore,” she says.
The gifts you give have a lasting impact on the lives of hard-working Indigenous women and their families, who face discrimination simply for being who they are. A better world is possible! Thank you for helping to make it happen.