A wake-up call about a Roof
Posted 11-16-2008 at 05:00 AM by marcob
Rusted tin sheets, cartons, plastic bags and boards were part of the materials that a youth group from the organization, Un Techo par mi País, A roof for my country, used to build a "home"in the middle of the Culture Plaza, in the middle of the capital of Costa Rica, on Sunday August 24.
Building this "ranch" in the middle of the capital was a way of saying that "for many Costa Rican families, houses such as these are a home," said María José Jaqueih, director of the organization.
"This is something that is in the city, is in Diques, in Tirrases,Curribadat, and people never stop to look. They are stopping here. It is generating an impact. We want to open people’s eyes and tell them that there are people living in these conditions and no one should live like this. It is motivating them to act," said a 23 year-old man.
They didn’t have to wait for reactions to the makeshift construction. The reactions were curious, some were indifferent, some blamed the government for the poverty experienced in the country, some stopped to ask questions and others also made crude comments such as "this is like my home."
They also wanted to convey some good news with this shack which has been part of their institutional campaign, that there are young people who want to change things and they want to do something regarding the issue of extreme poverty in Costa Rica.
But the denunciation by these people did not stop with the house’s construction. Ten volunteers with around two years in the organization stayed there to spend the night, according Jaqueih. "Clearly, we are going to be in the news tonight, but why aren’t people who live in poverty in the news ever day?" asked the social director.
University students who are part of A Roof for my Country admit to having had a valuable learning experience: "To be more united, to not only think as an individual and understand that teamwork is the answer to many of the problems we have as a society," said Andrea Fernandez, a 24-year-old member.
This is definitely something that we agree with at TicosLand.com. It is very easy to blame people of limited means for theft and a series of situations that are happening at present, but we never see how they live and what they have to face day to day .
Building this "ranch" in the middle of the capital was a way of saying that "for many Costa Rican families, houses such as these are a home," said María José Jaqueih, director of the organization.
"This is something that is in the city, is in Diques, in Tirrases,Curribadat, and people never stop to look. They are stopping here. It is generating an impact. We want to open people’s eyes and tell them that there are people living in these conditions and no one should live like this. It is motivating them to act," said a 23 year-old man.
They didn’t have to wait for reactions to the makeshift construction. The reactions were curious, some were indifferent, some blamed the government for the poverty experienced in the country, some stopped to ask questions and others also made crude comments such as "this is like my home."
They also wanted to convey some good news with this shack which has been part of their institutional campaign, that there are young people who want to change things and they want to do something regarding the issue of extreme poverty in Costa Rica.
But the denunciation by these people did not stop with the house’s construction. Ten volunteers with around two years in the organization stayed there to spend the night, according Jaqueih. "Clearly, we are going to be in the news tonight, but why aren’t people who live in poverty in the news ever day?" asked the social director.
University students who are part of A Roof for my Country admit to having had a valuable learning experience: "To be more united, to not only think as an individual and understand that teamwork is the answer to many of the problems we have as a society," said Andrea Fernandez, a 24-year-old member.
This is definitely something that we agree with at TicosLand.com. It is very easy to blame people of limited means for theft and a series of situations that are happening at present, but we never see how they live and what they have to face day to day .
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