The documentary, When the Mountains Tremble was filmed in 1983
by Pamela Yates and Newton Thomas Sigel.
The journey started when the two went to Guatemala to film the civil war
between the Indian guerillas and the army of the dictator Jose Effrain Rios Montt. During this process the directors found
Rigoberta Menchu who became the voice of the film and spoke about her people
and the tragic events that became her life.
The shared stories were filled with suffering and misery
that these Mayan descendants had to face under the Spanish rule and other
dictatorships. Menchu shared the tragic
stories of her two brothers and her father.
It was difficult to imagine how much suffering and torture Menchu’s
brothers had to go through. Picturing a
world where no one is completely safe and losing your own family to the ones
who are supposed to be protecting you is very devastating. I admire the courage of the courage of the
people who unite and want their voices heard.
After all they are all human and should be treated with dignity.
Although this documentary came out over thirty years ago, Guatemala today stands on the brink of a long
awaited peace agreement. I found out
that the negotiation for peace conditions continues and Guatemalans want and
need a transformed society, democratic leadership, rights for indigenous people
and displaced communities, demilitarization, constitutional reforms, an end to
impunity, a Truth Commission to examine human rights abuses, political
participation, and attention to socio-economic issues such as land reform. As you can see there is still so much going
on. Only time will tell what is to
become of this society. However, Americans
can help this process by demanding US
government to stop the death squads, support political and economic reform, and
put a stop to this endless war of the Guatemalan people.
I think, of the terms we were given at the beginning of the semester “ethos, pathos and logos” Alina’s response speaks most to “pathos” since the response is emotional. She taps into the devastation felt when watching the film and knowing that there are people experiencing such atrocities on a daily basis. If you love your fellow man, then you are bound to feel emotional watching this film. However ethos and logos do also play apart. The film is about logos since it is didactic, I had no idea that this situation was occurring in Guatemala, at least not as horrifyingly as the films shows it to be. And ethos is evident since Alina calls for action on the part of the US to support political and economic reform and therefore put its power towards aiding the situation in Guatemala.
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