THE FACES OF COLOMBIA
THE INVISIBLE COMMUNITIES
Jhonny
Colored Pencil - 23" x 27"
Jhonny, a poet, had to leave his former home in a rural area to a neighborhood named San Antonio, which was built by the Colombian government to house individuals and families displaced from their original communities.
San Antonio consists of home constructed of cinderblock, contrasting starkly to the prior home built of wood located in more rural areas. San Antonio has less of a congenial feel, and its location in an area with sweltering heat is a major concern for the displaced dwellers who now must live here.
Everyone was displaced from a variety of different communities and a more cohesive communal environment did not exist, despite the children playing games in the sidewalks and the open doors of homes.
Moreover, people aren’t just separated from their communities, but they are separated from their traditional economic opportunities and schooling.
San Antonio is located the middle of nowhere, far from jobs, schools, and affordable transportation.
Jhonny read me one of his beautiful poems. I have learned he has now graduated from high school.