Don’t Be Afraid, Gringo: A Honduran Woman Speaks From The Heart: The Story of Elvia Alvarado

By Elvia Alvarado

Recommended by Educate2Envision

From Amazon: Don’t be Afraid, Gringo is the award-winning oral history of Elvia Alvarado, a courageous campesina [peasant] activist in Honduras, the poorest country in Central America. Trained by the Catholic Church to organize women’s groups to combat malnutrition, Alvarado began to question why campesinos were malnourished to begin with. Her growing political awareness, her travels by foot, over the back roads of Honduras, and her conversations with people from all over the country have given her insights into the internal workings of her society that far surpass those of the majority of campesinos who have never ventured from their villages. Working as a campesino organizer, Alvarado has led dangerous land recovery actions in an effort to enforce the national land reform laws. As a result of these actions, she has been harassed, jailed, and tortured at the hands of the Honduran military.

Skillfully translated and edited by Medea Benjamin, an expert on Central America, Don’t Be Afraid, Gringo takes us into the heart of campesino struggle and political conflict in Honduras today.

Blanca Olmedo (Spanish)

By Lucila Gamero de Medina

Recommended by Educate2Envision

From E2E: A local favorite is “Blanca Olmedo” the first book written by a Honduran woman who talks about how humble people lived in the banana plantations. (Link is to the Spanish language version of this book.)

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