II
Guatemala´s “Democratic Spring”
At the middle
of twentieth century another sociopolitical fact affected the development of Guatemalan
CYAL: the Revolution of October 20, 1944, known as the Democratic Spring (1944-1954). With
this movement a dictatorial period ends and a time of of numerous reforms
begins. The priorities of the civil government led by Arévalo (1945-1951) were to establish internal organizational bases and create entities and institutions to protect the citizenry as a preamble to building a just, united and democratic society. In that sense,
the first step was to enact a Constitution in which for the first time
the guarantees and fundamental rights of
Guatemalan citizens were recognized,
including the independence of state agencies: Legislative, Executive and
Judicial; and the indigenous community
was inserted into this framework. Acceptance of these
actions created dialogic conditions whereby
it might be possible to make a better diagnosis of
the Guatemalan reality in order to
facilitate the construction of a democratic political project, and to establish among other things, the
entrance of the nation into the international
economic environment with more competence. As a result a number of development programs were implanted, especially, education and culture aspects. To achieve this, an invitation was extended
to all social sectors to become involved
and participate in this process, but all
ended up with a return to the system of
repression and control that previous governments had established.
This situation created the conditions that enabled a
deeper reflection and discussion of the importance of literacy, reading and Guatemalan
CYAL in the way to construct citizenship and a strong identity basis since
childhood on. Within this context some national writers began to produce children's books that attended
to recreational elements, aesthetic language, illustration and graphic format. The best example was the children's
magazine Alegría,
which was created in 1946 by Marilena López
and published until 1962. The first four
numbers were issued with funds provided by her, but from the fifth number
the magazine was funded by a contract with the Ministry of Public Education. It
was an innovative proposal to introduce literature to children, as well as
other elements of general culture.
In its structure, López privileged
playfulness and left to the end the
paradidactic elements. All of its sections had as a
major component an emphasis on national identity, which was consistent with the environment
of modernization and democratization of the state that was taking
place at that historical moment.
López not only helped with the
editing and publication of the children's
magazine, but also revive and modernize the Puppet Theater in Guatemala
and to encourage the
publication of children´s literature and theoretical works. Thus, she
exerted influence on subsequent national writers, who contributed
to the formation of the CYAL system in the country.
However this state of progress changed abruptly on June
27, 1954, when a putsch was demanded the resignation of the Guatemalan
president. This situation suddenly put an end to the progress
already achieved in just ten years with respect to social security, health,
education, economy and politics in the
country. From this date began
a new chapter in national
history and was allowed an increased U.S. Government intervention in the politics
of Guatemala. In relation to the children´s
magazine Alegría, fifteen days after the ousting Colonel
Jacobo Arbenz Guzmán (1951-1954),
the new president Colonel
Other important texts, which appeared during this
period, were the first theoretical CYAL books: Prontuario de literature infantil, by Daniel Armas
(1950) and Literatura infantil: condiciones y posibilidades by Rubén Villagrán Paul
(1954). In
addition, the first press for
children's books and educational materials named Popol Vuh (1953) was created; the course of Children´s
Literature at the Faculty of Humanities of the University of San Carlos of Guatemala (1955-1969)
was introduced; and also, many articles and essays related to the
books, reading, library and CYAL were
written and published. However,
as was mentioned before, the process was
cut by the coup. Children's books published after this date were projects
that combined pedagogy with
literary elements. Meanwhile, a few
books devotes primarily to aesthetic
features were published and funded
entirely by their own authors and
in small press runs, which marketed mainly outside the school
system. This situation made possible to Guatemalan CYAL to survive in disguise.
In this context, it stands out the work
Following the same nationalist spirit,
new books appeared reflecting all aspects of CYAL: poetry, narrative, theatre,
oral and popular tradition, music and traditional games that gradually were
shaping the Guatemalan canon of this literature, especially through the 1960s. A
notable moment was the funding of the Children´s Theater Company in September
1962, which achieved great popularity with young audience and is still acive. Editing
and publishing were carried out more openness in the literary circuit composed
by the writers, readers, illustrators, designers,
editors, librarians, teachers and parents. Finally, reviews and articles were
published in the local newspapers. Children´s libraries were also established.
However, this state of things passed away quickly and by that time it had not
been sufficient to situate publication and related activity outside the school
walls, and, moreover, definitely not enough to consolidate the Guatemalan
CYAL.
The situation was greatly impacted by the beginning
of the civil war in Guatemala on November 13, 1960, which lasted
until the signing of the Peace Accord
on December 29, 1996. This was a time of socio-political instability in the country
where one of the
objectives was
to extend the process “ladinización”[1] [miscegenation] of the
indigenous population, and to do this, the army proceeded to break
the sustaining basis of
traditional popular culture,
rooted mainly in indigenous
communities in the highlands of the country. The cultural dimension of war was evidenced in the "Operation ashes" (military offensive of 1981-1983), which can
be called ethnocide (Cuevas
Molina, 1992: 29). This cultural policy of the Army spread fear to exercise any cultural activity throughout the
population, as terror was used as the main mechanism of coercion and subjugation of the population. This circumstance has not changed at all since the signing of
the peace accord at 1996 because the culture of fear still
remains strongly.
Consequences of this policy are reflected in the
official information that Guatemala is deemed to have the highest illiteracy
rates in the region, low education, absenteeism, poverty, hunger and, more
recently, the phenomenon of the exodus of unaccompanied migrant children to
U.S. to escape the prevailing conditions. All of this has not allowed the
development of the educational project nor constructed a strong citizenry and
identity in the Guatemalan population. Instead, they have created a fragmented
and divided society. On the other hand, neoliberal ideas had been strengthened
in relation to culture and education and had served to form a pool of cheap
labor, rather than a sense of citizenship. Mario Roberto Morales further argues, that: the cultural logic of this globalizing transnational capitalism is
called postmodernism, and has meant an audiovisual culture of whimsy and
hedonist entertainment, that provokes in the youngest people the incapacity to
read and manage the literate code, and as a consequence an unwillingness to
study and in addition to videogames and to the new virtual entertainment forms (2014:
110).
For these reasons, even though non-governmental
institutions had organized many initiatives, campaigns, projects and programs,
including many seminars,
workshops and trainings programs focusing on the creation of reading habits throughout
the country to consolidate de CYAL, most of them had developed
isolated efforts that have not produced any longer-term impact.
Their outcomes
described could not be demonstrated because there is no systematization or
validation of these experiences, and there is a lack of formal research
programs to investigate the status of the genre or the extent of influence
achieved in the country because of various initiatives and programs. Despite
all of those efforts, people constantly reiterate that there is as yet not
Guatemala CYAL, that there are no writers, illustrators, editors or designers
working in the genres, an many other misconceptions of similar kind.
Conclusion
The last educational reform in Guatemala was launched in 1996, since that date five there have been six presidents, which five of whom has implemented their own Reading National Program using different strategies to combat the illiteracy and the lack of reading habits of most of the Guatemalan population. Some examples are the establishment of public and scholarly libraries, which are provided with literature and reference books, kits of activities intended to promote interaction amongst teachers, students, families, librarians and other reading mediators; and the development of diverse methodologies and strategies to increase better reading habits. So far, however, the outcome has not been positive, reading proficiency amongst students remains low, and children do not meet the standards needed to become culturally and economically proactive in the Guatemalan society, in the near future.
Although, reading proficiency also
relates to the publication of CYAL in Guatemala, this aspect is not studied adequately.
There are no real and formal statistics, and there is no specific selection
committee of CYAL. Further, no national CYAL collection exists anywhere in the
public or private sphere and there is no legal deposit system in place. As a
result, libraries hold only a few books, which do not give overview of this
genre in the country. Because of this, it is said that the most of the
Guatemalan CYAL´s books are invisible (“elf books”): this image reinforces the
myth that they don´t exist, that there are not Guatemalan writers or
illustrators, there is no literature at all directed to Guatemalan childhood.
In effect, this situation could be considered a kind of censorship that does
not allow us to see and reflect upon others and ourselves through literature,
and hence we cannot construct identity and citizenship from the diverse gazes
and symbolic imaginary that could be provided by Mayan, Xinca, Garífuna or
mestizo peoples.
In this context, the first three
communities mentioned above had been excluded from the national imaginary since
the publication of the first books at the nineteenth century. When these
indigenous literatures appeared, they were used to fulfill political
objectives, to teach manners or health habits; other publications were commissioned
to describe the indigenous people from fields like archeology, anthropology,
ethnology or linguistics, that is to say, to inform about their worldviews
instead to create symbolic worlds expressed by them. This state of things demonstrates
how society has rendered them dysfunctional and created many barriers that prevent
a consolidated awareness in Guatemala of children´s and young adult literature,
reading habits and the literary system in general.
Paradoxically, for all that has been
described above, it could be possible to design a map of the Guatemalan CYAL
system, which evidences its existence, and to reinforce this map by adducing
recent studies, investigations and theoretical publication in the field undertaken
outside the official system. However, everything described here is more like a
tale of fiction than reality itself, because this literature and its
beneficiaries remain invisible for most people. The state of things will not
change significantly until a way is found and make the genre more visible and
to encourage others to develop a real interest in supporting Guatemalan CYAL
and its children. Bu, until these days arrive, the mirror will remain turned
over to face the wall and Guatemalan children´s and young adult literature will
continue its growth in silence.
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[1] Ladinización, is a term used specifically in Guatemala to mean “miscegenation” (“mestizaje”).
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