Current Events

Hello again!

I feel the need to update you again on the events in the city of Oaxaca. If you Google News on Oaxaca, you will find headlines like: "Oaxaca to rage until governor quits" and "American killed during Oaxaca Shootout." There is a lot going on in Oaxaca right now, but you do have to be careful what you read (the woman who wrote the "American..." article tends to be quite the sensationalist). I will try to explain the situation as best I know it.

Today, having heard that the APPO (People's Popular Assembly of Oaxaca) planned on closing down the roads in and out of Oaxaca, I planned on walking to school. It seemed that many people had the same idea, because the sidewalks were busier than normal from people trying to get to work. To get to school, I have to cross one of these major roads. As I crossed it, down the way I could see that APPO had indeed blocked the road with quite a few stolen buses. As I walked along the streets, I saw many buses still running, but they had to find very creative ways to get to where they were going. There were also new blockades on streets within the city. I never did figure out if my bus was running or not, but I got to and from school safely, never feeling like I was in danger.

There are reports of people taking the law into their own hands because of an absence of police. This is true, although (other than today) the only time they walk around with clubs and other weapons is at night to protect their neighborhoods from criminals who are taking advantage of this situation. I, obviously, do not go out after dark. There also are reports coming out this evening of an American being shot and killed. He was a US journalist. While I don't want to downplay his death, I am pretty sure that he was shot because he was in a dangerous place at a very dangerous time, and not just because he was an American.

Once again, I am not sharing this information with you to worry you, but instead to ask you to pray for Oaxaca in these next few days. APPO is apparently doing this as kind of a last measure to get the governor to leave. If you have any questions about what is going on, feel free to ask. I will try to answer them to the best of my ability.

All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever. ~1 Peter 1:24-25