The most powerful way of defeating an enemy is by using their own weapons against them. Rigoberta Menchú is an Indian woman from Guatemala who was constantly discriminated aginst and terrorized for being Indian. Rigoberta and her community got tired of being pushed around as if they were nothing. The discrimination and terrorism from the Ladinos became too much for the Indians that they had to defend themselves, and they began to use their knowledge to help their community survive. Rigoberta used the Ladinos’ weapons and mistreatment against them, so that she and other Indians could have a better life. With the help of her culture, the Bible, her life experiences, and her learning Spanish, Rigoberta was able to aid her community.
Rigoberta and her community used Christianity as another way for them to communicate with God. Through Christianity her community found and analyzed the Bible. The community studied and used the stories in the Bible in order to give them strength to fight for justice. Rigoberta explains the story of David and Goliath and how this story would help; “…the story of David, a little shepherd boy who appears in the Bible, who was able to defeat the king of those days, King Goliath. This story is the example for the children.” Another story Rigoberta and her community took from the Bible is the story of Judith. The story of how, “she fought very hard for people and made many attacks against the king they had then, until she finally had his head” gave the community an idea of how they should defend themselves. They compare themselves to stories in the bible, like those of, Moses, Judith, David and many others, and these stories gave them the strength to fight for their rights. These stories helped them know that they had the right to find their happiness on Earth and not wait for Heaven. Rigoberta struggled so much throughout her life since she did not speak Spanish. Her dad went to jail and was almost sentenced to eighteen years in prison because she could not speak Spanish. After Rigoberta learned Spanish things got easier because there was no longer a language barrier which kept her from defending herself and her community. Learning Spanish helped Rigoberta to communicate with other people and bring attention to the repression which most Indians are going through. Learning Spanish also helped her read the Bible, which was …show more content…
Her life experiences helped her want to help change the repression that many Indians go through just because they are Indians. On her trips to the capital, her father would teach Rigoberta the things he had to do in order to help their community. One of the things Rigoberta learned in the capital was “when people have problems with land, when they’re sold land, or when the government wants to settle peasants in other areas, they go through the Agrarian Transformation Institute”. Rigoberta grew close to her father and he taught her how to be respected and liked in her community – this helped her aid her community. Through her work with the CUC, Rigoberta learned how to organize the people. All the things she lived, since she was a kid, were learning experiences which helped her want to help her community have a better
Rigoberta and her community used Christianity as another way for them to communicate with God. Through Christianity her community found and analyzed the Bible. The community studied and used the stories in the Bible in order to give them strength to fight for justice. Rigoberta explains the story of David and Goliath and how this story would help; “…the story of David, a little shepherd boy who appears in the Bible, who was able to defeat the king of those days, King Goliath. This story is the example for the children.” Another story Rigoberta and her community took from the Bible is the story of Judith. The story of how, “she fought very hard for people and made many attacks against the king they had then, until she finally had his head” gave the community an idea of how they should defend themselves. They compare themselves to stories in the bible, like those of, Moses, Judith, David and many others, and these stories gave them the strength to fight for their rights. These stories helped them know that they had the right to find their happiness on Earth and not wait for Heaven. Rigoberta struggled so much throughout her life since she did not speak Spanish. Her dad went to jail and was almost sentenced to eighteen years in prison because she could not speak Spanish. After Rigoberta learned Spanish things got easier because there was no longer a language barrier which kept her from defending herself and her community. Learning Spanish helped Rigoberta to communicate with other people and bring attention to the repression which most Indians are going through. Learning Spanish also helped her read the Bible, which was …show more content…
Her life experiences helped her want to help change the repression that many Indians go through just because they are Indians. On her trips to the capital, her father would teach Rigoberta the things he had to do in order to help their community. One of the things Rigoberta learned in the capital was “when people have problems with land, when they’re sold land, or when the government wants to settle peasants in other areas, they go through the Agrarian Transformation Institute”. Rigoberta grew close to her father and he taught her how to be respected and liked in her community – this helped her aid her community. Through her work with the CUC, Rigoberta learned how to organize the people. All the things she lived, since she was a kid, were learning experiences which helped her want to help her community have a better