Lutheran World Relief provides aid and works for peace in war-torn Colombia Maria Tobares remembers the terrifying night gunmen forced her out of her village in Colombia. "They killed a bunch of people, they burned some cars and then they made us leave," she says. "I had my house, my business — I had to leave in one moment's notice with just my child and what I had on." Penniless, with nowhere else to go, she went to Bogota, the capital, like thousands of other displaced Colombians in search of opportunity. Instead she found bureaucratic apathy and red-tape roadblocks from a government agency that is supposed to help people like her. From the city's residents, she received hostility and discrimination. "They treat us like delinquents," says Tobares, who back home owned a small store that supported her family. "Here we suffer a lot with our children ... we suffer to find them food, find them schooling." The rest of this article is only available to subscribers. |
|
Advertisement:
|
 The Lutheran is the magazine of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
More search options... |
|
← This month's issue: Message from prison: Agency helps moms read to their kids. LWF casts eye on future. Homeless grow struggling church. More... |
Members: log in
- Not a member? Join now.
- Print subscriber? Activate your free membership.
- "Green" congregation members: Activate your membership.
- Did you forget your username or password? Retrieve it.
April 2004 issue
.jpg)
Advertisement:
Breaking News
• Task force requests scenarios for ELCA's future
Weekly E-newsletter
Enter your email address for exclusive news and features.
Advertisements
