It is with great enthusiasm that I celebrate and commend Teaching for Change for its Teach Central America program. This initiative is both excellent and timely, given that the Central American community in the United States remains one of the least studied, despite its rich history and cultural contributions, which include the great Maya culture, poets like Rubén Darío (Nicaragua), writers such as Miguel Ángel Asturias (Guatemala, 1967 Nobel Prize in Literature), political leaders like Oscar Arias (Costa Rica, 1987 Nobel Peace Prize), Indigenous leaders such as Rigoberta Menchú (Guatemala, 1992 Nobel Peace Prize), and spiritual leaders like Monsignor Romero — “the voice of the voiceless” (El Salvador). These are all part of the cultural heritage of our Central American community in the United States.
This community continues to grow and excel, enriching this country with its culture and dynamism, and it deserves to be recognized and studied. For all these reasons, Teaching for Change’s Teach Central America program is vitally important, and I am proud to support and be a part of it. — Mario Bencastro, Salvadoran author of Odisea del norte / Odyssey to the North