first draft of guerrilla zone

The hosts of a podcast discuss a photograph called "Guerrilla Zone" taken in 1988 by Donna De Cesare. The image depicts a group of adults and children in El Salvador, with guerrilla soldiers and civilians mixed together. The adults seem unfazed by the presence of the soldiers, while the children appear calm. The podcast explores the significance of this image and discusses the history of the El Salvadorian Civil War, where tensions between peasants and landholders led to a long history of conflict. The war resulted in the deaths of thousands of civilians and continued until the signing of the Chaluputec Peace Accords in 1992. The photograph captures a moment during this ongoing conflict, highlighting the divide between civilians and guerrilla fighters. Hello and welcome to our podcast. We are your hosts for the evening from Professor Nolan Stachimeri's photography class at Aids College. I'm your host, Tala Sale. And I'm Simone Obregon. Today we're going to talk to you about our image, Guerrilla Zone, taken in 1988 by the photographer Donna De Cesare. First, we want to talk about the content of this image. Guerrilla Zone is a photograph which depicts a group of El Salvadoran adults and children gathered on a cobblestone street with an inharmonious mix of guerrilla soldiers and civilians. The crowd in the foreground faces the group in the background of the image who are sitting in the front of the house. The children in the first group are all in motion, their blurry bodies seemingly leaving the scene except for one little girl who clings onto a wooden post, looking off into the distance away from the camera, also leaning against the post is an armed man, one of many present inside the frame. Yeah, but what is surprising really is that the adults in the background don't seem to mind the presence of these soldiers. Instead, the adults in both rows have their bodies and gazes sort of turned towards one another, where conflict doesn't necessarily seem imminent, but the presence of guns, although lowered, offers this promise of inevitability. As we look closer, we see more and more shotguns which are not in use but are still very prevalent and visible. While examining this image, one must ask, why are most of the civilian adults so far away from the soldiers and kids? Once the civilian adults want to protect the kids, not only are the soldiers carrying big lethal weapons, but I mean the kids, they seem unfazed by their presence. Yeah, I mean Hollis, I don't know about you, but if there was a big guy next to me with a big gun, I would definitely not be half as calm as that little girl is. Even the soldiers look really relaxed here. One guy has his hand on his leg, the other, kind of like you mentioned before, is leaning vulnerably against a pole. But I mean the question we have to ask ourselves is, why does this point in time intrigue Donna Desessari? Does it intrigue her because it's moments before destruction? Moments before the chaos? Maybe a calm before the storm? In this podcast, we will be discussing how Donna Desessari's guerrillaism, through its physical separation or exclusion of human bodies, symbolizes the divisive nature of guerrilla warfare, and more broadly, conflict in general in Latin America. Now, before we get into the photograph, we thought it would be beneficial to both of us to do an overview of the El Salvadorian Civil War, in which 75,000 civilians died in this 12-year war. Well, I mean, the war only officially began in 1980, but tensions had already been present within El Salvador as early as the 16th century. El Salvador was known for its land and incredible natural resources, including cocoa, indigo, and coffee. Originally, the Spanish ruled until independence shifted to Salvadorians of European descent. When this shift happened, 95% of the country were reduced to virtual serfdom, while a small minority of landholders, called the 14 Families, ruled through long military dictatorships. It was along these lines, between peasant and planter, European and indigenous, that El Salvador's history of leadership has decayed. To combat these 14 Families, a peasant revolt led by Agustin Farabundo Mati in 1932 started, but was crushed within just a few weeks after an English slaughter. In the slaughter, an estimated 30,000 civilians were killed. So, is this where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from. And this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from. And this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from. And this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from. And this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from. And this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? Yes, this is where the Salvadorian military came from? This didn't last long though, right? In December of 1980, President Jimmy Carter cut off the aid after four American church women were murdered by military and paramilitary forces. were murdered by military and paramilitary forces. Eventually, when President Ronald Reagan took office, he brought the troops as aid, believing that El Salvador would help America during the Cold War in return. Throughout the 1980s, this war between the government, guerrillas, and paramilitary forces continued, subjecting civilians to torture, mutilation, disappearance, extrajudicial killing, and mass rape. In this time, around 75,000 Salvadorans were killed by these massacres, executions, and bombings. While the election of Jose Napoleon Durat took place in May 1984, the negotiations between the FMLN and the government still remained stalled, keeping this war still ongoing. In 1989, Durat was placed by the right-wing Ring Arena party member, Alfredo Cristiani, where the conflict underwent major escalation. After his election, a horrifying incident took place when the Alcatel Brigade, a counterinsurgency unit, murdered a Jesuit priest, a housekeeper, and her daughter at the University of Central America. This shocking event led to the U.S. Congress to form a special investigative task force to figure out how this happened. Their findings revealed that high-ranking Salvadoran officers were behind the murders. This actually pushed the U.S. towards advocating towards a peace settlement event even more. But the Salvadoran conflict still seemed deadlocked, with neither side gaining advantages. While this was happening, global changes were also occurring, such as the collapse of the Eastern Bloc and the Soviet Union, meaning the FMLN had lost crucial allies. The end of the Cold War prompted even more of a shift and a desire for a shift in the U.S. stance. On January 16, 1992, the United Nations brokered Chaluputec Peace Accords. On January 16, 1992, the United Nations brokered Chaluputec Peace Accords were signed, marking the end of 20 months of negotiation between the FMLN guerrillas and the government, marking the end of the war. But now we're going to go back in time a little bit to the photo, which was taken in 1988, when the quote-unquote negotiations between the FMLN and the government were still stalled, and they were still in the midst of war. We have this image, guerrilla zone. To better exemplify and understand the social and more personal tolls that came from the conflict. So, now that we're looking at this image, Hollis, what first catches your eye? Well, Simone, the focal point of guerrilla zone to me seems to be the armband and little girl propped up on the same post. I feel like this first establishes the schism between us and them, between civilians and guerrilla. Yeah, I see what you mean. It's kind of interesting to me how the little girl clings to the wooden post. It sort of seems as though she's clinging to it like a lifeline. Both of her arms are wrapped around it, she's sort of slumped up against it. This slanted post, the post itself not being straight, that is, suggests imperfections and instability in this town, this situation, which the young girl is supported by, both physically and literally. In a sense, I feel like her leaning on this pole symbolizes her reliance on a corrupt and unstable system. Despite the fact that she can obviously feel and tell that the post is crooked, she has no choice but to cling on to it for stability. Her gaze is cast down, away from the camera and away from the civilian crowd. The man, in contrast, casually leans against the post, using it more for comfort than as a means of salvation or stability, while keeping his eye on the distant gathering. Is there something that the young girl is not permitted to see? I think that their opposing positions speak to the lack of understanding or disconnect between the two parties. They are both resolute in their perspectives, as neither of them visibly makes any effort to see what the other is seeing. Similarly, the physical border, the post between the man and the girl, materializes this ideological and emotional divide between guerrilla and civilian. So, in a way, perhaps the girl isn't able to see any other side than her own. I think something we also need to mention is the camera. The separation of the two groups, reinforced by the positioning of the camera and thereby the audience, lends itself to the antagonistic binary ... antagonistic? I think something we also need to mention is the camera. The separation of the two groups, reinforced by the positioning of the camera and thereby the audience, lends itself to the antagonistic binary mindset ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...