The Memory Is All
Photos of Peruvian war’s devastation at the EMU
BY SUZI STEFFEN
 |
| Celestino Ccente, 1983. OSCAR MEDRANO |
The guerrilla war that devastated Peru between 1980 and 2000 didn’t only cause almost 70,000 deaths. The toll included the burning of villages and destruction of fields, the loss of limbs and eyes — and the devastation of hope.
Now, Eugeneans can witness, through beautifully mounted art, the war’s human cost.
“Yuyunapaq: To Remember,” an exhibit of war photographs, opens at the UO’s Adell McMillan Gallery in the Erb Memorial Union on Thursday, Jan. 17. The exhibit runs in conjunction with “Human Rights and Memory in Latin America,” a Jan. 31-Feb. 2 conference sponsored by the Wayne Morse Center and the Latin American Studies program.
Yuyunapaq means “to remember” in Quechua, the language spoken by the Peruvian native peoples who suffered the most during the conflict between brutal Maoist rebels and equally brutal right-wing government forces.
The photos come from an exhibit that has been up since 2003 in Peru, when the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (CVR) released its report on the violence. The 40 photos coming to the UO, which have traveled to Mexico, Switzerland, Italy, Spain and other places in the U.S., make up only a small portion of the exhibit in Peru. But Latin American Studies and history professor Carlos Aguirre says they’re strong tools for learning and for memory.
“Photographs are very powerful — not neutral, not objective — representations of reality,” he says. These show the acts of violence and some of those who committed the violence; injured people; ruined buildings and relatives of victims demanding justice, Aguirre says. “It’s a collection of how the war affected people in different circumstances.”
Though the photos focus the violence and the suffering, Aguirre believes they demonstrate more than that: “They show the solidarity of ordinary people.” —Suzi Steffen
An opening reception for “Yuyunapaq: To Remember” is at 3:30 pm Thursday, Jan. 17, in the Adell McMillan Gallery of the EMU on the UO campus. Guided tours are available; contact Carlos Aguirre at caguirre@uoregon.edu for more information. Information on the conference is available online (las.uoregon.edu/events/conference.htm).
A Note From the Publisher
Dear Readers,
The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.
That’s because of you!
Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.
Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.
We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.
And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.
None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.
As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.
Thank you for standing with us!
Publisher
Eugene Weekly
P.S. If you’d like to talk about supporting EW, I’d love to hear from you!
jody@eugeneweekly.com
(541) 484-0519