About the Book

Don’t Be Afraid, Gringo is the award-winning oral history of human rights activist Elvia Alvarado. Alvarado is from Honduras, one of the poorest countries in Central America. Over the years it has been subject to military rule, numerous government administrations (including a coup d’état in 2009) and devastating damage from floods and hurricanes.

Alvarado tells the story of her struggles on behalf of her fellow campesinos, or farmers, for land and dignity. Despite having been arrested and tortured by the Honduran military, she has not abandoned her fight. Her political activism, along with her travels across Honduras, has given her unique insights into the internal workings of Honduran society.

“Read it and understand the struggle against tyranny of the poor. Read it and act.” — Alice Walker

Critical Praise

"Here is a voice seldom heard, the voice of Latin America's majority, those who bear the burdens of society. If we are to understand Honduras, Central America, or, for that matter, Latin America, we must listen attentively to this voice. It has much to teach us. It commands the future." — E. Bradford Burns

"Elvia's story provides the reader with a perspective on Honduras--indeed, on all of Central America--that even the best reporting from the outside cannot offer." — Most Reverend John R. Quinn, Archbishop of San Francisco

"In the clearest of language, this bravest of humans, this courageous woman, Elvia Alvarado, tells the story of her life and the life of the people of Honduras. Read it and understand the struggle against tyranny of the poor. Read it and act." — Alice Walker

"So much of what we know about Central America is facts, figures, abstractions, political cant. No one can read this remarkable story without a total change of perception. We learn not only how Elvia organizes campesinos to recover rights that have been taken from them, but how our government interferes on the side of injustice--and what we can do about it." — Robert McAfee Brown

-

Product Details

• ISBN: 9780060972059
• ISBN 10: 006097205X
• Imprint: Harper Perennial
• On Sale: 07/19/1989
• Trimsize: 5.310 in (w) x 8.000 in (h) x 0.470 in (d)
• Pages: 208
• List Price: $16.99
• BISAC1 : HISTORY / Latin America / Central America
• BISAC2 : POLITICAL SCIENCE / Civil Rights
• BISAC3 : BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Cultural Heritage
• BISAC4 : SOCIAL SCIENCE / Sociology / Rural
• BISAC5 : SOCIAL SCIENCE / Women's Studies
• BISAC6 : SOCIAL SCIENCE / Developing & Emerging Countries
• BISAC7 : BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Women