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Indigenous women artisans who join an income-generating Maryknoll project in Bolivia create art, faith and community.
The Mojeño-Trinitarian artisans of the Santísima Trinidad community in the Isiboro Sécure Indigenous Territory and National Park (TIPNIS), where we serve, have inherited from their ancestors the wisdom of weaving with jipijapa, a type of straw that grows along the banks of their rivers. With this material, they create beautiful basketry pieces, a traditional craft that involves interlacing materials to create baskets, hats and ornaments using weaving techniques.
The Mojeño-Trinitario people are part of a pilgrim community. More than 50 years ago, their ancestors left the Beni department (state) in search of the “Promised Land.” This hope motivated them to seek land where they could settle, harvest crops and raise their families. They are Catholic people who strive to remain faithful to their traditions.
Since we started serving at the Santísima Trinidad parish, we have gotten to know them well, and they have shared their wisdom along with their joys, dreams and struggles. We support them by helping promote their work and sell their products every Thursday at the Agroecological and Holistic Health Fair held at the Maryknoll house in Cochabamba.
Ana Morales, a Maryknoll lay missioner from El Salvador, began a ministry working with these women artisans in the community a few months ago. “I aim to help strengthen their skills, enhance their businesses and support them in gaining more visibility,” says Morales.
In these encounters they share their life experiences, discuss values, receive training in microenterprise and learn macramé (a type of weaving made with intertwined threads and cords). It’s a space that renews their strength to keep going. They have suffered harshness, such as the tropical climate, the encroachment on their land by other groups and domestic violence in their own homes.
Doña Julia, one of the artisans, is the mother of 11 children and the wife of Lucio, the cacique (chief) of Santísima Trinidad. She told us about the violence she suffered as a child from her father. She and her sister endured severe beatings, especially when their father came home drunk. Julia told us that she promised herself that her children would never suffer what she had suffered. Lucio, her partner, helps her raise their children in a violence-free environment.
Doña Cándida is another member of the ministry. She struggles to improve her health, as she suffers from a debilitating illness. Her husband is an alcoholic and does not help her pay for medication. Without the medicine, Cándida has to spend the day in bed, unable to get up to care for her children or do household chores. When she feels well enough, she takes on small jobs to pay for her treatment.
Doña Andreina cares for her 90-year-old mother, raises her grandson and also works in the fields during harvest. In her free time, she weaves jipijapa to meet her needs.
Micaela, 15 years old, learned to weave jipijapa from Mercedes, her mother. The teenager wants to help with the family’s finances. This young entrepreneur searches for tutorials in order to learn other techniques for making handicrafts.
These women not only create beautiful handcrafted pieces, but they also teach us what resilience means. They demonstrate their ability to overcome difficulties and provide for their families.
For Maryknoll Lay Missioner Morales, establishing a ministry in this place is a challenge. “We are on the right track. Little by little, and with the support of the Maryknoll Fathers, we are getting to know the community and finding ways to serve through our gifts,” she says. “God is present among the poorest, the marginalized; I only hope to have the courage to spend my time here, to share my life with love and generosity with others, and to have the blessing of planting a seed of hope in every heart.”
The artisans also participate in various parish ministries. While Mojeño-Trinitario communities have traditionally been characterized by strong machismo, with men usually leading in the church, women are increasingly taking on more active roles in prayer. Additionally, some women attend training sessions to become catechists.
The women of the Mojeño-Trinitario community not only weave jipijapa straw, but they also weave networks of dreams and possibilities. The process involves everything from harvesting the straw, drying it, and dyeing it, to starting to braid and weave. I believe this process is a beautiful metaphor for how they work hard in life to raise their children and see them grow into good men and women.
Featured image: The Mojeño-Trinitarian women artisans of the Santísima Trinidad community in the Bolivian Amazon display their basketry pieces, which they sell to support their families. (Alejandro Marina/Bolivia)
