In recent
years, the Honduran media has given birth to the allegedly patriotic movement
stemming from the phrase “apoya lo nuestro” (“support your own”), a frequently
tweeted and posted-about-concept that intends to showcase our appreciation for
our country, its products, and its people. I am certain that the intentions
behind this philosophy are entirely well-intentioned on behalf of the
social-media-using Honduran population; nevertheless, this very public “support
of our own” often manifests itself in contradictory opinions, encouraged by the
media, that unfortunately worsen the very same colonized views it intends to
defy. These paradoxical sentiments are worthy of a series of articles, but I
will abstain from making this too lengthy by focusing on one narrative in
particular: the popular reoccurring title of news articles, television
programs, and social media posts, informing us about a “Honduran triumph
abroad”.
A quick
google-search of “Honduran triumph” will be automatically completed by the
server with “abroad”, which should suffice as proof of how common a topic of
conversation this is. Among the results of said google-search, you will find,
the headlines: “Hondurans demonstrate patriotism with their success abroad”, “These
are the Honduran journalists excelling abroad” etc. The popular sentiment
towards these kinds of media texts in Honduras appears to be something along
the lines of: “These immigrants are a cause of pride for Honduras”; evidently, the
belief that it is an honor to excel outside of our country prevails. Considering
this narrative’s popularity, it should come as no surprise that those of us who
do live and work in this country should inevitably ask ourselves, “Am I failing
to live up to my full potential by staying here? Should I be looking for ways
to excel abroad like my media-acclaimed fellow compatriots?”
By no means
do I doubt that the Honduran protagonists of said texts are passionate and
tireless workers, who have struggled to get to where they are. I am not saying
that accomplishments should ever cease to be something worthy of admiration;
nevertheless, the media’s enthusiastic celebration of Honduran triumphs abroad
and the prestige associated with it, is demeaning to local professional
efforts, as well as demeaning to our country as a whole. Said narrative, only further
demonstrates lack of awareness of our colonized history as well as our lack of
self-esteem as a country.
I could
list fifty more, but for the purpose of this note, I will limit myself to
speaking about three reasons why this narrative and the semiotics in the texts
that maintain it, are damaging, and how it could negatively impact the way we
view the prospect of our country’s development, potentially slowing down the
positive changes that we so desperately need in our society.
First of all,
these articles remind us, yet again, that emigration is a persistent problem in
Honduras, or perhaps more accurately said, it is a symptom of a problem. The successful
people being talked about in these texts are often highly motivated
individuals, many of which even have a college degree (a luxury in Honduras),
who have decided to abandon their country. They have likely done so because Honduras
has failed, in one way or another, to give them the opportunities they are
looking for, and they believe they will find better ones abroad. The lack of
opportunity in Honduras is a reality and emigration a foreseeable consequence,
but this fact is far from being good news and it is naïve of us to treat it as
such buy building narratives like the Honduran triumph abroad headlines do.
Such news should in fact sadden and alarm us, as they serve as a means to
confirm that mass migration (illegal or not) does not exclusively occur amongst
those living in poverty, but also amongst the “privileged” Honduran classes. The
Honduran triumph abroad narrative, is sedating us from treating the severe case
the brain-drain phenomenon before us. Regardless of how positively these exceptional
Honduran immigrants might be representing their country abroad, or how much
money they are sending to their families back home, their professional accomplishments
are not directly contributing to making real positive change in Honduras. These
people’s country is likely more in need of someone with their exceptional
skills and knowledge than the country where they are leading their successful
lives. However, it is also true that this country has failed them by not offering
the opportunities they were looking for. Either way, this is not something that
the media should be celebrating but rather a reason for mourning.
Secondly,
the fact that the Honduran triumph abroad narrative has become its own genre of
good news, comes with the particularly negative side-effect of undermining the
efforts and accomplishments of Hondurans that are triumphing at home.
Nationally and internationally, the people of the Third World are put into two
oversimplified categories: those who stay home and suffer, and those who
migrate North and triumph, overruling the possibility of success and even
personal satisfaction for those who stay, as well as the possibility of
never-ending struggle abroad (never mind the numerous other potential
categories in-between). Despite the very real adversities that people living in Honduras must
face to find work and provide for themselves and their families, there are
several examples of Hondurans who, have had admirable success locally.
From startup-entrepreneurs to exemplary doctors and artists, there are many
examples of Hondurans who have found their “opportunities” at home, and this
against all odds, considering the poor conditions they are put against. Why
then, does the media insist on recognizing success abroad? It seems unfair to
me, that the news of Honduran triumph abroad should receive unquestionable
homage, when triumph at home is a much more meaningful contribution to both our
country’s moral sovereignty as well as to its economy. In any case, if it is
true that it is so difficult to succeed in Honduras, is that not all the more
reason to acclaim triumph at home over Honduran triumph abroad? I make this
point, not as a means to ignore the ways in which governments and millionaire
enterprises have and continue to make it difficult for the working class to
make a life for themselves in Honduras, however, I would like to make a case
for the fact that succeeding abroad feeds the narrative of hopeless surrender
on behalf of the Honduran people to the powerful Honduran entities that
continue to cause suffering. If the ultimate goal is to defeat an oppressive
system that fails to provide for its people, fleeing the country is hardly a
form of activist resistance. Regardless of how many triumphs we might
accumulate abroad, or how much money we are sending back to our families, the
act of fleeing will not overthrow a government. It is unfair to speak of the
right to migrate while ignoring the right to stay home and demand a better
country for all of us, free from both local and foreign oppression. Emigration
is the antithesis of this movement.
Lastly, on a more historical note, it is crucial that
we acknowledge the problematic traces of colonialism that continue to exist in
XXI century Honduras, as reflected in the Honduran triumph abroad narrative. It
is important to note that these texts, more often than not, specifically talk
about Hondurans excelling in First World countries, or countries that we
otherwise believe are superior to our own. It is no secret, that Honduras has a
complicated colonial past. We are used to needing the approval of what we
believe are more “developed” cultures. Despite our alleged desire to “support
our own”, we have been historically conditioned to look for the approval of
foreign entities. Only with their reassurance, can we know for sure that our
actions, products, and people are of good enough quality. The popular headline,
“Honduran triumphs in Spain/Germany/New York, ” etc. is proof of thriving
colonization on the media. The fact that we consider foreign approval to be the
most prestigious of quality seals, feeds our colonized mentality all the more
and diminishes the worth of our fellow country men and women’s approval. Real
sovereignty will only be reached when we recognize that we are the daughter as
well as the mother and the apprentice as well as the master. Only after we
understand this, can we expect to achieve true independence so that we can
prosper as a truly autonomous country. Only through the practice of
self-reflection and believing in our own self-worth can we embark on the path
towards authentic growth and prosperity
In short, I would like to ask my fellow Hondurans to
think about these three points before writing, viewing, filming, or sharing
texts with the Honduran triumph abroad narrative. We need to stop and think if
these texts, bombarded to us through our screens and newspapers, are really
good news, or essentially just another sad truth in the sea of anguish that
engulfs our country’s reality.
