Educational Media Reviews Online

This film takes us back to El Salvador of the 1930’s. At that time, the peasants worked for plantations and had very low wages and worked long hours. The workers began to be organized by unions and then by a worldwide communist movement. A peasant uprising in January 1932 in western El Salvador became one of the major rural protests in Latin America. It lasted 3 days until the army moved in with crushing force to suppress the protest movement.

The film claims 10,000 peasants, mainly indigenous, were murdered. Other history books cite this number as 30,000, as the army systematically slaughtered all males over 12, or anyone suspected of having any link with communism.

The 1980’s saw the return of death squads to some of the same communities who were still suffering low wages, lack of access to land, poor housing, and exploitation. The repression and dictators continued until the peace accord of 1992, ending yet another civil war.

This film uses news clippings, stills, film, and interviews with 1932 massacre survivors. The research is exhaustive in the details of El Salvador’s history, as this film was based on a research project carried out between 1998 and 2001.

The people interviewed by the researchers provide an insight into the terror and horror that they experienced, in excruciating detail. This story does not often reach outsider’s ears. While the program is far too long & spends too much time repeating details, those who have personal interest in El Salvador will appreciate the historic record of an exploited nation. The narrator is dull and lifeless and does no credit to the listenability of the program.

This documentary has appeal to academic departments of Latin American Studies and communities with a large Central American population.

Awards:

• 2003 Award of Merit in Film, Latin American Studies Association
• 2003 Honorable Mention, Felstival de Film y Video de El Salvador