What's going on in Colombia?
Some of you may have heard about the protests going on in Colombia right now, and we wanted to shine some light on them in this week's newsletter. As a coffee company and as coffee consumers it is incredibly important that we listen for ways we can support and spread awareness for issues faced by coffee-producing countries. While we don't have the answers in terms of what mutual aid is most needed right now, it seems like the first step is to speak about these issues and work with people in Colombia to overcome the media censorship they are facing. Here are some ways you can stay informed and donate—this list will be updated as we hear of new resources, and feel free to send us things to add if you have them by replying to your newsletter e-mail. Most of these are instagram posts, but we’ve included the link if there’s also an article containing more information:
To start, here is a BBC article that gives details on what’s going on in Colombia and how it escalated to this point:
Why Colombia's protests are unlikely to fizzle out
Sprudge has published a couple of articles that provide background on the situation. They also interviewed a few coffee professionals in Colombia about how they’re being affected.
The link also has an ongoing list of Instagram accounts to follow for uncensored information on the situation. Here are some of the accounts they’ve listed so far for quick access: @laorejarojaus, @tembloresong, @voragineco, @primeralineacol2.0,
@jahfrann, @lasillavaciaoficial, @eltortugazo, @elirreverenteibague
Another article by Sprudge on how the fight for justice in Colombia is affecting coffee shipments.
This post by @anticspublications was shared by getchu some gear (@getchusomegear on Instagram), with info on a print sale by photographers around the world to raise funds for organizers in Colombia:
A post by Anticonquista Cafe in Chicago containing a fundraiser for protesters in Cali, Colombia.
A post by Cedro Alto, a coffee farmer’s collective, on how everyone involved in the coffee industry, including consumers, has had a hand in the factors leading to this uprising.
Caption photo credit: "Colombia flag" by colmbritton is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
