Resistencia

“If necessary, we’ll fight to the death…because we have to win this one way or another. No matter how long it takes, you have to win,” said Rayito whose unflinching gaze is like that of many protesters involved in the Colombian national strike.

Over the course of the pandemic, nearly half of Colombians fell below the poverty line, spurring the country’s most significant uprising in 40 years. While a tax reform was introduced to provide economic relief, it actually raised the prices of common goods, hitting disenfranchised communities hardest. As a result in early 2021, massive anti-government strikes broke out against the reform and widespread corruption. The police response to these demonstrations led to numerous deaths, beatings, injuries, and disappearances. According to local NGOs Indepaz and Temblores, 83 people were killed with half allegedly committed by police officers.

Colombia’s police force is one of few in the world that falls under the Ministry of Defense, and the anti-rioting squad sees conflict through the lens of warfare. David Arteaga, who was shot with a tear-gas canister aimed at his head—a common occurrence during the strike—said it was fired from such a short distance that it’s something the police use as a direct attack. The impact crushed his skull, leaving an indentation where the bone was shattered, nearly killing him, and requiring intensive neurosurgery.

However, others were not as lucky. Dolores’s son Duban went missing in June of last year during a protest in Bogotá and was later found dead with signs of abuse. “That boy was my everything. There are days that I don’t want to keep going. I don’t want to keep fighting” she says.

My project “Resistencia” features portraits of protestors who are survivors of police violence and trauma or who have suffered the loss of a loved one. From mothers who lost their sons to permanently disabled young men, to people who were kidnapped, beaten, and tortured, each person holds an item that signifies the challenges they’ve faced by opposing the government. While everyone holds something different and unique to their story, all have one thing in common: a deep belief in change for Colombia’s future. “When tyranny becomes law, rebellion becomes duty” is a slogan chanted and written on signs by hundreds.

Major political shifts are occurring throughout South America, such as Chile’s recent progressive presidency and the rewriting of their constitution as well as Peru’s president running as a socialist candidate. In June of 2022, for the first time in the nation’s history, Colombia elected a progressive president, filling the streets with people celebrating among tears of joy—a far cry from the previous year when protestors risked their lives to stand against government corruption. “Resistencia” is a portrait of the courage and strength of those willing to die for their country.

David

In May of 2021, David was struck by a tear gas canister participating in a protest in Cali, Colombia. The canister fractured his skull leaving an indentation on his right cranium where the bone remains missing. David has undergone multiple surgeries to recover, including a brain operation to remove fragments of his skull that pierced the frontal lobe. Having a long and extensive recovery David lost his job due to his injury.

David recounts the incident remembering, "the whole time I thought I was going to leave the children alone, without a father, like I grew up."

Flaca

Flaca is a known community leader documenting human rights abuses during the protests in Bogotá, Colombia. She holds a sign that reads, “Who will respond for the spilled blood, the many disappeared, and the political prisoners? Terrorist State.” Flaca has been a target for police officers in Bogotá and has had multiple threats against her life for her role in the protests. Flaca has been subjected to beatings, equipment destroyed, and inappropriate strip searches as ways to intimidate and discourage her from protesting.

In the words of Flaca, "My fear, if in reality, that I do disappear is that they never, ever find me."

Ojitos

Ojitos one of many women who participated in the “primera linea” or frontline of the protests in Cali, Colombia. She sits with her gas mask which she used as a protester and first responder in the strike. During the national strike, police would go to hospitals looking for victims of gunshot and/or teargas to arrest them or worse. In response, Ojitos turned her home into a medical clinic so protesters would feel safe seeking treatment.

She recently fled the country for safety concerns and states, “right now the persecution continues, and the disappearances continue. They keep profiling the guys. The harassment continues.”

Paula

Paula is the mother of Jhoan Sebastián, a leader of Colombia's major resistance point - Puerto Resistencia, the epicenter of the protests during the national strike. Jhoan was assassinated with 12 gunshot wounds in July 2021 in Cali, Colombia and Paula poses with the clothes he was killed in. Jhoan had received various threats against his life for his role in the national strike and even survived a previous assassination one month before his death. Jhoan worked closely with a German activist, Rebecca Marlene and she was with him the day he was killed.

Paula states, “If they come to kill me, it isn’t because we have problems with drug trafficking or assassins or any other connection… but at least I’m coming out.”

Kikko

Kikko, a frontline protester from Bogotá, Colombia, poses with a makeshift shield he uses for protection during the national strike. Kikko has been subjected to beatings, tear gas canisters, and witnessed deaths throughout the protests. However, what marked Kikko the hardest was witnessing his friend, Costa, who at 14 years old, was shot with a tear gas canister in the head, fracturing his skull, and paralyzing him from the waist down.

“I fight for social equality. I fight for education. I fight for health. I fight for a decent life for the indigenous people, who are our roots, which is where basically all Latinos come from and they are people who are overly stigmatized throughout Latin America and even more so in Colombia”, states Kikko.

Rayito

Rayito is well known for her Pikachu costume when protesting in Bogotá, Colombia. She poses with a spray bottle used to help frontline protesters who are subjected to heavy tear gas. Rayito is a university student in Bogotá and has been subjected to tear gas, beatings, and witnessed the death of a community member during the national strike.

Rayito states, "We have to fight, we have to show that we fight for what is ours… fight to the death, if necessary, for everything.”

Daniel

In May of 2021, Daniel was protesting in Bogota, Colombia where he was struck by a tear gas canister, losing his right eye. Daniel poses with an eye patch that he now wears after the incident. The tear gas canister also broke his right cheekbone, nose, and ten teeth. Daniel has now become an activist for other victims who have occurred eye injuries due to protesting.

Daniel states, “We are not delinquents…We are people who fight for something, for love, for education, for a future for us and for our families.”

Dolores

Dolores stands with a drawing of her son, Duban, who went missing in June of 2021, during a protest in Bogotá, Colombia. Duban’s body was later found dead in a ditch with signs of torture. It took authorities over a month with Duban's body in custody, to identify and notify Dolores that the body found was her son.

“That boy was my, he was my everything. There are days that I don't want to keep going. I don't want to keep fighting… I don't know how to write, the love that I feel for Duban. When I speak of him my heart squeezes me, like I'm short of breath.” states Dolores.

José poses with his shield used in protests in Cali, Colombia. While keeping guard at a resistance point, a car pulled up next to José, which he claims was an undercover police officer, and shot him. The bullet grazed his right temple, almost taking his life. José had to leave Cali due to threats and received numerous surgeries in a neighboring town.

José states,"What I want to say is that there was impunity in this case and it is the impunity that has always existed in Colombia. Many murders and massacres have occurred in villages and in points of resistance, and they have gone unpunished."

José

Sotu is a frontline protester who has been captured, tortured, and beaten multiple times by police officers in Bogotá, Colombia. Sotu poses with a broken baseball bat and a metal rod he uses in the strike. Sotu was taken by police officers and burned with hot needles to discourage him from protesting.

In the words of Sotu, "I'm going to keep fighting and I'm not afraid of anything, Not the government, not being shot or anything, but what makes me more afraid honestly, is if the people never wake up."

Sotu

Laura

Laura poses with a sign that says “F”, for “Flex.” Laura’s son, Nicolás Guerrero, was a graffiti artist known as Flex and was shot and killed by police officers in Cali, Colombia during the national strike. Nico’s death was part of an Instagram Livestream that went viral where more than 140,000 people witnessed his murder. Nico has become a symbol of resistance throughout Colombia.

Laura states, “My strength comes from the very love I had for my son. From the desire to bring the truth to light, not to leave his name as if he had been a bad person.”

Topo

Topo poses with a poster of Jamie, who was killed during the protests by police in Bogotá, Colombia. After Jaime’s death in Topo’s neighborhood and witnessing the effects of how the loss devastated the community, Topo decided to become more involved in the strike. Topo is a frontline protester in Bogotá, Colombia and recently lost vision in his right eye after being struck by a rubber bullet.

Topo states, “That's why I always protest with his photo because it’s a symbol... people can see that he is still here with us and continues to demonstrate with us."

Natali

Natali holds a banner in honor of her brother, Mauro, who was killed in Cali, Colombia. Mauro was a frontline protester on guard duty at a resistance point, when a group of men posing as protesters, robbed and murdered him.

Natali states, "You feel even angrier to know that they were the same people who were there. But really those people weren’t there, for what we were fighting for. They were there for their own benefit."

Jupiter poses with his helmet and protection gear he uses during emergency medical treatment at the protests during the national strike. Jupiter and his team voluntarily set up medical units to treat injuries at the protests in Bogotá, Colombia, and have been attacked for doing their work.

In Jupiter's words, " We do not use anyone's resources, we simply do it out of self-love, out of love for the Colombian people."

Jupiter

Giovanny poses with his prosthetic eye in Cali, Colombia. In April of 2021, Giovanny lost his left eye after being struck by a tear gas canister during the national strike. Giovanny wasn’t protesting that day, just trying to get home when he found himself in the middle of the confrontation. It is another classic example of how police officers use tear-gas canisters as a direct weapon instead of its intended use of trying to disperse a crowd.

In the words of Giovanny, " I lost a part of my body, but there were people who lost their lives, that is more important. But thanks to this, so to speak, it made the country wake up and realized that we need change.”

Giovanny

Burro poses with a recent scar on his forehead from a police officer hitting his face with a rock, and also showing a bruise on his right side due to being struck by a tear gas canister in Bogotá, Colombia. Burro was kidnapped by paramilitaries who accused him of burning down public transportation buses during the strike. After three days of being tied to a chair, he was released as several busses burned down while he was in their custody - determining it was not him.

Burro recounts the kidnapping, “A man caught me and told me to go to the pickup... The first thing I see is he shows me a nine-millimeter and two guys get out of the car and tell me to get in.”