INTDIS4 Project 3B
Eileen
Bartolomé de Las Casas
In my most recent research
of Latin America,
I came upon a significant man of interest. His name was Bartolomé de Las Casas. During his lifetime, he touched on every land
mass and peoples that my class research has led me to thus far; from Mexico
to Panama and the Caribbean islands in North America to Venezuela down the pacific coastline of Chile
to Argentine in South America. He was a humanitarian, priest, and lawyer of Spanish blood
that during the time of Conquest sailed with legendary explorers and Spanish conquistadors. Las Casas was born in 1474 and
died nearly a century later in 1566 (Tuck, J. 2007). His life spanned a significant portion of the colonial/conquest years
when land was taken from indigenous peoples throughout the world in battle, war, and/or overbearance of a conqueror. Las Casas’
impact centers on those people of New Spain (Mexico).
Bartolomé de Las Casas received
a privileged education after his father returned home with riches from a sailing expedition with Christopher Columbus. The riches, Las Casas would later
learn were from a conquest to the New World. He too would go to these places, first with
Columbus and later with Gonzalo
Fernández de Oviedo, a famed Spanish conquistador of his time. During these journeys Las Casas witnessed just how these explorers
obtained land, treasures, and wealth. He saw the inhumane and cruel treatment the indigenous people endured and it proved
too much for his heart to bare (Wikipedia, 2007).
Las Casas initially owned
indigenous slaves. This ripped at his gut as the genocide and torture continued. He relinquished his slaves and vowed to abolish
such practice in these new lands. He developed an econmienda system to restore the land and its peoples and to end slavery from Mexico
to Venezuela, Peru,
and beyond. Through his life’s work he became known as a “human rights advocate and activist… father of
anti-imperialism and antiracism” (Oregon State.edu, 2007) a “great humanitarian… champion of the Amerindians”
(Corbett, B., 1995) and “protector of the Indies” (Tuck, J., 2007). He too would
be largely responsible for the beginnings of Black slavery, but that is another story about the quest for independence and
equality (Corbett, B., 1995).
What a fabulous life, even
if fictitious. This character clearly had the likeability factor through time. He was a super hero during the time of colonial
conquests where pirates commandeered booty; famous explorers discovered new lands and conquistadors took what they wanted
from the unfortunate indigenous land dwellers. He won the respect of the privileged and of the deprived. And in the end it would be him that would bring on a whole new struggle for a people, that of the African
race.
“Paulo Freire was a Brazilian
educator and among the most influential educational thinkers of the 20th century. After a brief career as a lawyer, he taught
Portuguese at secondary schools. He became active in adult education and workers’ training. His most well known work
is called Pedagogy of the Oppressed, which is one of the most quoted educational texts used. Freire died of heart failure
in 1997. “One theory that Freire had was dialogue. He thought that all people should be treated with respect. The second
theory was praxis. He believed that praxis enhanced community and building social capital and to make us act in ways of justice.
The third theory is experience. He thought that lived experience opened up new worlds of teaching.” (Bryant, N., 2007). Paulo Freire’s teachings would catalog Las Casas as an oppressor became liberator, and through an indirect matter of his
heart back to oppressor. They were both humanitarians and lawyers with intentions of betterment of the whole. Las Casas omitted
logic, the cornerstone of Freire’s theory.
Reference:
Bryant, N. (2007). Assignment 1C. Retrieved March
6, 2007 from http://www.geocities.com/shinakka20/assignment1C.html
Corbett,
B. (1995). The tale of Bartolomé de Las Casas. Retrieved March
6, 2007 from http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/43/025.html
Ha
Oregon State.edu (2007). Bartolomé de Las Casas (1484-1566). Retrieved March 6, 2007 from http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/phl302/philosophers/las_casas.html
Tuck, J. (2007). Bartolomé
de Las Casas: Father of liberation theology. Retrieved March 6, 2007 from http://www.mexconnect.com/mex_/history/jtuck/jbartolome.html
