Yesterday (the 24th September) the department of Santa Cruz de la Sierra (the city in which Friends of Alalay works) celebrated its 204th anniversary with a variety of celebrations. These included a huge parade around the streets which lasted four hours and was attended by many local authority and government officials, alongside thousands of “Cruceños” (people from the city). This was followed by many parties through the night. The photo on the left shows the city’s grand Cathedral.
In such a time of celebration, it is worth remembering the many hundreds of forgotten people also living in Santa Cruz: those who live in its drainage canals, beg on its streets, scavenge scraps from bins and sniff glue to try to forget the daily hurt, cold and pain they feel. The photo on the right was taken by a street child who was fortunately brought in by Alalay – he wanted to show where he used to live: on a filthy street surrounded by urine and rubbish. He slept on cardboard to try to keep warm at night.
This is their Santa Cruz too.
