Comunidad Benedicion de Dios, San Salvador

On our second day in El Salvador, our co-host (and El Mundo and Miami Herald stringer photographer) Ethan James took us to a squatter community called Comunidad Benedicion de Dios. The settlement began in December of '07 and according to Ethan it has grown dramatically every time he's gone back to see it. The squatters chose an unoccupied but privately owned parcel of land for their settlement. And that's not sitting well with the local government.

A sign, spray painted on to a bed sheet, welcomes you to the community:

Apparently the city government will not provide services to the residents of the community as it would signal that they approve of the illegal 'seizure' of the land. As a result, there is no water, no sewage - there are no services of any kind. Ethan asked a resident how she gets water. "A water truck comes and sells us water," she said.

The residents of the community didn't used to be homeless. A succession of natural disasters - earthquakes and high-power, destructive winds - destroyed the homes of many. Since the government did not provide shelter or aid, many found themselves squatting, here, in the shadows of large homes and volcanic hills.

The homes are simple. Bamboo or wood branches act as supports for cardboard boxes, plastic tarps, old vinyl billboards and what little corrugated tin residents can scare up. The lodgings are primitive at best, with dirt floors, no plumbing, and kitchens that are little more than a grill placed over a fire:

Most of the structures look like they could be easily blown down by the big bad wolf. This one has street names on it, so people can find their way around the community.

This one, perched atop a small hill, is made from old billboards, TV boxes, and bamboo:

This one has a slanted roof and a tarp secured on the roof for some rain protection. Right now is the dry season, so residents don't have to worry about rain. Come May, the rains come at night, likely destroying much of the structural integrity of the homes.

In front of the community's "store", a little boy helps his grandmother find choice branches. The bamboo is long gone.

This house even has an address:

This house uses the side of a hill for its fourth wall:

All of the cardboard comes from grocery stores - grocery stores selling products that residents can likely not afford.

The community does have a president, who is their de facto spokesman. Ethan took his picture and told him he would come back in a few days to interview him. I'm sure Ethan took some incredible photos - if I can find his work, I'll link it here.

The president is the man with the spray-painted dot on his hat:

While we were there, the ice cream man came by with his cart. As we walked by he was thronged by young girls, clamoring for an icy treat. They laughed at us as we walked down the 'street' and giggled as they ran by us later.

For other minor necessities, there is a small store in the community. This one sells bread - both the sweet and not-sweet versions.

We left in a hurry after we noticed a man eying us from a hilltop. As we walked toward our car, Ethan noticed a photographer from another paper, coming in with his camera to take shots of the community. Scooped - by just a few days. I left feeling terrible. These people were desperately poor and had no resources to provide the most basic of basic necessities for themselves - shelter. And here we were, rich Americans (relatively), taking pictures of their homes - in my case for my blog - and then going back to our lush compound where we had everything. The poverty is staggering.