Untellable stories and the limits of solidarity in a sister-community relationship

Abstract

Arcadia was the first person members of Sacred Heart Church2 met in 1990 when they traveled from downstate Illinois to El Salvador to set up a sister-community relationship, or hermanamiento. This was their "next step" after their involvement in the Sanctuary movement (see Westerman, this volume). They weren’t sure what exactly they could do, though, until Arcadia, a stout former guerrilla combatant and devout Catholic, reassured them: "All we want," she told them, "is for you to walk with us, listen to us, and tell our stories.".