A Computer For An Indigenous Police Force In Mexico

Dear Everyone,

I am writing to ask for help in procuring a laptop computer for the organizers of a very important social movement in Mexico.

Last Fall I worked with and wrote about a fascinating organization in Guerrero, Mexico, called La Policia Comunitaria. They are an indigenous, autonomous police force and justice system that arose out of an utter absence of any sort of state-sponsored security. They base themselves on indigenous ideas of law and justice, and they try to, instead of ostracizing people who are convicted of a crime, involve them in community service and "re-education."

Their system is not perfect, but it is an important movement and a beacon of inspiration in a region of Mexico that is riven with violence. Indeed, in the areas of La Policia Comunitaria's influence, there is almost no crime anymore, especially compared with the surrounding locales.

You can read more about them here, in an article I wrote:

http://upsidedownworld.org/main/mexico-archives...

And here is their (La Policia Comunitaria's) own website:

http://www.policiacomunitaria.org/

And here, from Left Turn magazine (in Spainish):

http://www.leftturn.org/la-polic%C3%AD-comunita...

While I was in La Costa Chica, as the region of the Policia is called, one of the founders and a current adviser to the group, Cirino Placido, asked if I could help them by procuring a laptop computer, one that they could use when they travel between the different towns in the region of the Policia Comunitaria. They don't care if it is a Macintosh or a PC, only that it can run a word-processing program and access the internet with a wireless connection. I am looking to raise funds here to buy a machine for them which I or another person will hand deliver to Cirino.

If anyone can help with this, I and they (La Policia) would be most grateful.

What They Need:

A laptop computer. As mentioned, it can be PC or Macintosh, with internet abilitiy. They will mainly be using it to update their website and write reports on their projects for the media. The people who make up La Policia Comunitaria are also involved in numerous other struggles, like the fight against a proposed gold mine in their region.