Pachaj, Cantel

Ending off our last week in Guatemala (before traveling to Antigua), twelve of us studied and lived in a pueblo called Pachaj, which is in the area of Cantel. This community is 100 percent indigenous and played a key role during Guatemala's armed conflict. Its location is great, too, being just 30 minutes away from Xela.
So noting above on Pachaj's unique role during the armed conflict, Cantel was the only region in all of Guatemala to not take part in the armed guard services. The armed guard services were organized by the Army; they forced men out of every community to patrol their village and report any guerrilla activity. Essentially what the armed guard services did was put many male community members' lives at stake and force families into uncomfortable, dangerous circumstances.
Also during the armed conflict, a textile mill was built in Cantel which from then on altered Cantel's economic situations and fomented a lasting dependence by the people of Cantel on the mill, ultimately a negative dependence at that.
So in all, learning about Cantel's history was an ongoing process throughout our week there. Cantel also has a huge amount of its population in North America. Since Guatemala's economy continues to struggle, economic hardships are the number one reason for migration to places like the US and Canada.