Educating for Peace
author: Ramirez-Carril
JI traveled to Barlovento, in Miranda State, Venezuela, to document a reality that was difficult to see from the outside: communities where violence, vulnerability, education, and the presence of criminal groups had become part of everyday life.
My work focused on the people trying to create a different path, particularly teachers and community members who were working to protect children and young people from the influence of violence. During one of the “Educando para la Paz” workshops organized through Proyecto REDH, I encountered educators speaking openly about the challenges they faced in their communities. Among the issues they reported was the alleged use of school transportation to move drugs between different areas, as well as the loss of transportation services in communities such as Cumbo. These were not abstract stories; they were concerns affecting schools, families, mobility, and the safety of children.
What interested me as a photographer was not simply documenting violence, but looking at the people living within its shadow. I wanted to photograph the spaces, faces, and moments that revealed another side of Barlovento — a community trying to preserve its sense of belonging while confronting circumstances that could easily reshape the lives of an entire generation.
The project also connects with the broader work of FundaRedes, an organization dedicated to documenting human rights violations and supporting communities affected by violence. Years later, its director, Javier Tarazona, would himself become the subject of a human rights case after being detained in 2021 while attempting to report harassment by security forces. He remained imprisoned for more than four years before being released in February 2026.
Through photography and video, I wanted to leave a record of these encounters — not only of the problems, but of the people who continued to teach, organize, speak, and believe that education could become a form of resistance and a way toward peace.