hultner speaks

[Preface: Thursday afternoon, I had the opportunity to spend some time with Hultner, one of the Nicas I work with at the Nehemiah Center, about cultural views and attitudes about women, both Nica and gringa. Hultner is 29, married, and has one daughter. He is a passionate, articulate 29 year old youth pastor for a small church in my neighborhood and facilitates leadership development opportunities for Christian youth all over the western coast. Below, an abbreviated version of our conversation.]

PJN: Can you explain why Mother's Day is such an enormous deal here and yet there is so much machismo here at the same time?
H: Women are respected as mothers here. Having children gives a woman more credibility in Nicaragua. But, at the same time, women are viewed as weak, so men often treat them badly.
PJN: Women appear weak.
H: No, here women ARE weak.
PJN: Who imparts this idea?
H: The women do. For example, mothers tell their sons to go play baseball, soccer, etc, but they tell them, cuidase su hermanita (take care of your sister). Boys grow up hearing from their mothers that their sisters are weak.
PJN: So girls aren't allowed to participate in sports?
H: It's not that they aren't allowed. It's just not expected.
PJN: And what do Nicaraguans think about women who aren't married or have children?
H: Usually, they think something is wrong with them. So, many Nica women try very hard to get married or have children before they are 30.
PJN: What about a gringa like me who is almost 30 but not married?
H: Gringas are special.
PJN: What do you mean?
H: Nicaraguans have a history of racism.
PJN: [puzzled] How?
H: For a long time, most Nicaraguans have believed that North American culture, race, etc. is better than their own. It's just how it's been since the Spanish came. So Nicaraguans don't have the same expectations of gringos. They don't expect you to be like them. They think you are smarter, richer, better than them.
PJN: So for example, if I were to walk into a church here in Nicaraguan not wearing a conservative dress, what would the people think?
H: They would think, well, she is gringa, she can do whatever she wants.
PJN: But isn't it better to try to adapt to the culture, to do what the people here do?
H: Yes, Nicaraguans appreciate that. It shows you care.
PJN: And what about now, do Nicaraguans still have racist tendencies?
H: Yes, “negro” (black) is viewed as bad. There is a lot of division between the Pacific and Atlantic coasts of this country.
PJN: Because the people of the Atlantic coast are darker.
H: Yes.
PJN: In the United States, we've spent the last 100 years trying to change the idea that skin color has anything to do with someone's value as a person. It's very uncommon for people in the States now to be racist.
H: I met a missionary in the States who told me that black people are stupid.
PJN: I can't believe a Christian said that. That is not the majority view. And it's not true. What do you think?
H: I have had the opportunity to develop a different (biblical) worldview, so I think very differently than most Nicaraguans.