At a time when many members of the Oberlin Community are dismayed by the state of American politics, the filmmaker Greg “Gringoyo” Berger brought a hopeful message to the College during his visit last Thursday.

Berger has created a number of documentaries on radical grassroots organizations in Mexico that emphasize the power of ordinary people to assert control over their own lives. While not rejecting electoral politics, Berger noted that “electoral politics responds to extra-official politics. Ultimately, power has to respond to those that speak truth to power.”

¡Tierra Si, Aviones No! (Land Yes, Airplanes No!) was the first film of Berger’s shown that evening. The documentary focused on the struggle of residents to stop the Mexican government’s effort to confiscate their farmland so that a large cargo airport could be constructed.

The farmers responded by taking direct action to challenge the government’s decision, action that included “armed nonviolence” such as the bearing of machetes at demonstrations. The Atenco farmer’s confrontational methods were met with stiff resistance by the government, which broke up protests with riot police.

Tensions reached their highest point when a leader of the farmers, Enrique Espinoza, died while in police custody. Despite the hardships they endured, the Atenco citizens’ defiance succeeded in forcing the Mexican government to capitulate and rescind its confiscation order.

Another movie that was excerpted was Abortion Sin Pena (Abortion Without pain). In Mexico most abortions are illegal. Abortion Sin Pena sought to humanize the issue by profiling women who have had abortions. As Mr. Berger explained, there is a misconception that women who have abortions are “anti-family,” but the woman who appeared in the film had decided to have an abortion in order to make a better life for her children.

Mexico is not the focus of Berger’s work. Chew On This explored the lives of Bolivian coca growers. Bolivia’s anti-drug trafficking measures included the eradication of coca plants. Coca can be used to produce cocaine, but it is also a popular stimulant that is chewed recreationally with effects similar to coffee and is used for medicinal purposes, too.

The coca elimination program carried out by the Bolivian army had dire effects for those that grew the plants, depriving them of economic opportunity and personal safety. Based on his observations, Berger concluded that the “war on drugs is a war on poor people” and that corrupt government officials involved in drug trafficking escape punishment while the most vulnerable members of society are made to suffer.

Not all of Berger’s films had such a serious tone. In addition to his documentaries, Berger played Gringo-thon, which can be downloaded from for free from salonchingon.com. Gringo-thon was created during the start of the Iraq War and featured a “stereotypical gringo’s” attempt to raise funds for a guerrilla insurgency to oust President George W. Bush.

The response to Berger’s movies was quite positive, and several students purchased copies of them at the end of his presentation.

Oberlin first-year Peter Nowogrodzki said, “[Chew On This] was the kind of thing that was really important to get to the public.”