Spotlight On...

 

Wilson Calderon

Annual Meeting Keynote Speaker

 

 

Wilson Calderon (pictured center in green shirt) has traveled a long road from Colombia to Rochester, logging thousands of miles and crossing cultural barriers along the way. 

 

Wilson is a staff sergeant in the Columbian army who suffered extensive burns and lost his vision in a grenade explosion.  He and several of his fellow soldiers were brought here for treatment through an agreement between Mayo Clinic and United for Colombia, a nonprofit helping Colombian servicemen and civilians who have suffered the consequences of their nation’s war against drugs and terrorism. 

 

Wilson has been here in Rochester nearly two years, and is expected to undergo yet another surgery any day now.  Although he is extremely grateful for the treatment he has received here in Rochester, he did face some roadblocks along the way.

 

Wilson’s first encounter with American attitudes toward Columbians occurred with customs agents in Miami.  Even though he and his fellow travelers were wearing Colombian army uniforms and were visibly injured or disabled, they were greeted at the U.S. border with suspicion.  In fact, Wilson’s experience is that most Americans stereotype Colombians as narco-terrorists. 

 

“When you first arrive and people ask where you’re from, they often relate you to violence, drug trafficking, terrorism, and guerrilla warfare,” says Wilson.  This is an especially hurtful attitude for Wilson and his compatriots because they were all injured fighting those very same drug smugglers who have caused the negative stereotypes of Colombians.

 

In many ways, Wilson views the work of the Colombian soldiers as a partnership with the United States and its war on drugs.  The Colombian government purchases weapons and other military supplies from United States suppliers, and there have been joint military exercises, with Colombian soldiers training here and U.S. soldiers training in Colombia. 

 

But more than that, Wilson sees the Colombian soldiers as serving in the frontlines of the war on drugs, which is in no small part a result of the Colombian narco-terrorists’ efforts to supply the seemingly endless worldwide demand for drugs, particularly from the United States. 

 

It is important to Wilson that we understand this interdependence:  “The problem in Colombia with narco-trafficking is really a joint problem because it is the demand for drugs here in the U.S. and abroad that prompts the trafficking, yet Colombia takes most of the blame for the problem.”  

 

Unfortunately, with guerilla warfare and a proliferation of landmines in Colombia, the soldiers there are subject to great risk of injury or death.

 

Wilson stresses that Colombian military forces are working very hard for world peace by fighting to resolve the global problem of drug abuse, so he wants people to understand and acknowledge the military’s contribution for the betterment of everyone. 

 

However, back in Colombia, they don’t yet have the medical technology to treat the serious injuries being suffered by the soldiers, so the support of United for Colombia’s Mayo Clinic Program is essential.  Wilson and his colleagues are grateful for all those who have reached out to help. "The U.S. has opened its doors to us for recovery and for the betterment of our lives in general."

 

We invite you to join us at the Diversity Council’s Annual Meeting on January 22, 2009, to hear more from Wilson about his experiences and his desire to promote world peace.