The Monument to Memory and Truth

On our last mission trip to El Salvador we were fortunate enough to experience some Salvadoran history by visiting The Monument to Memory and Truth. The Monument to Memory and Truth is a 85 meter wall of black granite that lists over 28,000 names of civilian victims of the Salvadoran Civil War (1980-1992). The monument was created by the Committee Pro-Monument to the Civil Victims of Human Rights Abuse and was inaugurated in December 2003 in Cuscatlán Park in the capital, San Salvador.

"A space for hope, where we can continue dreaming and build a more just, human and equitable society” reads the inscription on the monument. The photo below shows a portion of the monument which is a depiction of the Salvadoran people carrying a picture of Archbishop Óscar Romero. Archbishop Óscar Romero spoke out against poverty, social injustice, assassinations and torture. He was assassinated on March 24, 1980 and is listed on the wall as one of those lost during the war. The Salvadoran Civil War claimed the lives of over 75,000 Salvadoran civilians and personally touched the vast majority of Salvadorans. For many of the families who lost loved ones through homicide, kidnapping, forced disappearances, or massacres, there was no place to go to remember and grieve their loved ones. This monument was built for the families that lost loved ones and as a memory of the devastation brought on by the Salvadoran Civil War.

To view a full list of names along with the date the loved one was lost and how they were lost please see the following website (www.memoriayverdad.org/index.html).