Written by: Adolfo Yarhi, Executive Director.
Every September the streets of Guatemala turn blue and white. Flags appear on every corner, schools prepare civic acts, and marimba music fills the air. It feels festive, but behind the parades there is a story that began more than two centuries ago.
On September 15, 1821, a group of leaders in Guatemala City signed the Act of Independence. They decided our country would no longer be ruled from Spain. Imagine the uncertainty of that moment. No one knew what would come next, only that they wanted to walk their own path. That was the start of something big, the chance to decide for ourselves.
But independence is not just a piece of paper from 1821. It is what we live every day. For a country, it means making choices without someone else’s orders. For us, as citizens, it means the freedom to speak, to learn, to work, and to dream. The question is, are we using that freedom well?
When I was a student, I remember standing in civic acts during Independence month. And whenever the national anthem was sung, whether in those acts or in other official ceremonies, I sang it with pride. At the time, it felt like tradition. Today, I understand that it was also a declaration, a way of saying I belong to a free country and I want to keep it that way.
At Niños de Guatemala, we take that same spirit to heart. We celebrate with pride, but also with purpose. For us, independence is tied to justice: making sure every child has access to quality education, no matter where they were born. Our mission is to break the cycle of poverty through holistic, bilingual education, because only then can liberty be real and lasting. Teaching, feeding, and supporting our students is our way of saying we want a free country that is also fair.
It is about what we do to keep Guatemala strong and free, protecting the liberties of all citizens and maintaining a just society. Just as the quetzal, our national bird, cannot live in captivity, liberty is essential for us as a people. So this September, while civic acts and flags fill the streets again, let us remember that independence is not only about what happened in 1821. It is about what we do today to keep Guatemala strong, just, and full of hope for the generations that come next.
