In some municipalities of Cauca there is fear of the armed strike announced by the self-styled National Liberation Army (Eln).
In El Tambo and Argelia, many owners of commercial premises have decided not to open. In addition, companies are not sending transportation and student classes have also been paralyzed by threats from the armed group.
(Read in context: A vehicle was incinerated on the Pan-American highway between Popayán and Cali)
In the Colombian massif there is no movement of vehiclespeople are locked in their houses.
In this area, in La Vega, in the village of La Buitrera, district of Arbela, they found a cylinder. Leaders indicate that, apparently, it would be loaded with explosives. An explosive device was also found in El Bohío, which has already been removed by the Police.
Also, it was learned that on the outskirts of Popayán, in Coconuco, the dump trucks -for safety reasons- are not going up.
(You can read: Teófilo Acuña and Jorge Tafur, the social leaders assassinated in Cesar)
In this capital, in the place known as El Morro, an ELN flag was left.
Likewise, in an apparent armed checkpoint in the El Descanso sector, district of Pescador, jurisdiction of the municipality of Caldono, A vehicle was incinerated on Wednesday morning. Simultaneously, near Cajibío, two cylinders with flags alluding to the ELN were found.
Around 8 pm on Tuesday, February 22, a coffin was found on the road that leads from Los Robles to the village of Sachacoco. The coffin is still on the site, according to the community’s complaint.
(Keep reading: Explosive charge explodes on a bridge in Pailitas, Cesar)
The Secretary of the Government of Cauca, Luis Cornelio Angulo, stated that actions are being coordinated to provide sufficient security to the communities, especially where the ELN has interference.
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Due to the cases of thefts to businesses in entertainment and gastronomy areas that have been occurring in Medellín, the authorities handed over the package of panic button devices to merchants of the 11-Laureles communewhich they can use if they require immediate support from the Police.
According to the Mayor’s Office, these buttons are linked to the services of the Medellín Integrated Emergency and Security System (SIESM).
The Municipal Administration reported that on this occasion 20 devices were delivered, already configured and in operation, out of a total of 200 devices that will be distributed in the coming weeks with the support, provision and training of the Urban Security Company (ESU).
These buttons will also be delivered in the 14- Poblado district, in sectors such as Provenza, Manila and Parque Lleras.
“It is very important that we continue working and strengthening the articulation that has given such good results in these places. With the Metropolitan Police there is an immediate reaction capacity in any situation of public order and this technological tool allows us to attend in record time and coordinate the services available with our system”, said the Secretary of Security and Coexistence, José Gerardo Acevedo Ossa.
How does the button work?
As detailed by the Mayor’s Office, there are two references to these devices: physical and virtual. The physical buttons look like an air conditioning control where you set a default text message with the location of each establishmentname and contact number.
When the button is closed, a white light flashes and no sound is emitted. Upon receiving the signal, an incident is created with the predetermined information and reaches the competent channel. The radio operator is in charge of modulating the incident, notifying the zone quadrant and it goes to the place to validate the information.
The virtual buttons work through an application in which there is a support network that notifies nearby businesses that also have the panic button of the emergency.
“This button will not only serve us but the locals around us. With technology and what the community contributes, we can make institutions work better and security too”, said Carlos Arias, a merchant who benefited from the device.
The use of the button is designed to react, initially, in specific cases of theft of people and establishments, fights or suspected use of weapons inside the premises.
Churches and other houses of worship have historically played critical social and political functions in American society. But fewer people are attending religious services, and the decline of churches and other houses of worship threatens to leave a void that could potentially be filled by coffee shops.
“For so much of American history, the church has really been — or their congregations have really been — essential, providing an unheralded role in providing cohesion and connectedness in communities … encouraging civic engagement and political participation,” says Daniel Cox, director of the Survey Center on American Life and a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.
“It was not happenstance or luck that the civil rights movement emerged out of the church,” Cox says. “And you see that cross-culturally … whether it’s in predominantly white rural communities, in the suburbs, wherever, churches have historically been really, really important.”
The number of Americans who say they belong to a church, mosque or synagogue has steadily declined in the United States since 1999, according to a Gallup poll.
Churches and other houses of worship have also played a role in helping immigrants assimilate once they arrive in America, Cox says.
In 1999, 70% of Americans said they belonged to a church, mosque or synagogue. By 2020, that number had dropped to 47%. A 2019 survey found that only about three in 10 Americans say they attend weekly religious services.
Third places
Lack of involvement and affiliation with churches, mosques and synagogues means people might be missing out on what urban sociologist Ray Oldenburg dubbed as “third places” — public gathering spots that offer something that home, the “first place,” and work, the “second place,” might not.
Oldenburg argued that third places are critical to a community’s social vitality. An October 2021 survey conducted by the American Survey Center found that commercial spaces like coffee houses foster trust and connection in American communities and could help fill the void left by churches.
“If you’re a regular at a cafe, the barista may know what you usually order, and they can make it for you, and that feels good,” says clinical psychologist Dr. Maria Espinola, an assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.
“It feels good to be recognized, to know that people are expecting you, to know that people care about you, to know that you belong, because the need for belonging and human connection is a fundamental need that we all have, and it’s important to have that fulfilled in different ways,” Espinola says. “So, places like third places can allow us to do that.”
Customers gather at Cafe Cosmos in downtown Seattle, March 15, 2020, in Washington.
In the past, churches and other houses of worship have been a third place for many Americans. In 2019, 67% of people surveyed said they have a third place — a coffee shop, bar, restaurant, park or other place in their community that they visit regularly. That number dropped to 56% in 2021 — a number that could have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“What we found was that people who had a third place were much more connected to their community,” says Cox. “They’re much more likely to engage in other activities there. They are much more trusting of their neighbors. There’s a whole great array of positive social outcomes that were connected to having a third place … and for a lot of Americans, it’s a coffee shop or a cafe.”
What coffee shops have in their favor is that they can be found almost everywhere, all over the country, and anyone who wants to can stop by regularly. And many are open most days of the week.
Cox says even brief coffee shop encounters can increase a sense of belonging.
“I think there’s a lot of potential here, and a lot of it is unrealized potential,” Cox says. “But in terms of what they could do, there’s a lot there. I’ve been in places where the same group of folks come in there to play chess. Or they have their informal bunch of retirees. … They just got together, and they talked and chatted and caught up with each other. … I don’t know where else they would have gone — maybe a church, but maybe not — to share information, to encourage each other to maybe get involved in an activity. And I think that is what is so powerful about coffee shops.”
