Land to Die for

To view Brazil's struggle over land through the life and death of a man like Padre Josimo Morais Tavares is a privilege. -- Joseph Nangle, Franciscan Mission Service of North AmericaWhy are hundreds of people killing each other each month in the Brazilian amazon while the authorities look the other may? Le Breton reveals, through the words of the people who represent them, the man forces at play in the land wars that threaten the survival of the world's largest rain, rest. She tells the story of the murder of one hero, Father Josimo, and in do doing tells the stories of so many more. -- Melina Selverston, Director, The amazon CoalitionThis is a true story of a death foretold. To tell it, the author of the acclaimed Voices From the Amazon traveled to the famous Parrot's Bak (Bico de Papagaio) at the outskirts of the Amazon rain forest, plunging into the Brazilian wild west where, beyond the feeble grasp of law and order, the world's last great land grab is still taking place. Tracing the circumstances surrounding the murder of the Afro-Brazilian priest, Josimo Morals Tavares, one of the most dedicated activists involved in the struggle of Brazilian squatters for land, Le Breton captures a unique grass roots view of the Brazilian land wars with its panoply of social forces: large landowners, wealthy speculators, pistoleiros, peasants, and on both sides, the Catholic Church, torn between ancient privilege, and contemporary liberation theology, which heeds the cries of the poor and calls for justice. Though land reform widely recognized in the Brazilian peasants' wars for land. A land to Die For illuminates our understanding of the problem. This is not another theoretical tract orstatistical survey on the land reform issue. This is its life and blood.