Gift Roster 2003 - 2004
Sandina V. Robbins ‘80 grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. After she graduated from high school, she attended the University of Cincinnatti, but it lacked the intellectual atmosphere she desired in a higher education. Sandina was drawn to Antioch because of its varied nature and the opportunity to travel through the co-op program. Her co-op experiences foreshadowed her career. Sandina’s first co-op was in San Francisco working for a non-profit group called, ‘The Citizen’s Action League.’ The organization canvassed the Bay area in hopes to promote property reform. She also co-oped at the Library of Congress in the education and public welfare department. Following that, she worked at WYSO and then was the Assistant Community Manager for Community Government.
In 1980, Sandina graduated from Antioch and headed south to Tampa, Florida. Eager to support and cultivate change, she worked for a low-fi radio station (WMNF) founded by Antioch students. Sandina spent three years providing alternative media at WMNF. She concluded her time there with a clear goal in mind: to focus attention on grassroots issues from a parallel perspective. Sandina began her career as a foreign correspondent working for a myriad of radio organizations, including National Public Radio, the Christian Science Monitor, Pacifica Radio, and the National Radio Project.
Sandina’s work led her to Mexico, where she lived and worked for eleven years. To mark the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Tlatelolco massacre, Sandina interviewed Mexican author Elena Poniatowska. Poniatowska’s text, ‘Massacre in Mexico’ exposed the atrocious actions of the Mexican government and the subsequent lies the authorities released concerning that tragic day. Sandina’s interview and commentary, which was aired on NPR, was honored with the World Award.
On January 1, 1994 the NAFTA treaty was signed in Chiapas, Mexico. The day after, Sandina arrived in Chiapas. She describes her experince: “There were tanks rolling through the streets, helicopters looming in the sky. There were soldiers littering the hills and the fields. I was never trained as a war correspondent, and never intended to be a war reporter, but there I was in the middle of a war zone with my microphone in the air. Without the eyes and ears of the international media in Chiapas that day, there would have been bloodshed.”
NAFTA devastated the Mexican economy from 1994 to 1996. “Transnational corporations forced local businesses to lower the prices of their goods until they were unable to cover the cost of their expenses. The NAFTA treaty was a death sentence for small farmers,” says Sandina. “The Zapatistas tried to create a dialogue and give autonomy to local farmers. The indigenous people were fed-up with being consistently kicked off their land.” Soon after, there was a huge shift in public opinion. “The world protests that occurred were an amazing symbolic action,” Sandina remembers.
In little over a decade, Sandina witnessed the birth of several social movements in Mexico. “Every day there were demonstrations. Poor farmers, teachers, students, and women fighting for their rights. One of my favorite interviewees was a character named ‘Super Barrio.’ By day Super Barrio worked as a candy vendor, at demonstrations he dressed his stout body in a red and yellow leotard and cape. The costume accented his leadership; Super Barrio represented people’s rights. He served as a representative for people from poor neighborhoods. The Mexican people recognized him as an advocate of needed change and supported his efforts with by participating in demonstrations,” Sandina says.
Sandina now lives in Oakland, California with her husband who she met her first day in Mexico. She is on sabbatical from journalism and has been taking care of her father who has Alzheimer’s. She is working with the National Radio Project to provide agency for those who struggle for justice by providing access to media making tools.
Along with Sandina’s work at with National Radio Project, she contributes to an organization called Women Rising. Recently, one of Sandina’s colleagues at Women Rising, Wangaru Maathai won the Nobel Peace Prize for aiding democracy and seeking to save the continent’s shrinking forests. Sandina comments on her recognition, “I was especially thrilled to see Wangaru life's work be recognized. In these days of war, increased insecurity and environmental destruction, I hear Mother Nature imploring us to take action for peace and sustainable living via the smoke signals from Mt. St. Helen's, Mexico's Colina volcano, the hurricanes in Florida and beyond. We can take strength from Wangari's humble example of courage and persistence.”
