The biggest piece of graffiti on Bogota´s giant art gallery on 26th Street is of a weedy, bespectacled young man with a smart, somewhat ironic expression. Not really the profile of your traditional Colombian hero.
Your usual brand of hero – both here in Colombia and in the world more generally – is like the statue in the above photo. Uniformed, athletic, with an impassive bearing expressing dignity, pride, and righteousness. Or, if you want to put it another way: a majestic lack of humour. Simon Bolivar, the man of a thousand statues, is the prototype. Generally, for national heroes, bravery is favoured over irony; stoicism over wit; determination over humour. In most cases you could think of, national heroes aren´t particularly funny.
Jaime Garzon was hilarious. A popular figure on Colombian television during the nineties, he was more Rafael Pombo than Jose Asuncion; more El Pibe than Falcao; more court jester than The Liberator. Whether he was darting incisive comments at authority as a humble shoe-black; or delivering caustic criticism of future president Uribe through ironic praise, Jaime was ever the clown.
Anyone that was forced to study Shakespeare’s King Lear at school will probably remember that the figure of the court jester is a complicated one. There´s something about the social position of the clown that allows them to use humour and irony to tell the truth to power; in a way that others can´t. Bizarrely, there´s something close to sanctity – to invulnerability – that attaches itself to people in this role. This makes the fact that Jaime Garzon was gunned down in cold blood, not that long ago, and not far away from that giant mural, so gut-wrenching. That makes it even more chilling that still, nobody has been brought to justice for his murder.
The unavoidable reality of Garzon´s death coldly emphasises that this unlikely hero was no simple clown. Educated, politically engaged, and brave; he was untiring in his efforts of communicating to indigenous people what their constitutional rights were; fearless in his work negotiating the release of hostages; and ever-incisive in his identification of Colombia´s most pressing problems and contradictions. This completely serious work was done with his tireless, spirited sense of humour, always attuned to irony and a sense of paradox. His character, Heriberto of the Streets, came to be something like Colombia´s conscience due to this dual nature. Serious political criticism and insight was delivered with such comic timing and cheek that it somehow came across as innocuous.
Two kinds of hero: the stern, stoic military figure; or the humble shoe-shine with that annoying laugh. For me with my gringo point of view, it is the latter that seems to ring truer about what I know of Colombian people. Garzon´s bravery and humour, his idealism and irony, and the ultimate price he paid for expressing his love and hope for society, is a unique and important example for us all. Today, as Colombia continues to leap forward in bold bounds, it´s important to remember what steps still need to be taken. A point of view like Jaime´s would help.
Paul G
