James Miller (De La Salle Christian Brother)
Encyclopedia
Brother James Miller F.S.C. (1944 - February 13, 1982) was a De La Salle Christian Brother born in Stevens Point
, Wisconsin
who grew up in Custer, Wisconsin
. He joined the Christian Brothers during his freshman year of high school and received a master's degree in Spanish from Saint Mary's University of Minnesota
in Winona
, Minnesota
.
In 1969, Brother James was sent to Bluefields
, Nicaragua
, where he taught in both elementary and high schools. Miller taught at Cretin High School in St. Paul, Minnesota before returning to teach in Central America, first working in Puerto Cabezas
, Nicaragua, where he helped build an industrial arts/vocational complex and later Guatemala
. On February 13, 1982, Miller was shot and killed by masked gunmen while on a ladder repairing a wall at the De La Salle Indian School at Huehuetenango
, Guatemala.
Some suspected that his killing was in retaliation for the work of the Christian Brothers to prevent Indian boys from being conscripted into the military. Miller had dedicated himself to providing job and leadership skills to Indian people to help ease the oppression suffered by Guatemalan Indians. Although students were exempt from the military, two days before the shooting an Indian student was forced into the army. A different Christian Brother went to the authorities to obtain the student's release. The military refused and the Brother, adamant, infuriated them.
The Diocese of LaCrosse, Wisconsin sponsors an annual The Brother James Miller Social Justice Award.
Stevens Point, Wisconsin
Stevens Point is the county seat of Portage County, Wisconsin, United States. Located in the central part of the state, it is the largest city in the county, with a population of 24,551 at the 2000 census...
, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
who grew up in Custer, Wisconsin
Custer, Wisconsin
Custer is an unincorporated community in Portage County, Wisconsin, United States.-History:The origin of the communities name is not confirmed but a genereal consensus is it was named after Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer, who was defeated during the battle of the Little Big Horn in 1876...
. He joined the Christian Brothers during his freshman year of high school and received a master's degree in Spanish from Saint Mary's University of Minnesota
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota is a private, comprehensive, coeducational university with an undergraduate campus in the city of Winona, Minnesota, United States...
in Winona
Winona, Minnesota
Winona is a city in and the county seat of Winona County, in the U.S. State of Minnesota. Located in picturesque bluff country on the Mississippi River, its most noticeable physical landmark is Sugar Loaf....
, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
.
In 1969, Brother James was sent to Bluefields
Bluefields
Bluefields is the capital of the municipality of the same name, and of Región Autónoma del Atlántico Sur in Nicaragua. It was also capital of the former Zelaya Department, which was divided into North and South Atlantic Autonomous Regions...
, Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, where he taught in both elementary and high schools. Miller taught at Cretin High School in St. Paul, Minnesota before returning to teach in Central America, first working in Puerto Cabezas
Puerto Cabezas
Puerto Cabezas is a municipality in, and capital of, the North Atlantic Coast department of Nicaragua....
, Nicaragua, where he helped build an industrial arts/vocational complex and later Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
. On February 13, 1982, Miller was shot and killed by masked gunmen while on a ladder repairing a wall at the De La Salle Indian School at Huehuetenango
Huehuetenango
Huehuetenango is a city and a municipality in the highlands of western Guatemala. It is also the capital of the department of Huehuetenango. The municipality's population was over 81,000 people in 2002...
, Guatemala.
Some suspected that his killing was in retaliation for the work of the Christian Brothers to prevent Indian boys from being conscripted into the military. Miller had dedicated himself to providing job and leadership skills to Indian people to help ease the oppression suffered by Guatemalan Indians. Although students were exempt from the military, two days before the shooting an Indian student was forced into the army. A different Christian Brother went to the authorities to obtain the student's release. The military refused and the Brother, adamant, infuriated them.
The Diocese of LaCrosse, Wisconsin sponsors an annual The Brother James Miller Social Justice Award.