Guatemalan Shoeshine Boy

Extract

The shoeshine boy is a permanent, though far from motionless, part of the landscape of Latin America's city centers. Barefoot, in tattered clothing, and with dirty faces and hands, Latin America's shoeshine boys crowd parks and squares, prowl up and down city streets, and pass in and out of office buildings and stores in search of customers for their services. They are everywhere; even the most casual tourist finds it difficult to avoid them. Tagging after the obvious North American, they ask, in heavy Spanish accents, “Shoeshine, mister? Shoeshine, mister?”