At 17 years old, Luis Abanto Rojas He left Peru for Europe without knowing what awaited him, leaving behind his country, which was in an economic and social crisis. Today he teaches at one of the most prestigious universities in Canada and was once decorated by the King of Spain, Felipe VI, for his outstanding work.
Who is Luis Abanto Rojas?
Luis Abanto Rojas, The son of migrant parents, from Cajamarca to be specific, he left Peru at the age of 17 for Europe, full of dreams, without imagining that this would be the first step towards his dreams.
His father was a musician and he inherited that talent, which later helped him make a name for himself in the old continent. He studied at school 3050, in the Lima district of Independencia, where there was no electricity. Later, he finished his secondary studies at Mariano Melgar, in Breña.
“My parents firmly believed in education. They were part of the generation of migrants who arrived in Lima in the 1950s and 1960s. Many of them did not speak Spanish and were illiterate. My father only managed to study primary school and worked in the fields as a labourer. That is why he firmly believed that his children not only had to finish school, but also go to university,” he said in an interview with Andina.
As a teenager, he debated between studying accounting or law, until a friend convinced him to travel to France. Luis acknowledges that his parents encouraged him to migrate and gave him the autonomy to develop.
“In the neighborhood we had a Latin American music group, a boom at that time, we baptized ourselves as Intillactamade up of 14 and 15 year old boys; I think that’s why we attracted attention and that’s where I discovered my passion for music,” he recalls.
After two years in Francein the midst of the bohemian life, he left the artistic life for an academic path. Although he initially decided to return to Peru, with the money he had saved during his musical career, in the end he decided to take advantage of the educational opportunities in the Gallic country, which were inexpensive.
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Luis Abanto Rojas was awarded the Order of Civil Merit in the rank of Officer’s Cross by King Felipe VI of Spain. Photo: Andina.
From bohemian life and music to education in France
However, when he began his studies, he realized that the path would involve a new challenge. French education was of a higher standard than what he had received in Peru, which discouraged him, but also motivated him.
“You had to have a topic to socialize with. In the bohemian world you can talk about anything, but socializing there was about the book you had read. I said, wow! I don’t know anything. Thanks to that, I got that vision and it was totally positive. Good company, as the grandmothers used to say,” she said.
He studied Humanities and began a life of reading and academic evenings that eventually made him understand his parents’ dream that education was the key to success.
Currently, Luis Abanto is an associate professor and current director of the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures and the Bachelor of Spanish at the University of Ottawa, in Canada.
Due to his work as a disseminator of the Spanish language, on February 17, at the Embassy of the Kingdom of Spain in Canada, he received the Order of Civil Merit in the degree of Officer’s Cross, awarded by the King of Spain Felipe VI, despite the fact that the recognition is not usually granted to foreigners and in his case it was an exception
“I have worked to open these paths without thinking of any reward. Promoting, opening spaces and doors for others because that is what humanism is. Since I started, I have dedicated myself to organizing festivals, conferences, workshops in schools in the region and I have worked a lot with the education oversight committee,” she says.
