Haiti no longer makes the news every day, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still donate to the recovery effort and educate yourself about the historical circumstances that produced such desperate poverty. Here’s a brief history of Haiti, in case you need a refresher:
And did you know that Ari’s reviewing books about Haiti all this week? Stop by Reading in Color to learn more. The mass rape of women and girls in the Congo is another crisis that doesn’t make the nightly news. My fellow Canadian, Stephen Lewis, calls it “femicide”…you can learn more by watching this slide show of photographs of the survivors.
And lastly, how much do you know about black women in Latin America? This article highlights both the triumphs and challenges faced by black women in countries that like to think of themselves as “beyond” racism…
Statistics provided by Nicaraguan activist Dorotea Wilson, head of the Network of Afro-Latin American and Afro-Caribbean Women (RMAA), indicate that 80 percent of the more than 150 million people of African descent in the region are still living in poverty and have few opportunities to improve their situation, because of racial discrimination.
Blacks in Latin America also suffer forced displacement at higher than average rates, and young black males are treated as criminals and often killed “in a kind of genocide in the guise” of fighting crime, said Wilson, whose movement is active in 24 countries.
