Between Hate, Hope, and Help: Haitians in the Dominican Republic
Posts
Putting Black Women and Girls at the Center: Flor Ángel’s Fight
Activism is in Flor Ángel’s DNA. The 28-year-old Dominican activist works with AJWS grantee Mujeres Sociopolíticas Mamá Tingó, a collective of social justice and community organizations fighting for equal rights for all women and girls. She comes from a long line of community organizers. Growing up in the southern locality of Batey La Altagracia, she …
Read More
From Sex Workers to Chicken Farmers: Trust Based Philanthropy at Work in a Pandemic
When COVID-19, AJWS realized right away that the moment called for a largescale pandemic response strategy. We pivoted and it paid dividends: all 502 of our grantees remained operational over the last two turbulent years. It is now clear that this pivot not only helped during a moment of crisis but remains crucial in supporting …
Read More
Winning the Fight for Vaccine Equity in the Dominican Republic
As talk of COVID-19 vaccines swept the world in early 2021, a new human rights crisis was already looming: profound disparities in who would receive a life-saving shot and who would face the pandemic unprotected. In the Dominican Republic, this inequity quickly became a reality: on February 16, Dominican President Luis Abinader announced a national …
Read More
“As Human Beings, We Are All Worth the Same”: Lessons About Human Rights and Humanity from a Dominican Classroom
On a yellow wall, in a tiny school in the Dominican Republic, there is a sign—hand-painted in Spanish with cheery colors. It looks like the kind of sign you might find in any preschool, with a reminder of classroom rules—“Share your toys… Raise your hand… Don’t hit.” But instead, the sign reads: “These are my …
Read MoreStories
Volunteer Network of Friends Forever Friends
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in the Dominican Republic have long faced discrimination and violence in their communities. But in recent years they have begun to speak out, advocate for their rights, and build a movement calling for change in Dominican society so that they can live as equal citizens whose rights are …
Read More
Supporting Haitian Migrants and Dominicans of Haitian Descent
Many Haitian migrants and Dominicans of Haitian descent work in low-wage jobs on the country’s sugar and banana plantations, or as construction workers or laborers in the informal economy. They reside in bateyes—poor districts that were established to house sugar plantation laborers and their families. Because Haitians and their descendents are often denied citizenship rights …
Read More