Praise for Beyond Shock from the UN

"Although Beyond Shock brings back sad and tragic memories, it is also very moving, and so well researched and written that it is most interesting to read."

              —Tania Cooper Patriota, Gender-Based Violence officer, United Nations Population Fund.

Unsafe abortions: Haiti’s abortion crisis

Kudos to Jacqui Charles at The Miami Herald for her investigative story of the growing crisis of illegal abortions in Haiti now—an issue covered in Beyond Shock.

PORT-AU-PRINCE -- After one clinic failed to remove the 16-week-old fetus growing inside her, the desperate high school student turned to the “doctor” known to her only as Little Old Father, Ti Le Pè.

Standing in her sparse bedroom, the bearded man with a baseball cap first prepared a special bath — a mixture of Haitian moonshine, essential oil and a “special soap.” He then put her in bed, strapped her swollen stomach and disappeared. At 5 the next morning, he returned with a cold, murky herbal concoction.

Read Part One of this two-part article by clicking here.

Madam Saras Particularly Vulnerable to Sexual Violence

I note in Beyond Shock that rural women including the Madam Saras (Haitian market women) are extremely vulnerable to sexual violence. That is a finding reported to me recently by documentary videographer and filmmaker Patty Borns, a photographer at the Miami Herald and an family friend who also returned to Haiti after 2010 and has been following the lives of Madam Saras who crisscross the country buying and selling agricultural and other products.

As Beyond Shock stresses, the economic aspect of women's vulnerability to rape is an essential aspect of the picture, and a core element of the response to sexual violence. See the video link below to hear from Madam Saras about life in their own words. Her films offer mini-portraits of the lives of women who represent the "backbone" of Haiti's economy—something often mentioned in news stories.

What's not addressed is the unmet demand for protection and health services, including GBV, to these women who often travel alone, at night, on donkeys or on foot, and are subject to rape and other abuses that often go unreported.

We'll aim to fill that reporting gap and refer you to the Madam Sara documentary project to learn more about their role in Haiti's post-quake economy.

Chapo Patty! (Hats off!)

Please watch the video on Vimeo.com by clicking here. 
(Due to privacy restrictions, the video cannot be embedded.)

PotoFanm+Fi Photo Exhibition

Next week — back in Haiti — on Saturday November 23, I'll be presenting with PotoFanm+Fi a moveable exhibition of Photos + Text of Haitian women, men and youth leaders in the fight against sexual violence. They'll include photos by and from young women in the Haiti Art Hope project—gorgeous images of girls waking up in the morning in Port-au-Prince to start their day—a joyous bunch. We'll also feature portraits of girls in Haiti's camps by Nadia Todres that are presented in the Beyond Shock book, as well as profiles of leaders spotlighted in the book.

The exhibition (Leve Jistis—Rise Up for Justice) marks the start of our group's activities for the annual 16 Days of Global Activism Against Sexual Violence. The exhibition and our table with info on PotoFanm+Fi will take place at the Place Boyer in Petion Ville, from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM...

The daylong event is being organised by the Haiti Adolescent Girls Network (Thanks to HAGN Haiti Coord. Colleen Larkin) with the YWCAH Haiti (Thanks to Tamara G. Barreau! on the board of the YWCA)... PotoFanm+Fi is a member of HAGN. There will be a HANG "Clothesline" exhibition of T-Shirts by designed by young women /girls in their signature Espas pam "My Space" empowerment programs... and presentations/tables by other groups including those representing the disabled.

Many of the photos will also soon be available as part of our digital gallery of Rising Up for Justice voices from Haiti. Stay tuned for more and check out the updates at the PotoFanm+Fi and One Million Rising for Justice Facebook pages (Facebook.com/potofanm and Facebook.com/1mlyalevehaiti)

And if you are in Haiti... JOIN US! If outside of Haiti... consider supporting this work. We're working as a nonprofit initiative and all donations are tax deductible. Your support and help goes a long way!

Mesi anpil -- thanks a lot!

More than 25 Groups Join Paid Ribbon Campaign Against Sexual Violence in Haiti

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) becomes the most recent organization to join the Plaid Ribbon Campaign in Haiti! 


More than 25 groups are now affiliated with this fast-growing public campaign to focus world attention on the fight against sexual violence that is having a devastating impact on school girls and students in Haiti. Please see our updated announcement below to find out how you can join the fight against sexual violence in Haiti.

‘Plaid Ribbon’ Campaign launched in Haiti

Global Campaign is Aimed at Stopping the Rape of Schoolgirls in Haiti

(October 29, 2013) — The Plaid Ribbon Campaign to protect girls in Haiti was recently launched by a growing number of advocates of gender and justice in Haiti as a protest and solidarity action to demand justice for recent rape case involving a schoolgirl in Haiti attacked by a much older man and the subsequent actions of the police and the media, and Internet distribution of semi-nude photos of the child victim and nude photos of the accused — additional violations of their privacy that have revolted Haitians and rights advocates everywhere.

"The campaign calls on Haitians to wear a plaid ribbon — the colors of the Haitian school uniform — to express their solidarity with the Haitian schoolgirl and student victims of sexual crimes and other violence," said Anne-christine d'Adesky, a member of the group PotoFanm + Fi , one of the groups that launched the public campaign. She is Global Coordinator for Haiti of the One Billion Rising for Justice campaign sponsored by V-Day (www.onebillionrising.org) that will promote the girls campaign online.

The Plaid Ribbon campaign is urging Haitian leaders to act aggressively to investigate allegations of police misconduct in the case and examine the role of media and spectators of citizens in the lurid online distribution of photos of the child that caused her and her family more pain. "This is not an isolated case," d’Adesky added. "PotoFanm+Fi found that 60% of rape cases since 2010 were adolescent girls, and that boys are also victims — as well as perpetrators." Regarding the latter, she added, "I just learned this week that 90% of adolescents (boys) in prison in Hinche involve rape cases. This is a shocking statistic that invites all Haitians to invest to help the nation's youth."

The campaign is open to all Haitians and invites everyone worldwide to participate. Wear a plaid ribbon. Express your solidarity. 

For more information, contact: potofanm@gmail.com. 

To follow the campaign, check for updates at: Facebook.com/1MilyaLeveHaiti and the websites of participating groups.

To join this public campaign, add your name/group/logo to the growing list of participants below and freely distribute. Please send your logo to the campaign at: potofanm@gmail.com.
 

PARTICIPANTS (as of 11.12.13):

1.    PotoFanm+Fi
2.    Partners in Health
3.    Institut du Bien-Etre Sociale et Recherche, Haiti (IBESR)
4.    ODELPA
5.    Fondation Toya
6.    Other Worlds Are Possible
7.    YWCA- Haiti
8.    Reseau d’Action pour les Adolescents (HAGN)
9.    KOFAVIV
10.    CAFVAS
11.    ANAPFEH
12.    AFASDA
13.    IJDH- BAI
14.    Amnesty Intl USA
15.    Restavek Freedom
16.    One Billion Rising for Justice
17.    V-Day
18.    CENTER FOR THE ARTS, Port-au-Prince
19.    FAITH HUMANITARIAN
20.    UNICEF
21.    MEDISHARE
22.    ANAPFEH
23.    LIDÉ
24.    GAKODA
25.    Haitian National Police Gender Unit (UCL FVV)
26.    International Rescue Committee

(List in formation as of 11.12.13)

To join, send your logo/group/name to: potofanm@gmail.com

Working to Empower Adolescent Girls in Haiti

The Center for the Arts, Port-au-Prince is working to empower adolescent girls in the arts and to create income-generating activities in the arts. It is located in the community of Siloe and is currently working with 20 girls who are learning photography, jewelry making, painting, English and writing.

It was founded by photographer Nadia Todres in June of 2012.

Check out more at:
Facebook.com/CenterForTheArtsPaP

Support their work:
www.fracturedatlas.org

Nadia’s work can be seen here:
www.nadiatodres.com

New Group Fights for Rights of Girls in Haiti

Introducing the grassroots Organization of Youth Girls in Action (OJFA)—a group fighting for the rights of girls working as domestics and living in the streets of Haiti. 

Melissa Schilling of Project Hope Art who I met today, introduced me to OJFA—a new ally along with groups like Limye Lavi, Restavek Freedom and Free The Slaves profiled in Beyond Shock for their work to protect the rights of some of Haiti's most vulnerable citizens. Have a look at their photo album below.

You can find OJFA / Organisation Des Jeunes Filles En Action on Facebook by clicking here. 

Gearing up for PotoFanm+Fi Carnaval Campaign

We are all gearing up to engage in a Carnaval campaign with PotoFanm+Fi next spring on the theme of rising up and gender justice to celebrate the growing civil and government advocacy that is drawing more men, women and young people into its ranks. 

Mark your calendars! March 2nd through 4th. Location was to be Gonaives, but is now being reviewed... Stay Tuned!

But dust off your marching, processional, dancing shoes. Haiti shows everybody, including NOLA, how to lift your spirits. Monte! Leve Jistis La! Danse! Kanpe!

For more information, please click here.

Images of Hatian Rural Life

Images of Haitian rural life by  Patty Borns.

The image above, of Haitian rural life, is shared by my colleague Patty Borns. This one is from Kenscoff, a lovely pine-filled moutainous ville located above Port-au-Prince. 

One of my favorite childhood memories is of sliding down the rusty-colored soft clay sides of the mountains on wax paper taken from my grandmother's Bois Verna bakery—a thrilling ride that vies any amusement park in the US—that, and riding too-thin, very strong horses on wooden saddles through these very steep, gorgeous mountains. Kenscoff is still gorgeous today but also still very poor... a place needing greater attention, including for health facilities.

To see more of Patty Borns's images, please click here.

Washington Post on Dominican Republic's Discrimination Against Haitians

While the global media catches up on this evolving story of a longstanding issue of discrimination of now-stateless citizens born of Haitian parents, there's also a gap in reporting on the many Dominican voices who have decried legislation that targets Haitian migrants. 

From the Washington Post

One of the groups long active on both sides of the border is the Dominico-Haitian nonprofit MUDHA — mentioned in Beyond Shock — set up by the late Sonia Pierre. Post-quake, they began working in Haiti and set up a model camp where less sexual violence was reported. 

MUDHA continues to be a frontline organization, leading the charge against the current legislation that has further targeted Dominicans with Haitian roots.

Read the Washington Post's OpEd by clicking here.

Birthright Crisis

Birthright Crisis: The fight for citizenship in the Dominican Republic

An appeal from acclaimed Haitian-American author Edwidge Danticat:

Eight years ago, when this powerful film was made, the Dominican Republic was already in the midst of a "Birthright Crisis."

On September 23, 2013, this crisis was made official by the Dominican Republic's Constitutional Court's ruling that citizenship can only be granted to people born to one Dominican parent since 1929. Asked to rule in the case of one person, a 29-year old Cominican-born women named Julian Deguis Pierre, the Court decided to render Ms. Pierre, and retroactively, a quarter of a million of her compatriots, stateless. As one of the dissenting judges in the case has bravely declared, this ruling is unprecedented, unconstitutional, and unjust. 

(To read Edwidge Danticat's appeal in its entirety, please click here.)

This film forcefully shows why we cannot remain silent:


Birthright Crisis 2013 from Haitian Women 4 Haitian Refugees on Vimeo.
People of Haitian descent are systematically denied citizenship rights in the Dominican Republic. This video is about the Haitian-Dominican community's resistance in the face of illegal deportations, scapegoating, and exclusion.

Beyond Shock is a Groundbreaking Study

"Beyond Shock is a groundbreaking study that emerges in a global culture that chronically stigmatizes and spectacularizes rape survivors. Beyond Shock takes a meticulous approach to going beyond the headlines by magnifying the voices and activism of rape survivors, their allies, and anti-rape advocates.  This focus on community and resistance is a reminder of how the Haitian tradition of konbit can help to transform rape culture." 

— Régine Michelle Jean-Charles, author, Conflict Bodies: The Politics of Rape Representation in the Francophone Imaginary and Assistant Professor, African & African Diaspora Studies Program, Boston College.

An Important Advance in the Fight for Justice in Haiti

“An important advance in the fight for justice for victims of sexual and other gender-motivated violence in Haiti… Beyond Shock not only explains the obstacles to justice for victims of rape and other gender violence, it recognizes the successful efforts to overcome those obstacles by activists, judicial officials and lawyers.”

— Brian Concannon, Jr., Director, Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti.

A 'Must Read' says CUNY's Carolle Charles

“Beyond Shock offers a deep and holistic analysis on the significance of gender-based violence and rape following the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. The book connects these forms of violence, which victimized women, girls and at times boys, to the inhumane social, political and economic living conditions of the victims and survivors. Beyond Shock is also a critique of international reconstruction politics and policies that assign meager resources in the fight to eliminate these human rights violations. A must read.”

— Carolle Charles, Associate Professor of Sociology, Baruch College of the City University of New York.

Anne-christine d'Adesky Launches Plaid Ribbon Campaign

Anne-christine d’Adesky has just launched a global plan to draw attention to sexual violence in Haiti.  The ingenious Plaid Ribbon Campaign calls on concerned citizens worldwide to wear a plaid ribbon — the colors of the Haitian school uniform — to express their solidarity with a Haitian schoolgirl who was recently attacked, as well as other student victims of sexual crimes.

The schoolgirl rape was a travesty of justice; attacked by a much older man, the young female suffered further humiliation at the hands of the police and the media when semi-nude photos of the victim were posted on the Internet. This additional violation has outraged Haitians and human rights advocates everywhere. The Plaid Ribbon Campaign demands that Haitian leaders act to investigate allegations of police misconduct in the case.

The creator of the Plaid Ribbon Campaign, Anne-christine d'Adesky, is a member of the group PotoFanm+Fi, one of the groups that launched the public campaign. She is Global Coordinator for Haiti of the 1Billion Rising forJustice campaign sponsored by V-Day that will promote the girls campaign online. 

"This is not an isolated case," d’Adesky added. "PotoFanm+Fi found that 60% of rape cases since 2010 were adolescent girls, and that boys are also victims — as well as perpetrators.” Regarding the latter, she added, “I just learned this week that 90% of adolescent boys in prison in Hinche involve rape cases. This shocking statistic requires all Haitians to invest effort and conviction to help this nation's youth."

All Haitians and concerned global citizens are invited to participate in the Plaid Ribbon Campaign to express their solidarity.

For more information, contact: potofanm@gmail.com. To follow the progress of the Plaid Ribbon Campaign, see updates at: Facebook.com/1MilyaLeveHaiti.

Author Holds Reading at Santa Barbara Bookstore

Author Anne-christine d'Adesky reads from Beyond Shock: Charting the Landscape of Sexual Violence in Post-Quake Haiti and signs copies for an attentive audience on October 23, 2013 at Grenada Books in Santa Barbara, CA.

Noted Educator-Activist Praises Beyond Shock

"What I most appreciate about the book is the spotlight on the contribution of Haitian Feminists and women pioneers of Gender Based violence issues, as well as the articulated synergy between local grassroots organizations and global institutions that have been engaged in such important work for a very long time. If you are interested in the field of sexual violence in Haiti, consider this book as your bible."

— Nadège T. Clitandre Founder, Haiti Soleil and Assistant Professor in Global and International Studies and Research Affiliate, Center for Black Studies Research, University of California, Santa Barbara.