friendsoflatinamerica

The Sugar Babies

Phi Theta Kappa & The Honors Program Invite you to attend the Award-Winning Human Rights Documentary

THE SUGAR BABIES

The Plight of the Children of Agricultural Workers In the Sugar Industry of the Dominican Republic

The Sugar Babies tells the story of children and their families of Haitian descent working on sugar plantations in the Dominican Republic. Over decades, they have been lured by false promises of jobs, food, housing, education, and opportunity. They are soon trapped in a very different reality. Children plant or gather a half-mile of sugar cane for 17 cents; rarely do they go to school, have medical care, or regular meals. Their parents are promised $2 for every ton of cane they cut, haul, and weigh. Wages are often withheld; corruption within the government supports the system of abuse that denies basic human rights to 35,000 Haitians who are trafficked annually.

“The Sugar Babies is, in short, brilliant. An amazing, amazing documentary, from beginning to end. It is beautifully paced and filmed, and the issues profoundly important.” -Diane Mason, Director, HOPE FILMS

“The Sugar Babies is a poignant, haunting film in the fine tradition of all great investigative reporting, shining a searing light on the plight of the desperately poor and disenfranchised people and those who would exploit them.” Ken Wells, Conde Nast Senior Editor.

“Documentaries don’t get much better than this either in content or technical quality.” Jan Holmes, Administrative Director, UNIFEM

Monday, March 2nd, 2009 @ 7pm CCBC-Catonsville K-100 (Near the Café)

For location info check college website Location of CCBC http://www.ccbcmd.edu/directory/cat/catonsville.html Or use Mapquest: 800 S. Rolling Rd., Catonsville 21228 Location on Campus http://www.ccbcmd.edu/directory/cat/camp_map.html

Refreshments and a discussion with Executive Producer Claudia Chiesi, Ph.D. will follow the film.

"The situation of sugar cane workers in the Dominican Republic"

The film is narrated by the late Paul Newman and follows Father Christopher Hartley as he organizes Haitian cane-cutters on Dominican sugar plantations. It portrays the near –slavery conditions faced by the workers and their families and exposes the tactics used by plantation owners to crush any political awakening. According to film maker Bill Haney, people are paid less than a dollar a day – in vouchers to be redeemed at the company store. Daily caloric needs are often met by chewing on sugarcane.

The film does a dynamite job of exposing this “sweat shop like” capitalist crime. The questions need to be asked: what caused this situation and how can we help?

This event is sponsored by Howard County Friends of Latin America and is free and open to the general public. Donations will be accepted for Comedor Infantil in Barahona, Dominican Republic.

 Download a printable copy of  the flyer  at this link:

Download price_of_sugar_flyer.pdf

Haiti, Dominican Republic, Sugar, Fair Trade

For Information on the Fair Trade Sugar program see

http://www.transfairusa.org/content/certification/sugar_program.php

Global Exchange maintains a list of Fair trade retailers.
http://www.globalexchange.org/campaigns/fairtrade/coffee/retailers.html

For information on human rights issues related to sugar see

http://www.thepriceofsugar.com/index2.shtml

For related information See

Movement of Dominican - Haitian Women (MUDHA)

http://www.comminit.com/en/node/122335

Infant health in D.R.

http://infantesano.org/index.html

Thank You!

About 30 folks attended this evening's fundraiser for the Dominican and Haitian victims of Hurricane Noel. We raised $1,000.00 and turned the funds over to Bishop Rafael Felipe to take back to the community of Barahona in the southeastern region of the Dominical Republic. As indicated by Rev. Simon Bautista, the needs are many: food, clean water, beds, etc. etc. Our guest speaker, Rev. Bautista noted that this region is always the last one to receive the aid that comes to that country and it is the poorest and the hardest hit by natural disasters.

Events Calendar. Winter 2008

Saturday January 26
Fundraiser for Victims of Hurricane Noel in the Dominican Republic
COFFEE AND DESSERTS: 6:30 p.m.
PROGRAM: 7:00p.m. to 9:00p.m
WHERE: Central Library,Columbia MD
GUEST SPEAKERS: Bishop Rafael Felipe, Phil Wheaton
IMÁGENES BARACOA, LA JOYA, av. circunvalacion (Santiago) ``OLGA``

In addition to our speakers: Bishop Rafael Felipe and Phil Wheaton, Reverend Batista will also be there and will bring a video of the conditions after the hurricane.

The Dominican Embassy recommended donations of the following articles, which are urgently needed in the Dominican Republic: bottled water, canned foods, baby food, powder milk for adults and for infants, disposable baby diapers, mattresses, sheets, towels, mosquito nets, soap and all other personal hygiene items, portable lamps, batteries, portable restrooms, water purifiers, and men’s, women’s and children’s clothing (including shoes and underwear).  The Dominican Embassy is also accepting donations of first-aid items such as first-aid kits, analgesics, painkillers, anti-diarrhea medication, saline solution, peroxide, oral electrolyte maintenance solution, Ringer’s solution, dextrose solution 0.5%, gauze and gauze tape, eye drops, and nebulizer machines.

For more information, call the Dominican Embassy at 202-332-6280 extension 2502, or visit http://www.domrep.org/NoelReliefFund.html.

Tuesday January 28
HoCoFoLA Meeting

COFFEE AND DESSERTS: 7:15 p.m.
Meeting: 7:00p.m. to 9:00p.m
WHERE: Leslie's,Columbia MD

Sunday March 30
Venezuela Today

PROGRAM: 3:00p.m.
WHERE: Central Library,Columbia MD

Carol and Dennis will give a presentation about their trip to Venezuela.