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Lea Radick,Communications Officer, Handicap International U.S – Phone: +1 (240) 450-3529, Email: lradick@handicap-
Two years ago, Haiti was hit by a devastating earthquake that claimed the lives of 220,000 people and affected more than 3 million[1]. Handicap International, present in the country since 2008, was able to respond to the disaster immediately, and the organization remains committed to ensuring that people with disabilities and other vulnerable individuals have access to the services they need.
Handicap International is going to continue working in the country beyond the emergency phase to support Haiti as it moves into the reconstruction and development phase. "The Haitian people are just beginning to turn the page after the 2010 earthquake, but there is still a huge amount of work left to do," stressed Benoit Aurenche, Handicap International Haiti Project Manager. He was in Port-au-Prince when the earthquake struck and he has returned to the country several times over the last two years. "The emergency humanitarian response was essential. Today, it is vital that the focus shifts to development actions. The Haitian people are extremely concerned about what is going to happen now," Aurenche added.
"It would be irresponsible to stop our activities now," explained Patrick Senia, Head of Development Operations in Haiti. "It is essential that the Haitians themselves can provide the health services that have been temporarily made available by humanitarian organizations. It is also important to ensure the long-term social and economic inclusion of vulnerable persons...now is the time to make the efforts required that will allow the country to genuinely make a new start."
In 2012, the organization plans to finalize its emergency actions; implement rapid response mechanisms to reduce the impact of future natural disasters; and advocate for persons with disabilities by ensuring that buildings are accessible and implementing income-generating activities for the most vulnerable, including people with disabilities.
In addition, the services that are currently provided at the orthopedic fitting center, opened by the organization to help earthquake victims, are being transferred to local organizations. To do so, Handicap International is training its Haitian staff to ensure the sustainability of its rehabilitation and orthopedic fitting services, as well as developing national-level rehabilitation training.
"After two years working to support the victims of the earthquake, it is time to demonstrate that the humanitarian solutions put into place were not just a stopgap," emphasized Patrick Senia. "This first and foremost requires training, increased involvement from our partners (who can guarantee the long-term results of the projects developed) and support for drawing up public policy. Handicap International hopes to continue its activities in Haiti until persons with disabilities in the country have access to their rights. We are determined not to give up until we reach this goal."
For more information about Handicap International's work in Haiti, please read the 24-Month Situation Report, which is available on the Handicap International U.S. website: www.handicap-international.us
Handicap International is an independent and impartial international aid organization working in situations of poverty and exclusion, conflict and disaster. We work alongside people with disabilities and vulnerable populations, taking action and bearing witness in order to respond to their essential needs, improve their living conditions and promote respect for their dignity and fundamental rights. Since its creation in 1982, Handicap International has established development programs in more than 60 countries and it has worked in various emergency situations. Eight national associations comprise the Handicap International network: Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Luxembourg, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Switzerland. Together, the national associations mobilize resources, jointly manage projects and promote the organization's principles and actions around the world. Handicap International is one of the six founding organizations of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL
'He hated Black people,' the sheriff said
A racist white man killed three black people in a racially motivated attack then killed himself in Jacksonville, Florida.
The man, identified by local media as 21-year-old Ryan Palmeter, entered a Dollar General store and opened fire with an AR-15 assault rifle.
Sheriff T K Waters said three blacks - two men and a woman - were killed by the gunman, who wore body armor and left manifestos of his “disgusting ideology of hate.” The gunman had swastikas drawn on his AR-15-style rifle
“This shooting was racially motivated, and he hated Black people,” Sheriff Waters said.
"He targeted a certain group of people and that's Black people. That's what he said he wanted to kill. And that's very clear," Sheriff Waters said. The manifestos made it clear: “He wanted to kill n******,” the sheriff said.
The attack happened less than a mile from the historically black Edwards Waters University.
The shooter first went to the university campus, where he was asked to identify himself by a security officer, the university said in a statement. When he refused, he was asked to leave.
"The individual returned to their car and left campus without incident," the statement added.
Ryan Palmeter lived with his parents in nearby Oakleaf and was a registered Republican, according to Florida voting records.
Mass shootings have become commonplace in the U.S., with more than 469 so far in 2023, according to the Gun Violence Archive.
'Our legacy of resistance & building never ends'
Tens of thousands of Americans converged on Washington Saturday to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, a turning point in the 1960s U.S. civil rights movement at which Martin Luther King Jr gave his galvanizing "I have a dream" speech.
Organizers say today's march was not a commemoration but a continuation of the demands made in 1963.
Martin Luther King Jr.'s only grandchild Yolanda Renee King, 15, told the gathering that if she could speak to her grandfather today, she would say, "I am sorry we still have to be here to rededicate ourselves to finishing your work."
"Sixty years ago, Dr. King urged us to struggle against the triple evils of racism, poverty, and bigotry," she said. "Today, racism is still with us. Poverty is still with us. And now gun violence has come for our places of worship, our schools, and our shopping centers."
"When people say my generation is cynical, we say cynicism is a luxury we cannot afford," she said. "I believe that my generation will be defined by action, not apathy."
“We have made progress, over the last 60 years, since Dr. King led the March on Washington,” said Alphonso David, president and CEO of the Global Black Economic Forum. “Have we reached the mountaintop? Not by a longshot.”
'Why Democrats must ignore the corporate wing of the party and instead put forward a bold agenda'
US Sen. Bernie Sanders returned to New Hampshire Saturday to deliver a speech entitled “The Agenda America Needs” at Saint Anselm College’s New Hampshire Institute of Politics.
“I have always believed that good public policy is good politics,” Sanders said in a statement before the speech. “The American people are increasingly disgusted at the growing levels of income and wealth inequality in our country and the rampant corporate greed we are seeing.”
“We invited him, but he’s coming here for a reason,” New Hampshire Institute of Politics executive director Neil Levesque told the Concord Monitor. “I think it opens the door for a lot of other sorts of thoughts about whether or not Biden’s going to be the nominee, whether or not Biden is going to be running in next year’s presidential election.”
I’m LIVE in N.H. to give a major address on why Democrats must ignore the corporate wing of the party and instead put forward a bold agenda.
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