Sonia Pierre.
1963-2011
- 180º c&D-
Newsletter 11
the first turn for the change is completed
sábado 31 de diciembre de 2011
summary
The spiral.
Fighting Cholera.
JMDS.
Documentation.
A Chrismas Carol.
sábado 31 de diciembre de 2011
the spiral
They say nothing is forever. Day after day, time
has flown by until the moment of farewell
arrived
After 4 years sharing suprises, bitterness,
dreams and successes, Guillermo is leaving
Guaymate and its batyes--the community
which has taken him in as family during his
time there.
“The experience has been extremely valuable
for learning the causes and consequences of
marginalization—which I was able to
experience first- hand.”
Together, side by side with the most underresourced people, we’ve put together
proposals and projects that we’ve been able
to carry out.
sábado 31 de diciembre de 2011
The first surprise was the true desire for
change that the communities have. There is
a magic that flows when the commitment
comes from the heart; this magic has made
it so that youth from the very same
marginalized communities get involved,
discover their potential, and even become
community leaders and interlocutors with
the most prestigious organizations of their
country.
Who
said
that
education
isn’t
transformation? Who said to be afraid?
The natural progression of the projects have
led to the school rising above any one
teacher, taking on values, methods, and the
philosophy of 180 Degrees. Now the true
protagonists of change are the youth
themselves.
None of this would have been possible without
the passion of these young people, the support
of our members and donors, the dedication of
our volunteers, and the unconditional help of
family and friends. To everyone we say,
THANK YOU!! Thus, the dream has become
reality, living in each one of us and taking on a
life of its own.
Everything changes, but the commitment to
others is the thread that unites us and remains
in every stage of our lives. The most essential
always lasts.
Carry on, for the wind that drives us comes
from the heart!
sábado 31 de diciembre de 2011
Fighting cholera
The Pan American Health Organization
(PAHO) has financed one of 180 º
projects to raise awareness about
cholera. This project took place from
October to November 2011 and reached
1,200
people,
across
38
rural
communities surrounding Guaymate.
The objective was to raise awareness among
women who are learning how to read and
write, as they are the ones who are most
able to set safety guidelines for families.
Given their socio-economic condition and
language skills, these women have difficulty
understanding the messages broadcast on
TV and radio over the last year.
sábado 31 de diciembre de 2011
fighting cholera
Given the needs of the population, 180 º
organized the awareness-raising project
using theatre where the participants of
each session had to resolve a conflict.
The discussion that resulted with each
drama revealed the symptoms, treatment,
and prevention methods for cholera—all of
which were also displayed visually with a
mural.
Some data:
Theory needs to drive practice, for the
mothers learned about cholera on their own
and spread the knowledge by visiting
neighbors, and discussing sanitation and the
relevant information with the temporary
workers that arrive from Haiti to work
during the harvest.
sábado 31 de diciembre de 2011
Sesisons made: 34.
Volunteers: 10.
Average initial successes : 2 questions.
Average final successes: 7 questions.
Houses visited: 490.
Total budget: 1054€
jmds
The JMDS are continuing to make large
strides. After finishing the summer camps,
they began extra-curricular classes in 4
batayes. These classes met every Saturday
from September to December.
Their hard work and initiative has been much
appreciated by youth and adult alike, many of
whom who don’t know how to read and write
their name or do basic calculations.
The youth also recognize that they have areas to
work on as well. As such, they will be working
the Peace Corps in the first quarter of 2012 to
develop more of their administrative skills.
sábado 31 de diciembre de 2011
JMDS
Juggling, unicycle, stilts… day by day they’ve
been improving their technique and thanks to
the Network of NGOs of the Dominican
Republic, they have been performing
throughout the entire country.
AECID’s Cultural Center of Spain in Santo
Domingo has contracted them as artists to take
the awareness-raising message about cholera to
15 bateyes in San Pedro de Macoris, in
coordination with Justa Alegria and the Jesus
Peregrino center.
Costumes, juggling balls, reflection and good
music all contribute to a fun and informative
show about the harsh realities of cholera.
sábado 31 de diciembre de 2011
documentation
Dominicans who are the descendants of Haitians
suffer from severe discrimination, for a
multiplicity of reasons. One of the largest barriers
is the loss of their nationality. Although they
have all the necessary legal documentation, since
2007, under Resolution 12, the Central Electoral
Board
has
been
retroactively
revoking
documentation for the children of immigrants.
These Dominicans lose their nationality and thus lose
all their civil liberties: they cannot go to universities,
get married, or declare their children. Considered as
foreigners in their own country, multiple generations
are being affected by these discriminatory measures.
180 º together with other institutions like the Jesuit
Service has been working with people afected by this
measure to identify the causes and consequences of
this situation in order to try to resolve some of the
problems.
sábado 31 de diciembre de 2011
Documentation
The detection of 1300 cases in the
country and the formation of a national
network of affected people has led to an
international campaign, “Reconodi.Do”
which has taken this issue to the
Commission for Human Rights in Latin
America.
The work has not been done in vain. The
Commission just passed Circular 32, which
temporarily allows, all affected people to
complete the necessary documents to go to
university, claim their children, or to get
their national identity card or passport.
Although we are encouraged by the results
this new circular does not cancel the above.
Discrimination remains in the system of
registration and must be vigilant.
sábado 31 de diciembre de 2011
A Christmas carol
T
ell me, how much does a snowflake weigh a hummingbird asked o a dove. Nothing, 'was the reply. If so, I must tell you a story, said the hummingbird. I perch on the branch of a pine tree near the trunk. It began to snow, the snow was
not a heavy storm, it was like a dream without any injury or violence. As I had
nothing to do, I started counting the flakes as they fell on the branches of my
trunk. The exact number was 3,741,952. When the branch fell from the next flake
(which was weightless, as you say) the branch broke. That said, the hummingbird
flew up. The dove, an authority on the subject since the time of Noah, stopped to think and
after a few minutes, he said:
"Maybe it just needed the help of one more person so that solidarity
could find its way in the world" .
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!
sábado 31 de diciembre de 2011