We, AfroResistance, in the spirit of the International Decade of Afro-Descendants, requested the attention of the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent (WGEPAD) so that the proposals and recommendations that were presented at WGEPAD’s 27th session be taken into account as they evaluate the Member States and their current practices in upholding the rights of Black people in the Americas.
WGEPAD’s theme this year was “The Urgency of Now: Systemic Racism and the Lessons of 2020.”
This thematic session built on the WGEPAD’s report COVID-19, systemic racism, and global protests and set the scene for the mid-term review of the International Decade for People of African descent and 20th anniversary of the the Durban Declaration of and Plan of Action (DDPA). It included discussions on the key themes and priorities for the protection of the human rights of people of African descent, positive developments, good practices, and how to address systemic racism based on international human rights law.
At the end of the session, the Working Group adopted conclusions and recommendations. A report on the session will be presented to the United Nations Human Rights Council. On Violence against women and girls in the Americas, Ana Paula Barreto, Program Director at AfroResistance, said “As we are fighting the COVID-19 pandemic and its negative impact on women and girls, especially Black women and girls, a pandemic of femicide and gender-based violence is taking the lives of women and girls everywhere as well as in the Latin America region.”
Read Barreto’s full statement and AfroResistance’s recommendations here.
Speakers at WGEPAD 27th session included: Ana Paula Barreto, Program Director for AfroResistance Imani Jacqueline Brown, Economic inequality fellow with Open Society Foundations Benjamin Lloyd Crump, Founder of Benjamin Crump Social Justice Institute.
AfroResistance, previously known as the Latin American and Caribbean Community Center, is a 10-year-old organization, with the mission of educating and organizing for human rights, democracy, and racial justice throughout the Americas.
www.afroresistance.org
