THAC Press Release - Event Announcement

[bcholmes]

Just five days before a magnitude 7 earthquake hit Haiti, an American and Canadian human rights/social justice delegation was finishing up an 11-day fact-finding mission. During their delegation, they met with grassroots groups, victims of violence, human rights leaders, and even visited the prison.

The delegation had already presented its findings to the Haitian media, and was preparing to present its conclusions to the Canadian and American governments when disaster struck the country. But rather than make those conclusions invalid, the earthquake has emphasized the importance of those findings: for example, findings about aid, and the extent to which assistance is reaching the people on the ground.

BC Holmes is a representative of the Toronto Haiti Action Committee, and a participant in the delegation, her eighth trip to Haiti since 2002. At 7:00pm on Thursday, January 28th, 2010, she will present a report of the delegation's findings: ineffectual aid, flawed elections processes, and an ongoing attack on Haitian wages so that the country remains mired in poverty. And rich countries like Canada and the United States are not just passive observers of these problems: our governments are, at best, deeply complicit and at worst, actively promoting an agenda for Haiti that will allow us to profit at Haiti's expense.

She will also discuss the Haitian earthquake and the international response to this terrible tragedy.

When: 7pm on Thursday, January 28, 2010
Where: OISE (252 Bloor St. W., Toronto), Room 213, Second Floor
Cost: Free!