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Liza Detenber

Adoptions From Guatemala Face an Uncertain Future - New York Times - 0 views

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    This article article talks about the uncertain future adoptions from Guatemala have. Nowadays the adoption system is very corrupt and in many cases mothers are forced and bribed to give up her children, rather than needing to give them up. Guatemala is the second largest popular country for adoption, just below China. So, if Guatemala were to discontinue adoptions from the U.S., it would change the structure of the U.S. as well. So, although adoption is not yet closed, officials are advising people to be cautious when planning to adopt from Guatemala.
thomas hatley

BBC NEWS | Americas | Uruguay allows same-sex adoption - 0 views

  • "It's not about religion, philosophy or sociology. It's something which is mainly about the respect of human nature itself," he said in a statement quoted by AFP.
  • The change - opposed by the Catholic Church - is the latest in a series of liberalising measures supported by left-wing President Tabare Vazquez.
    • thomas hatley
       
      Uruguay passed a trailblazing law on September 9th of this year, allowing homosexual couples to adopt children. Uruguay is a predominately catholic country, and same-sex adoption goes directly against some principles of catholicism. Uruguay was also the first Latin American country to allow divorce, and recently allowed homosexual individuals into military schools, as noted in the article.
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    Uruguay passed a trailblazing law on September 9th of this year, allowing homosexual couples to adopt children. Uruguay is a predominately catholic country, and same-sex adoption goes directly against some principles of catholicism. Uruguay was also the first Latin American country to allow divorce, and recently allowed homosexual individuals into military schools, as noted in the article.
Courtney Connors

Uruguay approves Latin America's first gay adoption law - Yahoo! News (SB#1) - 0 views

  • Uruguay lawmakers Wednesday adopted a trailblazing law allowing gay and lesbian couples to adopt children, in an unprecedented move for Latin America
  • 17 out of 23 senators voting in favor of the legislation.
  • Gay adoptions remain contentious worldwide, and Uruguay, a nation of some 3.5 million people, is taking another step away from its more conservative neighbors after having already authorized gay civil unions last year
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  • President Tabare Vazquez, the first leftist leader in Uruguayan history, already opened access for homosexuals to military schools in May
  • The Catholic Church is against the bill because "from Genesis in the Bible, it says that 'God created man and woman
  • Uruguay has a long tradition of leading the way in civil rights, and has shown a desire to move ahead quickly on such questions
  • Uruguay was the first country in the largely Catholic South American region to approve divorce in 1907, and gave women the right to vote in 1932
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    On Wednesday, September 9, 2009, the legislative branch in Uruguay passed a bill allowing for gay and lesbian couples to adopt children. This law had major support from the Senators in a 17 out of 23 vote and is unlike any other gay rights movement bill in Latin America. Liberal activists hope this is just the first step in a very long line of the liberation of not only gay rights, but human rights. Uruguay is also noted to be the first Latin American country to approve divorce and women's right to vote.
Atsuyoshi Ishizumi

Lawmakers in Uruguay Vote to Allow Gay Couples to Adopt - NYTimes.com - 0 views

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    Lawmakers recently voted to extend adoption rights to gay couples in Uruguay, the latest measure to relax laws on homosexuality that has drawn criticism from Roman Catholic churches. Members of Congress said the law made Uruguay the first country in Latin America to permit gay couples to adopt. However, gay marriage still remains illegal, which means they cannot adopt jointly as a couple.
Sam Obstfeld

Uruguay Lawmakers OK Gay Adoption - 0 views

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    According to this article, on August 27, 2009, lawmakers in Uruguay voted to legalize to allow homosexual couples to adopt. This makes Uruguay the first Latin American country to do so. The Roman Catholic Church in Uruguay opposed the bill, but it was passed 40-13 in favor. Uruguay has also legalized homosexual civil unions and has ended a ban on homosexuals in the armed forces.
janegelb

Abuse Trails Central American Girls Into Gangs - New York Times - 0 views

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    This article discusses the experiences of several young women involved in large Guatemalan gangs. Studies have found that almost 40% of gangs are constituted of young women (ages 14-21). These youths are living on the streets, and their fellow gang members often coerce them into group sex and group beatings. They are forced to have sex with most members of the gang, and kill someone, just for initiation. Admist the violence in Guatemala, young children are being orphaned, and end up getting involved in street gangs and violence. The article mentions how sometimes children are beaten at home, and they join a gang to "escape" it, when in reality, they are being beaten by the gangs, "their adopted family", as well. Gang leaders hold intense social control on their members.
Liza Detenber

EDUCATION-LATIN AMERICA: Let's (Not) Talk About Sex - IPS ipsnews.net - 0 views

    • Elizabeth Hughes
       
      Many countries-Venezuela, Argentina, Brazil, and Cuba-are considering it mandatory to teach sexual education in primary schools. Many believe that the exclusion of sexual education has impacted the number of cases of sexual abuse, sexually transmitted diseases, and teenage pregnancies. The goal is to bring awareness to these issues in hopes of decreasing the rates and to teach children how to make choices responsibly.
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    Many countries-Venezuela, Argentina, Brazil, and Cuba-are considering it mandatory to teach sexual education in primary schools. Many believe that the exclusion of sexual education has impacted the number of cases of sexual abuse, sexually transmitted diseases, and teenage pregnancies. The goal is to bring awareness to these issues in hopes of decreasing the rates and to teach children how to make choices responsibly.
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    Sexual education is not a universally required subject in schools across Latin America and the Caribbean. Even in countries with laws requiring that students be taught sexual education, there are huge gaps in the laws. Countries and schools that have adopted sexual education have found a significant drop in the rate of pregnancy in young women, school dropouts due to pregnancy and/or marriage, and contraction of HIV/AIDS. Many conservative sectors, including the Catholic Church, are strictly against this form of education, in favor of an abstinence only education, or simply no sexual education at all.
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    Almost all of Latin America is required to provide sexual education classes for their students, however, these laws are widely ignored. Many children do not receive the proper knowledge about sex until the age of 12 or 13, even though a study conducted in Cuba shows that this is the age children are becoming sexual active. Without the knowledge of the issues of sex it leads to an increase in sexual abuse, sexually transmitted diseases, and many abandoned babies. The article also states that children in Argentina do not receive sexual education at all because of the conservative sectors in the area. Many committees and groups are lobbying to help make sexual education more prevalent in students education.
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    This article discusses the role of sexual education and how it affects the prevention of STDs, unplanned pregnancies, sexual abuse, and HIV/AIDS. Many countries in Latin America have laws stating that sexual education must be taught at schools, however in many of these countries this is not happening. Studies have shown that because these children are not receiving sexual education there are higher rates of unplanned pregnancy, STDs, sexual assault, and earlier ages of engaging in dangerous sexual activities.
Arabica Robusta

Alex Main, "Will New Report Pave the Way for Honduras' Reincorporation into the OAS?" - 0 views

  • The diverging positions of the commissioners are reflected in the text of the report.  On the one hand, several passages in the "Background" section suggest that President Porfirio Lobo, elected in controversial elections held under the coup regime late last year, has made significant efforts to repair the damage done by the coup with measures such as the creation of a so-called "Unity Government" and the Creation of a Truth Commission made up of "national and international personalities of prestige and proven track record," according to the authors.  This section of the report also highlights the Honduran Congress' decision to review an alleged case of corruption perpetrated under the coup regime of Roberto Micheletti and appears to belittle the widespread accusations of ongoing human rights violations and repression of the opposition (it states that "some sectors insist" that the violations are still occurring despite the fact that major human rights organizations, including the OAS' own Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and Human Rights Watch, express the same concern in recent reports).
  • However, the final "Conclusions and Recommendations" section of the report is less favorable to the Lobo government.  In contrast with the "background" section, it explicitly recognizes the gravity of the human rights situation with a call for the "cessation of impunity for human rights violations" and the "adoption of measures to put an end to threats and harassments against human rights defenders, journalists . . . and members of the National Popular Resistance Front" (NPRF) as well as "measures issued to protect the lives and bodily integrity of numerous persons who are at risk."  Perhaps most significantly, it questions the Lobo government's justifications for maintaining some of the criminal charges against President Zelaya -- and thereby preventing him from returning without the risk of immediate prosecution -- and states that "the Commission considers it useful to put an end, in accordance with Honduran law, to the legal actions initiated against" the former president and his associates.
  • The NPRF may have the satisfaction of at last being recognized by the OAS as a significant Honduran actor -- indeed it is the first time that references to the group appear in an OAS document -- but the report makes no mention of its long-standing demand for a referendum on whether to convoke a constitutional assembly; nor does it take into account its demand for representation within the Truth Commission, whose Honduran members are all associated with Lobo's National Party.
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  •  In all likelihood -- and despite the best efforts of Insulza and the State Department -- Honduras will not be readmitted any time soon to the hemispheric organization.  South America's refusal to bend to Washington's will is a distinct sign of the times and will hopefully serve as a lesson to any coup plotters in the region: that military coups can no longer be as easily whitewashed and forgotten as was so frequently the case in the 20th century.
Courtney Connors

Latin America Weighs Less Punitive Path to Curb Drug Use - NYTimes.com - 0 views

  • he Supreme Court of Argentina opened a path this week to decriminalizing the private consumption of illicit drugs, becoming the latest Latin American country to reject punitive policies toward drug use.
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  • Mexico’s Congress voted to end the practice of prosecuting people found to be carrying small amounts of illicit drugs, including marijuana.
  • The new laws and court decisions in the region reflect an urgent desire to reject decades of American prescriptions for distinctly Latin American challenges
  • In February, a commission led by three former Latin American presidents issued a scathing report that condemned Washington’s “war on drugs” as a failure and urged the region to adopt drug policies found in some European countries that focus more on treatment than punishment
  • Latin America is a source of much of the cocaine and marijuana that is distributed throughout North America and Europe. Latin American leaders are struggling with the need to crack down on violent drug traffickers while also trying to stem consumption. Punishing users in Latin America has led to overcrowded prisons and has done little, if anything, to curb overall consumption
  • The need to resolve the inherent contradictions led to the formation of the commission on drug use
  • the “prohibitionist approach” to drug control had “wreaked havoc throughout the region, generating crime, violence and corruption on a scale that far exceeds what the United States experienced during alcohol prohibition in the 1920s.”
  • In Tuesday’s ruling, the Supreme Court in Argentina declared unanimously that the 2006 arrests for marijuana were unconstitutional under the concept of “personal autonomy” protected by the Constitution.
  • Argentina has a serious drug problem, but not especially with the use of marijuana. The country has one of the highest per-capita rates of cocaine use in the world and a growing problem with synthetic drugs like Ecstasy. Some parts of the country have also been afflicted by the rapid rise of “paco,” a cheap and highly addictive drug that combines small amounts of cocaine residue with toxic chemicals
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    This is an article from the NY Times that discusses the controversy surrounding the Supreme Court of Argentina's decision to decriminalize the private consumption of illicit drugs.
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    In August, the Supreme Court of Argentina decriminalized the private use of illicit drugs. Such inquiries as to whether to accept drug use, help those who are addicted, or maintain the prohibition have arisen internationally at an increased rate recently. The Argentine administration felt that the war on drugs has not succeeded as predicted and it should focus on "treatment (more than) punishment."
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