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Courtney Connors

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

news.yahoo.com/...yrightsadoption_20090909172330

Homosexual Adoption Gay Rights Human Rights Legislation Religion

shared by Courtney Connors on 16 Sep 09 - Cached
  • 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
  • ...4 more annotations...
  • 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
  • Courtney Connors on 16 Sep 09
     
    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.
Libba Farrar

HIV/AIDS and Human Rights in Mexico - 0 views

www.wcl.american.edu/...hivmex33.htm

HIV_AIDS Human Rights Government Policy Health Care Sex Education

shared by Libba Farrar on 05 Oct 09 - Cached
  • Libba Farrar on 05 Oct 09
     
    Mexican government made attempts to guarantee the General Health Law that mandated that the government was to enforce the right to health protection, making the law applicable in court cases. When entering into negotiations with neighboring countries in an attempt to enter the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), Mexican government could retained their reputation for its human rights violations; therefore, initiating a domino effect in Mexican government policies. In an attempt to address this issue developed human rights commissions and committees to enforce and tackle the barriers human rights violations presented to the government's involvement in foreign affairs. Although it can be argued that the enforcement of HIV/AIDS screenings at jobs, educational facilities, and the matrimonial sphere presented some violation of basic inalienable rights.
Libba Farrar

Guatemala 1981 - Chapter IX - 0 views

www.cidh.org/...chap.9.htm

Political Persecution Peasants Uprising Political Atrocities Constitutional Political Rights Political Evolution of Guatemalan Government

shared by Libba Farrar on 18 Nov 09 - Cached
  • Libba Farrar on 18 Nov 09
     
    On October 13, 1981 the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights published a report that outlined the political conditions within the republic of Guatemala. Chapter IX of this report focuses on political rights and as such designates five sections that address various aspects of domestic political rights. Within the text the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights devotes one section to the history of politics since the 1940s up until the regime in power during the early 1980s. Along with Guatemala's political history, Chapter IX incorporates political rights as defined under the 1965 Guatemalan Constitution and governmental adherence to such policies as outlined by the Constitution.
Courtney Connors

Latin American Herald Tribune - 21 Hurt in Bombing after Brazil Gay Pride Parade - 0 views

www.laht.com/article.asp

Homosexuality Gay Rights Human Rights Political Movements Legislation

shared by Courtney Connors on 16 Sep 09 - Cached
  • At least 21 people were injured when a homemade bomb exploded at a spot where participants gathered after the gay pride parade in Brazil’s largest city, authorities said Monday
  • Present at the time of the attack were dozens of people who had taken part a few hours earlier in the 13th edition of the gay pride parade that, with close to 3 million participants, is considered the biggest demonstration in the world in defense of gays
  • the bomb was thrown from a building on the square
  • Courtney Connors on 16 Sep 09
     
    Although the other bookmarks for this session have exemplified the positive transition that the gay rights movement has had over time within reference to liberating legislation and basic human rights, this article shows a negative impact that has also occurred. In Brazil, a gay pride parade was held with over three million participants and was going well until a bomb was thrown from a building and injured 21 people in the process. Such an act exemplifies that no matter how far the rights movement has come over the past twenty or so years, there will still be right wing conservative opposition in the near future.
Liza Detenber

BBC NEWS | Americas | Colombia gay rights step closer - 0 views

news.bbc.co.uk/...6759271.stm

Colombia Gay Rights Benefits Equal rights other nations

shared by Liza Detenber on 08 Sep 09 - Cached
  • Liza Detenber on 08 Sep 09
     
    This article discusses the fact that Colombia has been considering offering equal rights to gay couples for a long time. In 2007 the bill passed "by 62-43 after a heated debate in the lower house". Gay couples receive the same rights to "social security benefits as heterosexual couples". Although a few regions have already passed similar bills in Latin America such as Mexico City, Buenos Aires, and Rio Grande do Sul (a province of Brazil), rights like these have not been passed as a whole nation.
Aria Auerbach

Human Rights in Latin America - 0 views

www.derechos.org/...maine.html

human rights crime punishment Latin America impunity privileges justice

shared by Aria Auerbach on 08 Sep 09 - Cached
  • Aria Auerbach on 08 Sep 09
     
    This webpage, although short and succinct has a lot to offer about the basic principles of Human Rights in Latin America. Many of the links at the bottom of the page are also valuable in shaping our understanding of the peoples' rights throughout different countries. The United States grants freedom to the people and allows its citizens many rights and privileges that other countries do not. This website is especially interesting because it discusses the different levels of crime and punishment for each Latin American country.
Shannon Coco

Dissident Voice : The Struggle for Women's Equality in Latin America - 0 views

dissidentvoice.org/...mens-equality-in-latin-america

abortion discrimination gender roles government policy machismo patriarchy poverty women's rights religion

shared by Shannon Coco on 15 Sep 09 - Cached
  • Shannon Coco on 15 Sep 09
     
    A radical newsletter in the struggle for peace and justice. Due to religious influences and beliefs, women do not have the rights to their bodies by law, so they seek alternative methods to have abortions, with a large number resulting in death. Similar to our discussion of sexual education in schools, the 'reality' does not match up with what is taught in schools (especially Catholic ones). Instead of being proactive and preventative, abstinence is taught. iolence against women is coming to the forefront as a major concern in Latin America. Termed "femicide," violence against women by men because they are women is a poor result of the hierarchy of the cultural society in Latin America. Machismo and masculinity influence men to feel that they must act this way from a young way in order to exert their power and strength, but it is unacceptable. This article also discusses women's movements and their fight for equal rights as well as rights to maternity leave and other aspects that women who work must take into account.
Arabica Robusta

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

mrzine.monthlyreview.org/...main030810.html

honduras coup instability democracy zelaya mrzine

shared by Arabica Robusta on 08 Aug 10 - Cached
  • 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.
  • ...1 more annotation...
  •  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

To Fight Femicide in Guatemala, New Law, But Same Culture (SB#4) - 0 views

www.rhrealitycheck.org/...emala-new-law-but-same-culture

Femicide Feminism Machismo Violence War Corruption

shared by Courtney Connors on 18 Nov 09 - Cached
  • Women are being tortured, raped and murdered on a regular basis, with total or almost total impunity, regardless of numerous and unanimous claims for justice from the civil society and even from the international community
    • Courtney Connors
      Courtney Connors on 18 Nov 09
       
      It is going to take more than "urging the Guatemalan Government" to make effective changes for them to actually occur. International sanctions for war crimes against human rights must take place.
  • gone unpunished mainly because of negligence and the lack of effective investigation and prevention strategies of the Guatemalan authorities.
  • ...8 more annotations...
  • Guatemalan
  • The CEDAW Committee and the European Parliament have both urged the Guatemalan government to take all necessary steps to effectively combat violence against women, ensuring full respect for human rights
  • April 9, 2008 the Guatemalan Congress passed the Law against Femicide and other Forms of Violence against Women (Decree 22-2008), that aims to severely punish any kind of gender-based violence, guaranteeing the life, freedom, integrity, dignity and equality of all women, in the private or public sphere, promoting and implementing strategies to prevent and eradicate femicide and any kind of physical, psychological, sexual or economic violence against women.   
  • Decree literally recognizes that the violence and discrimination against women in the country has flourished because of the "power inequality between men and women in the social, economic, legal, political, cultural and family spheres." 
  • The Law typifies femicide as a crime and defines it as the murder of a woman committed because of her gender within a context of unequal exercise of power; it imposes punishments that range from 25 to 50 years imprisonment.
  • "forced prostitution and denying [a woman] the right to use contraceptive methods, whether natural or hormonal, or taking measures to prevent sexually transmitted infections" are considered sexual violence crimes. 
  • 25% of women consider their partner's disapproval as a reason for not using a family planning method. 
  • the dominant 'macho culture' in Guatemala will make it difficult to implement the law."
  • Courtney Connors on 18 Nov 09
     
    Although the previously bookmarked article seeks to establish an outline of the human or women rights violations that occur within Guatemala, here, author Karim Velasco, sheds light upon newly distinguished laws and explains despite their hopeful goals, why they have ceased to work effectively. She argues that because of the "lack of effective investigation and prevention strategies of the Guatemalan authorities", women continue to be raped, tortured, and murdered at an increasing rate. Because of pressures from the European Parliament to abide by human rights laws, "on April 9, 2008, Guatemalan Congressed passed the 'Law Against Femicide and other Forms of Violence against Women Act' to severely punish any kind of gender-based violence..." However, because the violence stems from the power inequality between men and women in the first place, there is little belief or evidence that this Act will be implemented or strongly enforced by the men in power who seek to represent masculinity or display a constant idea of machismo.
Morgan Foster

Guatemala: Agreement on identity and rights of indigenous peoples - 0 views

www.c-r.org/...identity-rights.php

Guatemala Identity Social Rights Economy Politics

shared by Morgan Foster on 17 Nov 09 - Cached
  • Morgan Foster on 17 Nov 09
     
    This article is provided by conciliation resourced. The creators of the laws found in this article discuss topics on the agreement on identity and rights of indigenous people. They include identity of indegenous people, struggle against discrimination, and cultural, civil, political, social and economic rights. It is interesting to see these laws and wonder how often they are followed (not very often at all).
Sophie Bergelson

Southern Mexico Works to Improve Women's Rights - 0 views

www.voanews.com/...2009-06-10-voa10.cfm

Mexico women's rights domestic violence indigenous employment

shared by Sophie Bergelson on 08 Sep 09 - Cached
  • Sophie Bergelson on 08 Sep 09
     
    This article talks about several groups that work to improve the rights of indigenous women in southern Mexico. Their efforts include informing women of their legal rights, giving them job training and help finding a job, and providing them with shelter if they want to leave their homes because of domestic violence.
Jackie Moran

Abortion in Latin America and the Caribbean / Issues and Analysis / Issues and Analysis... - 0 views

www.awid.org/...atin-America-and-the-Caribbean

abortion reproduction religion gender women's rights

shared by Jackie Moran on 16 Sep 09 - Cached
    • Jackie Moran
      Jackie Moran on 16 Sep 09
       
      This article relates to our course because it discusses the issue of abortion in Latin America, and how the region has some of the most restrictive laws concerning the topic in the world. Many women's organizations are fighting to pass laws that will enable them to the right to safe and legal abortion
  • Jackie Moran on 16 Sep 09
     
    This article discusses how Latin America has some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the world, and how women's organizations continue to fight for the right to safe and legal abortion. It is believed that to a certain extent, religion has influenced the criminalization of abortion. However, the women's movement in the region has made progress towards attaining the right to legal abortion.
Shannon Coco

Rights of Indigenous People - Global Issues - 0 views

www.globalissues.org/...rights-of-indigenous-people

indigenous movements UN environmental rights human rights social inequality

shared by Shannon Coco on 17 Nov 09 - Cached
    • Shannon Coco
      Shannon Coco on 17 Nov 09
       
      While the environment provides a mean for the indigenous communities to survive, the degradation of the environment also threatens the human rights of the indigenous people. They have a connection to nature that colonizers do not since they have traditions and ways of working with the land. Through these they provide and take from nature.
Sophie Bergelson

US - El Salvador Sister Cities - Free and Fair Elections - 0 views

elsalvadorsolidarity.org/...index.php

El Salvador fair trade free trade human rights elections farmers

shared by Sophie Bergelson on 09 Sep 09 - Cached
  • Sophie Bergelson on 09 Sep 09
     
    This is a group that came to Wheaton last year to talk about human rights (and violations of those rights) in El Salvador and to promote fair trade and free elections. The website has information about the current political and economic situation in El Salvador and what we can do to help improve it.
Courtney Connors

Foreign Policy: Gays in Latin America: Is the Closet Half Empty? - 0 views

www.foreignpolicy.com/...cms.php

Homosexuality Gay Rights Human Rights Political Movements Legislation

shared by Courtney Connors on 16 Sep 09 - No Cached
  • The region is becoming gayer. It's not that there are more gays and lesbians living in Latin America (we would never know)
  • he region is becoming more gay-friendly
  • Latin America was the land of the closet and the home of the macho
  • ...4 more annotations...
  • In 1998, Ecuador's new constitution introduced protections against discrimination based on sexual orientation. In 1999, Chile decriminalized same-sex intercourse. Rio de Janeiro's state legislature banned sexual-orientation discrimination in public and private establishments in 2000. In 2002, Buenos Aires guaranteed all couples, regardless of gender, the right to register civil unions. The policy changes just kept coming. In 2003, Mexico passed a federal antidiscrimination law that included sexual orientation. A year later, the government of Brazil initiated "Brasil sem homofobia" (Brazil without homophobia), a program with nongovernmental organizations to change social attitudes toward sexuality. In 2006, Mexico City approved the Societal Cohabitation Law, granting same-sex couples marital rights identical to those for common-law relationships between a man and a woman. Uruguay passed a 2007 law granting access to health benefits, inheritance, parenting, and pension rights to all couples who have cohabited for at least five years. In 2008, Nicaragua reformed its penal code to decriminalize same-sex relations. Even Cuba's authoritarian new president, Raúl Castro, has allowed free sex-change operations for qualifying citizen
  • regime change
  • homophobia
  • A recent survey in Brazil, the country with the largest gay-pride parades in the world, showed that 58 percent of respondents still agree with the statement, "Homosexuality is a sin against the laws of God," and 41 percent with "Homosexuality is an illness that should be treated."
  • Courtney Connors on 16 Sep 09
     
    This article proposes the idea that an increasing number of Latin American countries have become more acceptive of gay and lesbian ideals. Due to regime changes, the once "closeted macho" countries now welcome such legislation as protections against sexual discrimination; the decriminalization of same-sex intercourse; grants to health benefits, parenting, and so on in countries like Ecuador, Mexico, Brazil, Uruguay, and NIcaragua.
janegelb

CHILE: Activists Press Candidates to Take a Stance on Women's Rights - IPS ipsnews.net - 0 views

ipsnews.net/news.asp

gender relations cultural change violence masculinity crime

shared by janegelb on 04 Oct 09 - Cached
  • janegelb on 04 Oct 09
     
    Women's rights activist groups in Chile are urging presidential candidates to support women's rights. They want to further the progress they made during the the current government, and are urging all women to vote and take a stand during the presidential elections in December. Some of their prominent issues include the decriminalization of abortion, availability of emergency contraception, and legislature to prevent and rid Chile of violence against women and gender-related murders of women.
Sam Obstfeld

LATIN AMERICA: "Sexuality Is an Essential Part of Humanity" | IPS - Communicating MDG3 ... - 0 views

www.ips.org/...-an-essential-part-of-humanity

Birth Control Contraception Government Policy Sexual Education Sex

shared by Sam Obstfeld on 15 Sep 09 - Cached
  • Sam Obstfeld on 15 Sep 09
     
    This news story is about a "declaration of sexual rights" given by the International Planned Parenthood Federation in Argentina, in which the group asked governments to commit to protecting their citizen's sexual rights, which translates into sexual education and ease of access to contraceptive methods.
thomas hatley

Article:  Death in Guatemala - 0 views

www.medadvocates.org/...death_guatemala.html

Guatemala art violence recovery justice

shared by thomas hatley on 18 Nov 09 - Cached
  • thomas hatley on 18 Nov 09
     
    Opening with a brief introduction to the history of the Guatemalan civil war and subsequent recognition of widespread human rights violations, the author proceeds to interview Daniel Hernandez, a photographer famous for his works dealing with the aftermath of conflict in Guatemala. Hernandez combines human bones exhumed from mass graves with photographs of people, often creating the image of an angel with bones as wings. A piece by Hernandez is used on the cover of the journal released by the Guatemalan Project for the Recovery of Historic Memory, detailing the multitude of previously unrecognized human rights violations.
David Schroeder

Guatemalan Human Rights activists face death threats again - 0 views

www.guatemala-times.com/...-face-death-threats-again.html

violence Guatemala activists guerrillas Army

shared by David Schroeder on 18 Nov 09 - Cached
  • David Schroeder on 18 Nov 09
     
    This article provides actual text messages sent to Guatemalan Human Rights activists that threaten lives of members and their families. Numerous texts were sent to the Protection Unit for Human Rights Defenders in Guatemala, or UDEFEGUA. The text talk about Army files and accuses the activists as being guerrillas. The organization demands that these acts be dealt with by the government and has made all threatening text messages public.
janegelb

Trouble in Paradise: Drug Runners and Battered Wives - New York Times - 0 views

www.nytimes.com/...31mexico.html

domestic violence machismo patriarchy women's rights silence

shared by janegelb on 15 Sep 09 - Cached
  • janegelb on 15 Sep 09
     
    This article interviews a woman named Lidia Cacho who runs a crisis center and discusses the domestic violence issue in Mexico. Many women's rights activist say that domestic violence is one of the ugliest consequences of Mexico's machismo culture. Many domestic violence victims are silent, because of fear and the lack of support from the police. Victims are often followed by their husbands or sent death threats. Lidia Cacho tries to work with domestic violence victims by protecting them and offering them as much support as possible.
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