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Colombian and American citizens join in this petition for USAID to treat Afro-Colombians the same way Afro-Americans would be treated: as partners, not as voiceless fund recipients.
The advance for race equality in Colombia needs an empowered Afro-Colombian civil society, and the American cooperation is not doing an adequate job, as explained in these articles: (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
Consequently, Mr. President and USAID Colombia, we publicly ask that you:
Afro-Colombian Mission at the 45 ALC Congressional Black Caucus, sept 2015, with Rep Emanuel Cleaver, II.
1. Maintain in the post-conflict Plan Colombia a specific amount of resources for the aid of indigenous and Afro-Colombian groups.
2. Direct such resources to improve high impact indicators in both economic and welfare aspects of the Afro-Colombian population, as well as improve their strategic capabilities.
3. Agree on said indicators from now between USAID and Afro-Colombian leadership, a task yet undone.
4. Help direction the American cooperation with the Afro-Colombian population towards something more in line with your words in the Civil Society forum from the seventh Summit of the Americas in Panama:
“When we are helping an organization that is trying to empower a minority group inside a country to get more access to resources, we’re not doing that because it serves our own interests; we’re doing it because we think it’s the right thing to do”
Respectfully, and thankful for you attention,
Fundación Color de Colombia
Daniel Mera Villamizar
Maura Nasly Mosquera
Luisa Pino
Rodolfo Ogliastri Rangel
Jaime Gómez Gómez
Jefferson Sánchez
Yancili Lozano-Torres
Fredis Alberto Mosquera Pedroza
Olga Patricia Valencia Giraldo
Diana Durán
Yulian Segura
Lenny Vanessa Salamandra Pacheco
EDUARDO Gómez GONZáLEZ
Jady Arriaga
EUDES COPETE QUINTO
Rocio Leonor Palacios Romero
Francisca Pacheco Rentería
Antonio Copete
….