Operation Reach B.L.A.C.K. - News from the Diaspora

Nobel Prize winner, Wangari Maathai, passes away at age 71

2011-09-27T04:59:00.000-07:00

Nairobi, Kenya - Nobel Peace Prize winner, Wangari Maathai, passed away of cancer on Sunday at the age of 71. As reported by NTVKenya, the human rights activist and environmentalist made history in 2004 after becoming the first woman from Africa to be awarded a Nobel Peace Prize.

Here is a report on the death of Wangari Maathai from NTVKenya:

NTVKenya has also compiled a tribute in Maathai's memory:

Dr. Jill Biden leads US delegation to visit Somalian refugees in Kenya

2011-08-16T05:06:00.000-07:00

Famine terrorizes Southern Somalia, millions at risk of starvation and despair

2011-08-06T04:54:00.000-07:00

video from PBS NewsHour:

UPDATE:
CNN reports that the United States has loosened sanctions in an effort to get Somalia the aid it needs.

video from CNN

President Obama meets with African leaders to discuss democracy in Africa

2011-08-01T08:08:00.000-07:00

First Lady Michelle Obama speaks at Young African Women Leader's Forum

2011-06-25T05:46:00.000-07:00

First Lady Michelle Obama announces trip to Africa, visit with the Young African Women Leaders Forum

2011-06-18T06:47:00.000-07:00

Ivory Coast: Gbagbo arrested

2011-04-12T07:21:00.000-07:00

Reporting by CNN's Dan Rivers:

In Haiti, families try to reconnect with missing children

2010-03-28T18:48:00.000-07:00

Haiti must not be forgotten. One of the issues facing the people of Haiti continues to be that of missing children. Groups like the International Rescue Committee are working to reunite children with their families in the aftermath of January's crushing earthquake.

via The Miami Herald:

by Laura Figueroa

More than two months after the quake, thousands of Haitian children are without their parents. For some, it is somewhat by choice. Families sent their offspring to South Florida to attend school while their parents rebuild their homes and livelihoods. For the ill or injured flown to the United States for emergency care without their relatives knowledge, it was a matter of life and death.

You can read the rest of the article here.

Here's a CNN report on one family's struggle:

Evidence of massacre in Democratic Republic of Congo

2010-03-28T06:38:00.000-07:00

The BBC is reporting new evidence of a horrific massacre (not pictured above) emanating from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Reports suggest that the killing took place in December, 2009 and was carried out by the Lord's Resistance Army in northeastern villages of the DR Congo. The death toll currently stands at 321 people.

via BBC News:

Human Rights Watch says this is one of the worst massacres carried out by the LRA, whose fighters roam across several countries after spreading from Uganda.

The rebel leaders initially claimed to be fighting to install a theocracy in Uganda based on the Biblical Ten Commandments, but they now sow terror in Sudan and Central African Republic, as well as DR Congo.

In the latest attack, the rebels hacked to death villagers and made others carry looted goods. Some 250 people were abducted.

Read the rest of the article here.

Zimbabwe PM opposes gay rights initiative

2010-03-26T04:47:00.000-07:00

Zimbabwe Prime Minister against incorporating gay rights in new constitution

Much attention has been directed at anti-gay legislation proposals in the African nation of Uganda. Another nation, Zimbabwe, is now facing the issue of same sex rights, however its Prime Minister, Morgan Tsvangirai, is squarely against such efforts.

via BBC News:

President Mugabe told a belated celebration of International Women's Day that he had recently learned of moves to introduce gay rights in the new constitution currently being discussed.

"That issue is not debatable, it's not up for discussion," he said, according to the state-owned Herald newspaper.

"It is just madness, insanity. The ancestors will turn in their graves should we allow this to happen."

And Mr Tsvangirai said he agreed.

"Women make up 52% of the population... There are more women than men, so why should men be proposing to men?"

You can read the rest of the article here.

A look at political violence in Somalia

2010-03-15T02:04:00.000-07:00

Tensions have elevated as a result of clashes between that nation's transitional government and the Islamic group known as al-Shabab. The struggle for control in Somalia has resulted in numerous deaths, most recent of which include at least 75 people in the capital of Mogadishu (as reported by CNN's Fredricka Whitfield below).

According to Reuters, the Obama Administration has denied reports that it currently plans to engage militarily on behalf of the tranisitional government. You can read that article here. Still, U.S. interests are present in this region as al-shabab is considered to have ties to al-Qaida. Somalia remains a country of political unrest and the stability of its government appears to be an issue moving forward.

Aid slow to reach rural parts of Haiti

2010-01-24T04:44:00.000-08:00

Though many nations have been quick and generous with their assistance to Haiti, reports say aid is still slow in getting to rural parts affected by the major earthquake.

via USA Today:

by Donna Leinwand

Little basic aid — food, water, and shelter— is reaching the rural towns just an hour outside Port-au-Prince, including the town at the epicenter of Thursday's 6.0 aftershock.

Ten days after the 7.0 earthquake struck, killing more than 1,100 people in the small town of Petit Goave, 30 miles west of Port-au-Prince, just a smattering of aid groups have traveled the two-lane, winding mountain road to deliver supplies, says Bob Fagen of St. Louis, Mo., who has lived two years in the town as field office director for CHF International, an American development group.

You can read the rest of the article here.

African-Americans feel emotional/historical ties to Haitian people

2010-01-19T06:08:00.000-08:00

The tragic events of the past week have sparked a conversation about the historical ties and emotional bond many African-Americans feel towards Haiti and its people. And with the call for assistance growing stronger each day, some African-Americans are beginning to evaluate the roll they might play in the recovery.

Read more

Congressional Black Caucus responds to disaster in Haiti

2010-01-16T06:43:00.000-08:00

Members from the Congressional Black Caucus have reached out to the people of Haiti in the wake of the devastating earthquake that struck the country earlier this week. Here are a few of their statements:

Read more