The Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA), Colombia Acuerdo de Paz ONG, and the Institute on Race, Equality, and Human Rights cordially invite you to a hybrid event discussion: 

Racism in the Americas: A Path Forward

with:

Dario H. Vásquez-Padilla, Research Coordinator of the Observatory on Racial Discrimination in Colombia

Alí Bantú Ashanti, Director, Justicia Racial

Vanessa Nascimento, Executive Director, Instituto Peregum

Gustavo Melo Cerqueira, Babalorixá from the Ilê Axé Omi Ogun siwajú terreiro, Criola

and 

Raudemar Ofunshi Hernández, Babalawo/Shaman, President of Colombia Acuerdo de Paz NGO

moderated by

Gimena Sánchez, Director for the Andes, Washington Office on Latin America

The region of the Americas includes 120 million Afrodescendants within Brazil, 4.7 million in Colombia, and 1 million in Cuba. Despite the development of regional and national frameworks to address structural racism and collective ancestral territories, people of African descent in the Americas suffer the most marginalization and exclusion when it comes to poverty reduction, educational improvements, gender equality, child mortality, maternal health, infectious disease prevention, environmental sustainability, and developmental partnerships according to the UN. In the last year of the International Decade for People of African Descent, the panelists will reflect on what advancements were made and the challenges that remain. In 2022 and 2023, Colombia and Brazil both inaugurated progressive governments that have highlighted the need to address the concerns of Afro Descendants and Indigenous communities with an intersectional focus that includes gender and LGBTQ rights. In Colombia, the 2016 peace agreement includes an Ethnic Chapter that upholds ethnic rights. What changes have occurred in Colombia and Brazil and what steps are needed to address structural racism? Both countries have made agreements with the United States to address racial discrimination through the Joint Action Plan to Eliminate Racial and Ethnic Discrimination and Promote Equality (JAPER) and the U.S.-Colombia Action Plan on Racial and Ethnic Equality (CAPREE), where are we with these and what should be considered?  

Location: The Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA)

1666 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 400

Washington, D.C. 20006

Time: Wednesday, November 15 

6:00 pm- 8:00 pm EST

To confirm your attendance in person, please RSVP  

To view this event live, please click here

Interpretation to English from Portuguese and Spanish will only be provided in person