KAPPA NEWS: LAW AND SOCIAL JUSTICE
Province thoroughly prepared me in developing the project in the Domini- can Republic. Our Noble Clan has a strong representation of brothers from both Haiti and the Dominican Repub- lic who are extremely active concern- ing causes and issues regarding their home country. Therefore, I have been fortunate to have received an in-depth tutorial regarding historical and ongoing issues between Haiti and the Domini- can Republic upon my initiation into the Bond.
Woods Leads Fact-Finding Mission to the Dominican Republic Results in National Bar Association's Call to Reinstate Citizenship of Black Dominicans of Haitian Descent
F rom June 5, 2017 to August 1, 2017, Howard University School of Law Professor John L. Woods, Jr. and a team of Howard law students led a human rights fact-finding mission to the Dominican Republic. The mission was an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) experiential educa- tion project where the students applied their intensive training in international law, human rights law, ADR, and human rights fact-finding skills development to the issue of statelessness in the Domini- can Republic. “From Jim Crow to Apartheid, How- ard University School of Law students have consistently served as the engines of social justice both domestically and abroad,” said Professor Woods, a 2008 alumnus of the law school. “Our students effectively contributed to this rich legacy through their work on this significant project. The Stateless is- sue concerning individuals of Haitian descent born in the Dominican Republic has been a major conundrum for the international community since 2013,” he said. While in the Dominican Republic, the students received a briefing and general overview of the political, economic, and
social matters concerning the Domini- can Republic from the U.S. Embassy. The students also completed field assignments with the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UN- HCR), Heartland Alliance International, OBMICA, and Reconoci.do. The team also visited Haiti and met with Haitian government officials. “Being able to observe firsthand the im- pact of laws, the disparities between the ethnic groups within the country, and the stark contrast between the standards of living in the capitals of the Domini- can Republic and Haiti deepened my understanding of the issues on a micro and a macro level,” said third year law student Kayla Moore. “I appreciated the chance to work, learn, and contribute to the project based on what I learned,” she said. The law school mission prompted an exploratory visit to the Dominican Republic from a delegation of National Bar Association (NBA) officials includ- ing then President Kevin Judd (HUSL ’92) and President-Elect Juan Thomas. In response to their visit and the inves- tigatory efforts of HUSL’s fact-finding team, the NBA passed Resolution No. 2017-6, which said in part, “Black Dominicans of Haitian Descent
have been and continue to be subjected to arbitrary deprivation to nationality, the denial of access to documentations, the denial of access to education, the denial of access to healthcare, a compromised free- dom of travel in and outside of the DR, fractured families as a result of expulsion of family members from the DR, restricted and severely limited access to employment, denial to equal protection of the law, de- nial of voting rights, landlessness, as well as a chilling effect experienced by Black Dominican Women of Haitian Descent in that violence against women goes unre- ported because of fear of deportation.” Further, Resolution No. 2017-6 ac- knowledged the work of Howard Univer- sity School of Law and called for “the Government of the Dominican Republic to Eradicate Statelessness by Reinstating the Citizenship of Black Dominicans of Haitian Descent.” “The dedication and work of our stu- dents has contributed immensely to clar- ifying this complex issue,” said Professor Woods. “Their investigative findings have unearthed pertinent facts that have provided a foundation and framework to assist all interested parties in reaching an equitable resolution. Such efforts are reflected in the recent steps taken by the National Bar Association,” he said.
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