Solidarity with Haitian Immigrant Workers in the Dominican Republic

Stop the Illegal Deportation and Persecution of Haitian Immigrants In the Dominican Republic!



In 2005, more than 20,000 people were rounded up by Dominican authorities and deported from the Dominican Republic to Haiti. Since the start of 2006, more than 15,000 have already been deported. Most of them were undocumented Haitian immigrants. Some were also dark skinned citizens. A number of parents and children were brutally separated. Haitian immigrants have also been beaten, murdered, their houses burned down as an anti-Haitian frenzy has been stirred up by ultra-nationalists. Haitian immigrants in the DR are being scapegoated for the failed neo-liberal policies of the Dominican government, which have caused rising poverty. We say no to racist discrimination and persecution!

Haiti’s governments have failed to assist the newly arrived deportees and have allowed the illegal and inhumane expulsions. Haiti’s governments are also complicit in the pillage of that country’s resources by foreign powers and Haiti’s elites, which has led to the massive exodus of Haitians. We say no to social injustice!

Since 1991, 20,000 to 30,000 Haitians have been deported annually from the DR. There are an estimated 700,000 Haitian immigrants in the Dominican Republic. The Dominican government claims that the majority of them are “illegal.” The Dominican government violates its own constitution by denying Dominican citizenship to children of Haitian parentage born in the DR. As thousands of Haitian immigrant workers are sent back to Haiti every year, thousands more are recruited across the border to replenish the low-wage labor supply in agriculture and in construction. The Dominican and Haitian governments are complicit in this illegal trafficking. The collusion between big business and the governments of both countries drives down wages on both sides of the island. Just as in the US, these “illegal” workers are indispensable to the economy. Their “illegal” status makes it more convenient to exploit them.

We demand amnesty, legalization of status and the end to the persecution of undocumented immigrants here in the United States, in the Dominican Republic and everywhere.

Help stop the persecutions and mass deportations!

Protest Thursday December 7, 2006

Protest the first Thursday of every month, 5:30 to 6:30 pm in front of the Dominican Consulate, Broadway bet. 43rd - 44th Streets

Contact the Dominican Consulate in New York, phone: (212) 768-2480,81,82 & 83. Fax your protest (or this flier) to the Dominican Consulate: (212) 768-2677. Tell them you want the same rights for Haitians in the Republic that both Haitian and Dominican immigrants expect here in the United States! Demand amnesty for Haitian immigrants in the Dominican Republic!

Stop the Expulsions! Stop the Persecutions!

Long Live the Unity Between Dominican and Haitian Workers!

The Grassroots Haiti Solidarity Committee • info [at] grassrootshaiti.org

Download this leaflet at http://www.grassrootshaiti.org and follow our links to more information on the Haitian-Dominican human rights crisis

For more information, call 212-674-9499