Anti-racist bracelet campaign

Anti-racist bracelet campaign

by Eric Jackson

The Panamanian Committee Against Racism is selling black and white double bracelets that say “Stand Up… Speak Up, “ which are part of an international campaign against racism and being sold here for the local purpose of raising funds for the Foro Afropanameño’s lobbying campaign to get comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation approved by the National Assembly and signed into law by President Torrijos.

The bracelets can be had for $8, and can be ordered in Panama through Eunice Meneses, the executive secretary of the Coordinator of Afro-Panamanian Organizations at eunice108@hotmail.com or for you folks in the USA through Dr. George Priestley at george.priestley@qc.cuny.edu. For more information about the campaign, one might also contact attorney Alberto Barrow at albertobarrow@yahoo.com.

The proposed law, drafted by a coalition of civic groups, is more than anything aimed at truly implementing Panama’s constitutional provisions against racial discrimination by specifically banning many common discriminatory practices used in the job market. In this sense it’s a continuation of the “don’t ask me for a photo” campaign, which for several years has aimed to eliminate the standard employment practice of requiring a passport-sized photo to be attached to every job application. Such photos are routinely used to screen out black applicants.

Panama's economy and politics are dominated by a wealthy fringe of the less than 10 percent white minority, and from looking at the advertising we see on our television screens, on billboards and in our print publications, one might come to the conclusion that there aren't any black people here. Our tourism promotional materials and tour guides systematically omit any mention that such attractions as Panama Viejo, Fort San Lorenzo and Portobelo were built by black slaves or that most of the people who built the Panama Canal were black people from the West Indies. Yet the reality in Panama is that blacks outnumber whites and that the majority is of mixed race.

Also in this section:
Spay/Panama
SUBMIT!!! to the 2005 Anona Kirkland Writing Contest
Democrats Abroad
Anti-racist bracelet campaign
Escuela Americana celebrates its 20th birthday

community