Through our fund raising and with the generous support of organizations like The Reverend A. Joseph Bissonette Foundation and the The Riverside Salem UCC, the Latin America Solidarity Committee sends emergency humanitarian aid as well as support for national groups which aid in the struggles for justice, human rights and dignity in Latin America. We urge everyone interested in these issues to learn about the work of these groups and support them.
We are grateful to all those individuals who over the years have have contributed to the work of LASC by their actions and donations.
Organizations that we have verified as active and effective and which we currently support are:
The Alliance for Global Justice works for social change and economic justice by supporting grassroots organizing, sharing political analysis, mobilizing for direct action, and monitoring the centers of corporate and government power. www.afgj.org
CISPES(Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador)--For over 30 years this international organization has worked on issues such as the Death Squads which was initiated by an El Salvador political party, supported education programs in El Salvador schools, supported political parties that propose fair and democratic elections Contact--CISPES, 1525 Newton St. NW, Washington, DC 20010 www.cispes.org
Latin American Working Group aims to ensure that US policies advance human rights, peace, and social, environmental, and economic justice in Latin American and the Caribbean.
www.lawg.org
The Maya Educational Foundation supports educational and professional opportunity programs for Maya groups from remote areas dedicated to maintaining their Maya cultural heritage. It funds scholarships for students, particularly for women and girls, from communities in Guatemala, Mexico, and Belize. www.mayaedufound.org
Mothers Club of Haiti--Fortunately we have a person who is on the organizing committee here in W.N.Y. Kathy Mang has a deep concern for the welfare of the Haitian people. The organization, made up of mostly women, has set up banking and other essential cooperatives. Over recent years this has been a major benefit to the Haitian people, whose country is the poorest in the Western Hemisphere.
Contact:Mothers Club of Haiti, 311 1st St. NW, Crosby, MN,56441
The Network in Solidarity with the People of Guatemala (NISGUA) has, for over 36 years, built ties between the people of the United States and Guatemala in the global struggle for justice, human dignity, and respect for the Earth, by means of human rights accompaniment, digital organizing, strategic campaigns, and political education. www.nisgua.org
RIGHTS ACTION--A recently formed international solidarity organization started in Canada and the US which is very much committed to human rights throughout Latin America. In Colombia, Rights Action have advocated the support of farm workers union, support of political prisoners, involved in churches that declare themselves against violence, and mostly the resettlement of people on the land since the country experienced the longest civil war in Latin America. www.rightsaction.org
Rural and Migrant Ministries--For over 30 years RMM has been active in supporting Migrant Farm Workers and their families in N.Y.S.Working with the youth of farm workers. RMM has developed a summer camp that empowers young people to involve themselves with such issues as justice, support of artists, health issues, development of art and music skills throughout their young years. When it comes to legislation that would support farmworkers in the field they continue for over 25 years to advocate the inclusion of farm workers with others in N.Y.S under the NYS Labor Laws or RMM, POB 4757, Poughkeepsie, NY 12602. 845-485-8627 www.ruralmigrantministry.org
School of Americas Watch/WHINSEC works to end all forms of US aggression and military, economic, and political intervention against the people of Latin America .
www.S0AW.ORG
Witness for Peace is grassroots organization working to support peace, justice and sustainable economies in the Americas by changing U.S. policies and corporate practices that contribute to poverty and oppression in Latin America and the Caribbean. Participants in WFP delegation trips to Latin America meet with policy experts, activists working for peace, and communities working for justice. www.witnessforpeace.org
Sophia’s Circle & Weaving for Justice support Mayan weaving traditions with the earnings of coop members and their families to enable living on ancestral lands and not having to migrate in search of wage labor.
www.weaving-for-justice.org
VIVE LaCasa at 50 Wyoming Avenue, Buffalo, NY - in March 2015 became part of Jericho Road Community Health Center. VIVE is an interfaith organization which assists refugees seeking protection under the Geneva Convention in Canada and the United States with a 30 year legacy of providing safety, shelter, food and legal help.
www.vivelacasa.org
LASC also administers financial support for a free dental clinic in Chenalhó in the Highlands of Chiapas, Mexico. This clinic was started by Dr. Tom Potts, a long time member of the LASC Coordinating Committee.
In addition we supply emergency aid when humanitarian crises arise. For instance, in 2018 we sent $500 to a Mexican NGO assisting thousands of Tsotsil Mayas in Chalchihuitan and Chenalhó who fled to wet, cold and unsheltered mountain areas when a smoldering land dispute turned to bloodshed, and we coordinated contributions by others.