Fighting discrimination.

• Author: Conaway, Janelle
• Position: OAS/INTER-AMERICAN SYSTEM

A NEW EFFORT TO address the problem of racism and promote the rights of Afro-descendants in the Americas has been launched by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.

Commission president Clare K. Roberts was named the first Special Rapporteur for the Rights of Persons of African Descent and Against Racial Discrimination, during the Commission's most recent biannual session, which ended March 11.

Brazil donated $65,000 to help fund the first year of operations of the newly created rapporteurship. In presenting the contribution, Douglas Martins, Executive Secretary of the Special Ministry for Racial Equality in Brazil, called the Commission's initiative "a historic development in hemispheric cooperation," noting that his own country and others in the region must do more to promote equality and fight discrimination.

Roberts, for his part, stressed that people of African descent have historically suffered from racism and discrimination, as well as from invisibility and lack of information. Through cases and on-site visits to countries, the Inter-American Commission has found that "where there is a persistence of unequal distribution of wealth, the Afro-descendants are the most affected," said Roberts, a citizen of Antigua and Barbuda who has served on the Commission since 2002.

The new rapporteurship will seek to raise awareness of member states' responsibility to eliminate racial discrimination and respect the rights of Afro-descendants; analyze the current challenges countries face in this area; recommend ways to overcome obstacles; and support states as they implement recommendations in national law and practice. It will also prepare reports and studies on issues related to racism and racial discrimination...