Contributing Writers: Azad Ali, Tangerine Clarke,
George Alleyne, Nelson King,
Vinette K. Pryce, Bert Wilkinson
GENERAL INFORMATION (718) 260-2500
Caribbean Life, F 10 ebruary 21-27, 2020
By Esther Ngumbi
ILLINOIS, United States,
Feb 14, 2020 (IPS) — Recently,
the Associated Press cropped
out Ugandan climate change
activist Vanessa Nakate from
a photo at the World Economic
Forum. The remaining
activists in the photo, including
Greta Thunberg, were all
white.
While the AP cited picture
composition as the reason
for the edit and later apologized
for their actions, it still
happened. The editing out of
Nakate – who said it felt like
her story had been erased —
calls for a deeper reflection on
the issue of diversity, inclusion,
and the lack of representation
of people of color and
other marginalized groups in
key global conversations.
In fact, people of color
should be the ones we hear
from the most when it comes
to issues like climate change.
According to climate research
and many reports, including
the recently released IPCC
report, the outcomes of climate
change disproportionally
affects people living in
developing countries.
Highlighting activists of
color is good for everyone.
Convincingly, a growing body
of evidence shows that when
minorities and underrepresented
voices are included,
and their voices and actions
displayed, including in science,
everyone benefits
For example, in March of
2019, flooding events in Malawi
and Mozambique brought
about by climate change
affected and disrupted the
lives of nearly 843,000 people.
In addition, in the same year,
drought, floods, and conflicts
brought about by the changing
climate, contributed to
soaring levels of hunger in
the horn of Africa.
According to Save the Children,
nearly 13 million people
were affected by hunger
with children making half the
number.
Instead, climate activists
and voices from these communities
must be centered
in global conversations if we
are to sustainably mitigate
climate change. They bring
in firsthand experience which
can greatly inform climate
change conversations, science,
action, and policy.
As an African climate
change activist who has greatly
benefited from media visibility,
I strongly feel we must
highlight activists of color in
the media – it matters who
is featured there. Undoubtedly,
Thunberg is a passionate,
fearless and determined
activist and she deserves to be
celebrated.
But we should also hear
about the actions of young
people like Kaluki Paul
Mutuku from Kenya, who has
been engaged in conservation
work and activism, Leah
Namugerwa, a climate activist
from Uganda, also engaged
with Friday climate strikes
and Ridhima Pandey, a cli-
By Aminta Kilawan-Narine
and Annetta Seecharan
Earlier this month, Maria
Fuertes, a beloved anchor in
our Richmond Hill community
known for her pleasant
and kindhearted nature, was
murdered. We mourn with her
family and many neighbors. As
women, we are gutted by this
horrific crime that ended her
life with such brutality.
While we must continue
seeking hope and work towards
a world free of violence, including
sexual assault, we must
also recognize how we as a
community have failed and
how the system has failed us.
As Guyanese-Americans who
have both dedicated decades
to serving our community of
nearly 140,000 Guyana-born
New York City residents, we
acknowledge that we need to do
more to ensure the necessary
supports for our neighbors to
prevent a tragedy like this from
ever happening again.
But in this time of our
community’s mourning, we
are sickened that our federal
government is feeding on our
grief to drive its anti-immigrant
agenda. U.S. Immigration
and Customs Enforcement
(ICE) has blatantly politicized
the killer’s background as an
undocumented immigrant to
marginalize our community
and dehumanize all immigrants.
Our community members
are reaching out to one another
to seek healing. And yet, our
nation’s leadership chooses to
use this as an opportunity to
foster racialized fear and stoke
anger while asserting that they
know what keeps our communities
safe.
We are troubled by the
Trump Administration’s blatant
attempt to pit community
members against one another
based on immigration status
OP-EDS
We are troubled
by the Trump
Administration’s
blatant attempt
to pit community
members against one
another based on
immigration status
and to take aim at
New York City’s
policies. Since ICE’s
statements about
the Fuertes tragedy,
lawmakers in Arizona
and Oklahoma
have introduced
legislation that
would prohibit
municipalities from
adopting sanctuary
policies. This is
deeply concerning.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR are welcome from all readers. They should be addressed care of this newspaper to the Editor,
Caribbean-Life Publications, 1 MetroTech Center North, Brooklyn, New York 11201, or sent via e-mail to caribbeanlife@
schnepsmedia.com. All letters, including those submitted via e-mail, MUST be signed and the individual’s verifiable
address and telephone number included. Note that the address and telephone number will NOT be published and the
name will be published or withheld on request. No unsigned letters can be accepted for publication. The editor reserves
the right to edit all submissions.
Continued on Page 11
Continued on Page 11
Founded 1990 • Published by Brooklyn Courier Life LLC
Corporate Headquarters: One Metrotech Center North, Suite 1001, Brooklyn, NY 11201
PRESIDENT & PUBLISHER: Victoria Schneps-Yunis
CEO & CO-PUBLISHER: Joshua Schneps
ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER: Ralph D’Onofrio
EDITOR EMERITUS: Kenton Kirby
ASSOCIATE EDITOR: Kevin Williams
This newspaper is not responsible for typographical errors in ads beyond the cost of the space occupied
by the error. All rights reserved. Copyright© 2019 by Brooklyn Courier Life LLC. Caribbean
Life is protected by Federal copyright law. Each issue of Caribbean Life is registered with the Library
of Congress, Washington, D.C. The Caribbean Life, its advertisements, articles and photographs, may
not be reproduced, either in whole or part, without permission in writing from the publisher except
brief portions for purposes of review or commentary consistent with the law.
Amplifying voices of
climate activists of color
Don’t let hate and
fear turn New Yorkers
against each other
Ranton Anjain, 17, from the Marshall Islands, speaks at a press conference announcing
a collective action being taken on behalf of young people facing the impacts of
the climate crisis. UNICEF / Radhika Chalasani
/schnepsmedia.com