Dwa Fanm

Dwa Fanm "(meaning "Women's Rights" in Haitian Creole) is a women's advocacy organization. It was created in 1999 when a group of eight Haitian and American women from diverse socio-economic and political backgrounds met to discuss the state of women's rights in Haiti and in Haitian immigrant communities in the United States. Dwa Fanm is committed to the eradication of all forms of discrimination, injustice and violence against Haitian women and girls. It seeks to empower Haitian women and girls in the United States, Haiti and elsewhere, so that they may live in society and within the many Haitian immigrant communities as equal agents and participants in all aspects of their lives. Dwa Fanm's founding members are now its Board of Directors and Advisory Board. Dwa Fanm is anchored in Brooklyn, home of the largest Haitian diaspora community in the United States...

"Dwa Fanm received a Union Square Award in December 2001."

"In September 2000, the Open Society Institute awarded a fellowship to a member of Dwa Fanm to develop a Haitian community-based organizing project on domestic violence. Haitians Against Violence at Home (HAVH), Dwa Fanm's largest initiative, is based in a confidential location in New York and advocates for women at risk, battered women and survivors. HAVH has undertaken an educational campaign against violence to women through workshops on public Haitian television and radio, well known Haitian street corners, and at community based organizations and institutions throughout New York City. Through these workshops and referrals, HAVH helps battered women survive domestic violence by teaching them about their right to safety, birth control options, ways of protecting themselves from sexually transmitted diseases like HIV/AIDS, and opportunities for financial independence."

2003 Directors

 * Dr. Carolle Charles
 * Regine Dupuy McCalla
 * Gina Cheron
 * Fiona Peck
 * Sylvie Michel
 * Michele Stephenson
 * Connie Walsh
 * Carine Jocelyn
 * Darlie Gervais
 * Florence Comeau
 * Martine Caezare Francois
 * Farah Tanis (now Dwa Fanm’s Executive Director)

(We would like to acknowledge and thank our wonderful volunteers: Florence Duchantier and Patrick Augustin.)

The Restavek Project
The Restavek Project is a "project of Dwa Fanm dedicated to research, education, advocacy, assistance and the eradication of restavek and other forms of modern day slavery systems in the Haitian, African and other immigrant communities of the New York City...

Community Voices Against Restavek Practice


 * The New York State Office Of Refugee Resettlement
 * Bonaventure Ezekwenna, Africans In America, Inc.
 * Suzanne Tomatore, Esq., Association Of The Bar Of The City Of New York Fund, Inc.
 * Association of Haitian Social Workers
 * Marco A. Mason, Caribbean Women's Health Association, Inc
 * Herold Dasque, Haitian Americans United For Progress, Inc
 * Msgr. Guy Sansariq, Haitian Apostolate Center
 * Marie-Jose Bernard, Haitian Bilingual E.S.L. Technical Assistance Center
 * Frantz Latour, Haitian Community Center Of Philadelphia
 * Sergeant Guy Cethoute, Haitian Law Enforcement
 * Carine Jocelyn, MPH., Haitian Women's Program
 * Florence Comeau, Interlink Translation Services

Contact

 * Web: http://www.dwafanm.org