Celebration of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

Celebration of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, 03/25/2014

The Ministry of Culture (MINC) and the National Commission for UNESCO and its Associated Schools Project Network commemorated, this Tuesday, the “International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination”, during a ceremony that took place in the Enriquillo Sánchez Auditorium, at the headquarters of the Ministry of Culture (MINC).

The meeting was attended by Luis Brea Franco, Secretary of the Dominican National Commission for UNESCO; Julissa Ureña, UNESCO Focal Point in the Dominican Republic; Kirsis Brito of Associated Schools Project Network (ASPnet); and, Ivelisse Pérez, administrative head of the National Commission for UNESCO, as well as students from various private and public schools.
Attendees enjoyed the essay “The African slaves and their contribution to the social and cultural heritage of the Dominican Republic”, by students of the Los Clavelines Training Center.
Meanwhile, cultural manager and director of Intangible Cultural Heritage at the Ministry of Culture, Geo Ripley, offered the lecture “Evolution of the first human groups”.

At the meeting, the Dominican National Commission for UNESCO and the Associated Schools Project Network recognized the work of writer Miguel Antonio Jiménez for his strong inspiration through the word, for his merits as a poet, and for his literary contributions to the nation.

The artistic section of this event was the responsibility of the group “Tambor voz del ancestro” (Drum Voice of the Ancestor), led by fellow artist Geo Ripley.

The aim of this activity is to collaborate with the international community in commemorating this important day in which teachers and students from the Dominican ASPnet voice the values ??that contribute to the fight against all forms of discrimination and, at the same time, share the wealth of the Dominican cultural heritage through music and dance as an expression of the cultural diversity of the peoples.

The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is observed on March 21st each year. On the same day, but in 1960, police opened fire and killed 69 people at a peaceful demonstration against the apartheid’s “pass laws” in Sharpeville, South Africa.

When the day was proclaimed in 1966, the General Assembly of the United Nations urged the international community to redouble its efforts to eliminate all forms of racial discrimination (resolution 2142).