COHA in the Public Arena (January 26 – February 1)

On Thursday, January 25, Director Larry Birns had been interviewed by Emily Alpert from the Los Angeles Times on Haitians immigrants receiving asylum in the article titled; Haitians found at sea not screened for asylum, U.N. agency says.

Mr. Birns was quoted saying:

Fears of a mass exodus and the assumption that Haitians were simply fleeing the extreme poverty of the island have influenced their treatment in decades past, experts say. Between 1981 and 1990, for instance, only 11 out of nearly 23,000 Haitians found at sea were considered eligible to apply for U.S. asylum, according to the Council on Hemispheric Affairs.

Unlike Cubans, who were able to push for some added protections, “the Haitians had very little political clout,” said Larry Birns, director of the council. “Theirs was a muffled voice.”

That is beginning to shift as the Haitian Diaspora becomes more empowered, Birns said, but its influence “has been imperceptible until recently.”

Article Citation

On Friday, February 1, COHA Director Larry Birns and Senior Research Fellow Frederick B. Mills article “Best Time for U.S. – Cuba Rapprochement Is Now – Analysis” had been published in the Eurasia Review

On Saturday, January 26, Research Associate Darya Vakulenko article “Troubles Mount for Uribe at Home” had been published in Democratic Underground

On Tuesday, January 25, Research Fellow W. Alex Sanchez article“4 more years Obama to address foreign policy towards Latin America” had been published in VOXXI