Rural Haiti provides an excellent case to study the human security crisis threatening women. Haitian women are often single mothers, leading average households of 4-6. In elected positions, female leadership is seldom recognized. With only 3.5% of parliament comprised of female leaders, policies decided at the state level seldom address the challenges women face in the countryside (HDI, 2017). Haiti has the highest mortality rate for children below the age of 5 and expectant mothers in the Western Hemisphere (WHO, 2017). This crisis is a significant one. When a mother struggles, both her life and her child's are threatened.
Yet the human security crisis is not all we can learn from rural Haiti. We can also examine the unique ways women have chosen to respond to this crisis and the potential for female democratic agency. There is a significant lack of elected female officials in Haiti. This fact invites us to consider the impact rural Haitian females, such as the famn chay, are potentially making in Haiti. Famn chay are traditional birth attendants who assist mothers in their home deliveries. They are also first responders in times of crisis, providing meals to hungry families and using their collective resources to benefit children in need. Some famn chay, I suggest, are promoting an innovative form of democratic agency through their local community council, konsey kominote. Such form of agency does not focus on formal mechanisms of representation. Instead, threatened by growing social and income inequalities, this particular group has chosen to organize to address the human security crisis currently threatening women in rural Haiti. / MA / The human security crisis threatening women and children in rural Haiti has motivated Haitian traditional birth attendants known as the famn chay, to generate a response relative to the crisis and generate social change. This crisis is a significant one. When a mother struggles in childbirth, both the life of her and her child’s are threatened. Women in rural Haiti also face gender and economic inequalities. Despite these realities, the famn chay have chosen to mobilize and create what is known as a konsey kominote. Konsey kominote are community groups found throughout rural Haiti and are a key entry points for citizen engagement for many rural Haitians. This study seeks to examine the unique ways the famn chay have chosen to respond to the crisis through their konsey kominote and the potential for female democratic agency. There is a significant lack of elected female officials in Haiti. The historical roots of female gender discrimination stretch as far back as Haiti’s independence. By researching the impact rural Haitian females, such as the famn chay, are making in Haiti, we can begin to discover the potential for female democratic agency existing in rural Haiti.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/87531 |
| Date | 07 February 2019 |
| Creators | Simeunovic, Sara Lynn |
| Contributors | Political Science, Zanotti, Laura, Dupuy, Arnold C., Stephenson, Max O. Jr. |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | ETD, application/pdf, application/pdf |
| Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
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