The Foreign Terrorist Designation
On May 2 the United States Department of State designated Haiti’s most powerful gangs, the Viv Ansanm gang coalition and the Gran Grif gang, as foreign terrorist organizations and “specially designated global terrorists.” Gran Grif is the most powerful gang in the Artibonite department, which is the location of the commune of Gros Morne and Quixote Center’s long term partners.
A State of Crisis and Human Misery
“Apparently nobody wants to know that contemporary history has created a new kind of human beings – the kind that are put in concentration camps by their foes and in internment camps by their friends.” – Hannah Arendt (1)
Community-Led Rural Development in Gouin, Haiti
Our partners with the Haitian Christian Community Development (DCCH) have many years of experience in implementing economic development programs in Haiti. They know better than anyone the pitfalls of poorly implemented projects that create a state of dependency rather than empowering the local communities to sustain their livelihoods and build a dignified life.
The Signs of the Times
More than half of the people in Haiti are facing severe hunger, with at least 8,000, specifically among those displaced and living in tent camps, facing starvation. Gang violence killed 5600 people in 2024, with more than one million people displaced. The violence, death, hunger and displacement are a result of weak U.S. gun laws and weak enforcement that enriches manufacturers and dealers and enables illegal gun trafficking across the Caribbean.
Panama: The Epicenter of US Border Externalization Tactics
Quixote Center is set to embark on another Solidarity Trip to Panama (March 23-30) in partnership with the Franciscan Network for Migration (FNM).
Gun Trafficking from the US Fuels Migration
The link between gun violence and migration is evident. If any US administration is serious about curbing migration, they need to stop the flow of US weapons that end up in the hands of gangs and cartels. Gun violence in Latin America and the Caribbean is a main driver of forced migration.
Updates from Quixote Center Work in Haiti
Gang Violence, TPS, and Advocacy
In February, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) rescinded the extended designation of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haiti, ending legal protections for Haitians with TPS living in the United States on August 3, 2025.
The Self-Dealing US Administration
Most of you reading our communications probably do not receive the MAGA emails. Exposure to them is an eye-popper.
They are a barrage of pitches to buy Trump stuff: caps, cups, coins. Anecdotally, attempts to unsubscribe are futile. Some days they send 4 or 5 emails trying to get people who are on their list to tell them how great is MAGA by filling out their surveys, buying their stuff, and claiming prizes. All this money and adulation is going to someone who is already a billionaire.
Who benefits from the US immigration system?
The immigration system in the US is dysfunctional, with decades of failed attempts at comprehensive immigration reform. The reason: powerful interest groups are profiting from it. Although immigrants founded the United States, and our nation is supposed to be a land of opportunity for those seeking the “American Dream”, the US has a complex history of anti-immigrant sentiment with cycles that have pushed and pulled people from all parts of the world.
US Border Shutdown and Deportation Flights Leads to Humanitarian Crisis in Panama
Quixote Center is Anti-Racist
Quixote Center is an anti-racist organization. The history of racism, systematic oppression and exploitation of people of color began with the origins of this country and continues with devastating effects today among communities of color. These include pervasive anti-Blackness as a hallmark of living in the United States, and the notion that making America great includes expelling immigrants of color. We believe that efforts toward diversity, equity and inclusion are what is making our country great.