After the government of the Dominican Republic moved just weeks
after the devastating Haiti earthquake to strip Dominican
citizenship from all Dominicans who were born to Haitian
parents, those who were stripped of their statehood are fighting
back through the American Commission on Human Rights. Earlier
this month, the Commission sent a letter to Foreign Minister
Carlos Morales, informing him of a forthcoming hearing to
investigate a move that many Haitians believe is based in the
racism that has accompanied their treatment by the Dominican
government over the years. “The Commission has decided to
convene a hearing during its 146th regular session to address
the issue of the right to nationality for Dominicans of Haitian
descent in the Dominican Republic,” said the letter also sent to
the country’s ambassador to the Organization of American States
(OAS), Roberto Saladin. According to the Dominican government’s
move, Dominicans of Haitian descent are now regarded as
foreigners, even if they were born in the D