Garifunas are the Afro indigenous descendants of St. Vincent, when the Spanish and British exiled them in the eighteenth century they ended up on the northern coast of Honduras and Belize, as well as other Central American countries such as Guatemala and Nicaragua.

They were seen as inferior to mestizos and white Latinos therefore becoming isolated and having their own land. Now rich people in Honduras see that their land is valuable. They are building 5 star hotels where these communities are supposed to be. They are forcing them to sell their properties, which is illegal.

But they are threatened with eviction if they do not sell. They also banned Garifunas from fishing in their bodies of water and they have to travel 50 miles by boat to put food on their families table. Soldiers have over policed Garifuna communities and have shot women and children. The Honduran army is funded by the US and by the Leahy Law, it is illegal for the US to fund militaries or governments that infringe upon human rights, but this is still continuing.

The buying of these sacred Garifuna lands has been justified by claiming that Garifunas are “foreigners” despite them being in Honduras since before the nation had gotten its independence in 1821. Randy Jorgensen, a retired Canadian millionaire is one of the main culprits in the intervention of Garifuna lands.

Please sign this petition to raise awareness, Central American issues are not talked about enough, especially the ones regarding black Central Americans.