Nun captures human rights accolades from UN

WHEATON—The name of Sister Dorothy Stang, a member of the Congregation of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, has been recognized far beyond the confines of the humble villages of the Amazon Rainforest in Anapu, Brazil. Over the 30 years that she lived with the indigenous populations in the rainforest communities, Sr. Dorothy was a persistent and outspoken advocate for the sustainability of the Amazon and those populations that existed on its fringe. She shed light on the activities of illegal loggers and ranchers involved in the destruction of the rainforest. She opposed illegal profiteers specifically for denying human rights to indigenous populations. For her efforts on behalf of the vulnerable and the environment, Sr. Dorothy was murdered in 2005 in Anapu, Brazil. Today, her name is among a list of seven others whose memories or current efforts were honored with the 2008 UN Human Rights Prize.

Sr. Dorothy “became a symbol of the fight to preserve the rainforest and to protect the rights of the most vulnerable groups,” according to a Dec. 2 UN Wire story. Despite numerous death threats, she continued to protest the destruction of the Amazon and supported poor farmers in their efforts to cultivate sustainable crops.

For more information on the plight of Amazon communities and their efforts to fight genetically engineered plants at http://www.greenpeace.org/international/news/greenpeace-defends-brazil-s-ri, and the Greenpeace Web site that details the illegal agricultural expansions by American companies at http://www.greenpeace.org/international/news/greenpeace-activists-in-brazil.