Dear Members,
In March we celebrate women and their immense achievements and contributions to their families and communities. This month we celebrate two amazing women! Our VIP guest for our March Live Webinar Interview and Q&A is no other than HACSA-UK Advisory Board Member, Ms.(Dr.) Samantha Tross, the first woman Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon in the UK! I have been in awe of what this amazing sister has achieved since I first met her at the HACSA Summit 2019. She is originally from Guyana and advises HACSA on how to bridge the gap with our brothers and sisters in the Caribbean and South America. Guyana is considered part of the Anglophone Caribbean and the only country in South America in which English is the official language. See below to register.
HACSA-Francophone has also been busy ensuring that Women’s Day and Women’s Month are celebrated in style! With the kind sponsorship of Dr. Christine Diané, our HACSA Francophone Representative, a crew was sent out to film an interview with Mme Denise Epoté, a media icon from the Francophone African Diaspora! Mme Epoté is an anchor at TV5 Monde. In 2014, she was ranked among the hundred most influential figures on the continent in the New African and Forbes Africa rankings. I met Mme. Epoté when I was ambassador in Paris where at events sometimes we were the only African women in the room. I admired her for her authentic style and quiet dignity. Aïssatou Baldé was thrilled to have the opportunity to meet her role model for the first time and did a terrific job interviewing her.
The world has been in a frenzy about the interview of the Duchess of Sussex by Oprah Winfrey and many seek clarity about the contentious issues it raises. The importance of this interview is that it has thrown a spotlight on institutional racism, a critical issue which we at HACSA have a mission to eliminate. Our work continues to highlight the fact that the origins of global institutional racism lie in the transatlantic slave trade and colonialism. We believe these issues need to be dealt with empathetically and debated in an open and honest way. We were recently invited by the diversity department of Värde Partners, a leading global alternative investment firm to make a presentation to commemorate Black History Month. We received excellent feedback after the presentation and a donation from Värde. We welcome invitations to present our message of Sankofa - 'learn from the past' - to other institutions that require education about diversity, inclusion and systemic racism.
I am delighted to announce that registration for the HACSA Sankofa Virtual Summit 2021 is now open! We have deliberately kept the fee low to encourage registration from students and young people but you can give an additional DONATION if you can afford it and spread the word amongst your friends and family. See below to register for what promises to be a very stimulating and exciting event!
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