My name is Alice Backer. I am founder and former team leader of GV Lingua, which amplifies Global Voices in languages other than English. I used to be Francophonia Editor. I was once an editor of New York University School of Law's Review of Law & Social Change. I have been blogging about Haiti, Haitian-Americans and the Caribbean for 5 years at kiskeácity and I tweet from @kiskeacity. I am also a lawyer and campaign consultant.
Latest posts by Alice Backer from June, 2006
La Reunion: Subsidies to Local Associations
Eric Fruteau, a member of the General Council of St-Andre, a town in La Reunion, complains (Fr) about the lack of transparency and accountability in the subsidies budget distributed by the town to local associations: “It is abnormal that 5 (…) associations (…) receive 35% of (…) the budget. (…)...
Africa: World Cup Report Card
Says Senegalese blogger Seckasysteme (Fr): “African football is not up to par and its presence in the World Cup is mostly symbolic. Too bad that the numerous individual African talents could not orchestrate a comeback. (…) Why couldn't such talented African football players achieve the same performance in their national...
Brazil: Caetano Veloso's Biography
France-based Togolese bloggerKangni Alem writes (Fr): “Even though modesty is not Brazilian singer Caetano Veloso's forte, he has great talent as an agitator. He also exhibits phenomenal memory in the intellectual autobiography that was prompted by the New York Times to recount the birth of the artistic and musical movement...
DRC: France-Based UDPS Member Released
UDPS Liege announces (Fr) that “French authorities have come to their senses and freed (…) Yves Muko who was arrested Saturday 6/17/06 at Roissy Charles de Gaulle [airport] by the French police. Through his freeing, French authorities acknowledge the righteousness and nobility of UDPS’ struggle.” The party “nevertheless condemns the...
Reunion: Fruits and Vegetables
Reunion Passion posts (Fr) pictures of fruits and vegetables of La Reunion as well as shots of underwater Indean Ocean animals.
Martinique: In the Closet to Officemates
Le Blog de [Moi] reveals (Fr) that she is not out to her officemates. However she admits that it is getting harder and harder to lead a double life and that she wonders how long she will be able to keep her secret to herself.
Why No Mention of Slavery in African and Haitian Fiction?
Why is there so little mention of slavery in African and Haitian Fiction? That is the question that Togolese France-based blogger Kangni Alem addresses in a prolific and well-thought out blog entry. He deplores that African fiction does not count more passages on the different waves of slavery that have...
Haiti: World Cup Used for AIDS Outreach
Collectif Haiti de Provence writes (Fr): “Showing the Brazil v. Japan Football World Cup match, Gret/Haiti, in collaboration with the ministries of health and culture, UNFPA and the Gheskio Centers, organized an outreach session against STDs and AIDs in the shantytown of Jalousie in Petion-Ville, a suburb of Port-au-Prince.”
DRC: Kudos to Le Monde
Le Blog du Congolais points to a recent article by Le Monde on mining in the Katanga and says (Fr): “At last, Le Monde has decided to break from the dominant tendency in western media to report on the Congo what they are dictated by biased high European Commissaries, Belgian...
Haiti: Why Jacmel Should Be a Cruise Destination
Collectif Haiti de Provence explores the how and the why of turning the city of Jacmel, Haiti into a cruise destination. Says the blog (Fr): “Jacmel has what cruisegoers need: an architectural, cultural, historic and environmental heritage. Plus, the region breathes tranquility and joie de vivre. There are no security...
Africa: What Internet Brings
Generation Consciente, Une Autre Afrique writes: (Fr)“A book by Cameroonian Jacques Bonjawo, Internet, a Chance for Africa [L'Internet, Une Chance Pour l'Afrique in French] talks about the benefits of new information and communication technologies for Africa. However, the Internet promotes extraversion even if it is a way to make local...
Latest in French-Speaking African and Indian Ocean Blogs
PAN-AFRICAN Homosexuality in Africa Not a Myth France-based Togolese blogger Kangni Alem reflects on a homophobic movement in Cameroon that sees homosexuality as a suspect new “religion” and concludes: Evidence des temps, l’homosexualité ne peut plus être perçue comme un mythe en Afrique. même moi je l’ai cru longtemps, jusqu’au...
Madagascar: Which Sector to Develop Economy
Madagascar Croissance asks (Fr): “Which sector will develop the country's economy?” and, after a comparison with nearby Mauritius, concludes: “The best solution is the development of entrepreneurship in the countryside.”
Martinique: Coming Out Advice
Le Blog de [Moi] encourages (Fr) local lesbians to accept their sexuality: “Know that being homosexual doesn't rime (no longer rimes?) with being unhappy (…) If one day (…) “they ” find out, they'll gossip one, two (three???) months then less and less, then from time to time and then...
Polynesia: Sand Samples
Blog a Sables posts (Fr) photos of the sands of famous French polynesian beaches, including a shot of the sand on Marlon Brando's beach in Tetiaroa. The palette is impressive and ranges from charcoal (Papeete) to snow (Matira).
Haiti: Artists Promote Peace through “Sculptures for Peace”
Says AlterPresse (Fr): ” Haitian and foreign artists [including Togolese Kossi Assou] promise to work towards a culture of peace through a program, Sculptures for Peace put together jointly by Africamerica Foundation and the section on Disarmament, Demobilization and Social Reinsertion of the UN Mission in Haiti. The project, hosted...
Immigration Checks in French Hospitals
Senegalese blogger Semett posts (Fr) a Medecins du Monde petition protesting the new French policy of conducting immigration checks in hospitals. Excerpt from the petition (Fr): “The right to care is inscribed in the preamble to the French constitution. It is a fundamental human right. It must never be used...
Martinique: Joseph Zobel, Author of Sugar Cane Alley, Dies
Le Blog de [Moi] announces (Fr): “Martiniquan writer Joseph Zobel, author of the novel Rue Cases-Negres [a.k.a Sugar Cane Alley or Black Shack Alley in English] (brought to the big screen by Euzhan Palcy), passed away Saturday (June 17) at the age of 91 (…) in the Gard where he...
Haiti: Telecom Wars
Digicel billboard, Martinique. By blogger Greg at InternetRapide.com. Jamaica-based Caribbean telecom giant Digicel has a presence in over a dozen countries in the region. Digicel officially launched operations on the Haitian market in May to much resistance from local private telecoms Haitel and Comcel but bloggers and other web commentators...
New Caledonia, Francophones and Cricket
Over at 5 Minutes en Nouvelle Caledonie, Sebastien who lives in New Caledonia but is originally from continental France writes (Fr) a post that shows how little cricket resonates with most of the French-speaking world : “While the world focuses on soccer, I want to introduce you to a less...
Fed Up with Soccer Office Talk
Oliviermr2 writes (Fr): “Thank God for the weekend! I can finally take a break from all my “soccer specialist” co-workers who feel obligated to comment in detail on all of the previous day's 3 matches going: ‘he should have done this, he should have done that’ and blahblahblah… I like...
