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01 Bringing Hope to Central America - Jackie Baxman
The media is focused on terrorism in the Middle East, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the troubles in Pakistan, and, of course, the Presidential primaries. What is not on the media radar screen is a social, political, and ecological problem much nearer and much more crucial to us—the crushing poverty in Central America. This poverty, which has persisted for centuries, is a breeding ground for gangs, terrorists, and drugs, all of which is easily imported into the United States. This poverty may constitute a greater future security threat than anything arising overseas. Worse, because of the crushing poverty, families are abandoning their children and those children are being killed in large numbers. According to the human rights group Casa Alianza, almost 4,000 children have been murdered in Honduras over the past decade by hit men, death squads and even police officers. There is hope, however. Among the organizations working in Central America is Humanitas World Wide. My guest today is Jackie Baxman, who works with the founder Jeff Richards to bring hope through economic empowerment to the people of Honduras.