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Haiti Observer Blog

August 23: Remembrance of the Slave Trade and Its Abolition

August 23 of each year, is the day of observance for International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition.

The day has been designated by UNESCO to memorialize the 'transatlantic slave trade' which took place across the Atlantic Ocean from the 15th through 19th centuries. Transatlantic slave trade is one of the darkest chapters in human history. For over 400 years, more than 15 million men, women and children were the victims of this tragic practice. The commemoration of this observance recalls that the slave trade is not just a thing of the past-- with the changes of time, it has taken different shapes in the modern society. The day has a significant importance to Haiti, because during the night of August 22 to August 23, 1791, on the island of Saint Domingue (now known as Haiti), an uprising began which later became a major factor in the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade.

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Born between August 23 and September 22, you are Virgo

If you were born between August 23 and September 22 of any year, your zodiac sign, i.e., more specifically, your 'Sun Sign' would be Virgo, because every year, during this period, the sun passes through the Virgo sign of the zodiac circle. Virgo is the sixth house in the zodiac circle, its earlier houses are, Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, and Leo.

Mercury is the owner of this sixth house. In astrology, Mercury represents the quality of intelligence, wit and humor in a person. It is also the planet of day-to-day expression and communication. During Sun's one month transit in the house, the natives of Virgo sign receive the combined effect of both the Sun and Mercury from this sign.

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The Summer Olympic games of 2016

Up until today, the Summer Olympics have been held 27 times (6 editions in North America, 16 in Europe, 3 in Asia and 2 in Oceania). The Summer Olympic 2016 is unique for many reasons. Golf has been reinstated after a 112-year absence. The Rio 2016 games will be the first to feature Olympians born in the year 2000. The rule says, the Olympians must have been born before Jan. 1, 2003 with relaxation to certain games for health and safety reasons. A team of athletes (10 refugees) who were forced to flee their countries will compete under the Olympic flag. There are 7.5 million tickets, with prices ranging from $40 (for some swimming events) to almost $3000 (for the best seats at the opening ceremony). Organizers will prepare 60,000 meals per day to feed the athletes. Rio 2016 will appoint 70,000 volunteers. 'Taxistas' or Rio's taxi drivers were given opportunity to join a free English course. Total cost of Rio 2016 will mount up to €10.24 billion ((37.6 billion Brazilian Real) including €6.56 billion (24.1 billion Real) for the infrastructure of the city, € 1.77 billion (6.5 billion Real) for sports facilities and €1.91 billion (7 billion Real) for the operation and organization of the event.

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World Humanitarian Day also World Photography Day

World Humanitarian Day is one of the 148 international days currently observed by the United Nations. By a coincidence, August 19th is also observed as World Photography Day, because on August 19, 1839, the French Government announced the Invention of Photography as a gift "Free to the World." Since 2009, every year, this day is commemorated on different themes. The theme of 2010 was "We are Humanitarian Workers" which was based on the actual work and achievements of humanitarian workers in the field. Similarly, the 2011 campaign, "People Helping People" was about inspiring the spirit of aid work in everyone. The theme of 2014 was 'The World Needs More' and in 2015, it was about "Inspiring the World's Humanity".

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Friday, August 19, 2016 is World Humanitarian Day

World Humanitarian Day is a time to recognize those humanitarian personnel who have lost their lives working for humanitarian causes.

The United Nations' (UN) World Humanitarian Day is held on August 19 each year. It is a day dedicated to humanitarians worldwide, as well as to increase public understanding of humanitarian assistance activities. On December 2008, at the 63rd session of the UN General Assembly, it was decided to designate 19 August as World Humanitarian Day and it was first observed on August 2009. Because, 5 years ago, on 19th August, 2003, a brutal terrorist attack on UN headquarters in Baghdad killed 22 people, including UN envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello. Sergio was a Brazilian United Nations diplomat who worked for the UN for more than 34 years. It is a day of global observance and not a public holiday. World Humanitarian Day does not have a logo; neither has it belonged to the UN or any other agency or organization. Notable humanitarians who provide life-saving assistance to millions of people worldwide, often risking their own lives in conflict zones and areas of natural hazards are honored every year on this day for their contribution towards mankind. It is a time when we recognize those heroic aid workers and the millions of people who count on them for their very survival.

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Raw sewage flows into many of Rio's Olympic venues every day

Fernando Rosado Spilki, a virologist and an expert in water quality was commissioned by the Associated Press to test conditions in all the water at Brazilian competition sites. Spilki is an expert on the subject from the Universidade Feevale in Brazil. In last July, he identified virus levels 1.7 million times more than which would be considered highly alarming in the U.S. or Europe. It is basically 'poop water' and the IOC does not care for that. Nobody can deny the facts that raw sewage regularly flows into many of Rio's Olympic venues every day and there is no dilution factor in the bay or lagoon where events will take place and within this polluted environment, the exposure is imminent and the chances of infection are very likely. Officials have already admitted that they would be able to treat maximum 65% of the sewage that flows into the bay, not their earlier target of 80%. Kristina Mena, on examining Spolki's report, has predicted that if any athlete ingests just three teaspoons of water from the bay, will have a 99% chance of infection. Ms. Mena is an expert in risk management for waterborne viruses at the School of Public Health at the University of Texas. Coaches are advising sailors to keep their mouths closed and sanitize themselves once they come into contact with polluted water.

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Haitian runner Jeffrey Julmis draws cheers at Rio Olympic

Here is the Haitian runner Jeffrey Julmis during the first of the 110m hurdle semi-finals at the Olympic games in Rio. He toke a dive but despite being hampered, he managed to finish in a time of 25.56, nearly 12 seconds behind the second-last place runner. In his first series, Jeffrey Julmis finished in 13.66 seconds and ranked 3rd on 9 runners.

Haitian hurdler Jeffrey Julmis fell down after hitting a hurdle in the 110 meter hurdles semi-finals. His falling drew massive cheers from the crowd at the Estadio Olimpico on August 16. Julmis mistimed the first obstacle on the course and jumped straight into the first hurdle during the first of the 110 meter hurdles semi-finals and tumbled head over feet into the second one while taking the first hurdle with him all the way to the second hurdle. But, in true Olympic spirit, he got up again to finish the race to huge cheers from the crowd. Took a deep breath, composed himself and cleared the final eight hurdles in a time of 25.56 seconds, nearly 13 seconds behind race winner Orlando Ortega of Spain (13.32 seconds) and 12 seconds behind the second-last place getter Ronnie Ash of USA (13.36 seconds). Yordan O'Farrill of Cuba came last in the round with 13.70 seconds time. He was later declared disqualified, but no one's run was more memorable than Julmis in Lane 9 who ended up himself doing a somersault, landing close to the second hurdle.

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Some additional tips in buying Back to School Supplies

Buying school supplies at the end of the summer is an unavoidable and costly task unless you know some tricks to save money. Here are 14 great ideas for how to get everything your children need and save a few bucks doing it.

1. Buy in Bulk: Identify the items that your child would need throughout the year. Buy enough to get you through the rest of the year. Try to find a few families to join in the bulk-shopping and save dollars.

2. Check Prices Online: Visit online stores to find the best deal. If you prefer to shop at the brick and mortar stores, before you go out to shop, an online survey will help you to know the best prices and available deals.

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How did the story of the Olympic games begins

The story behind the Olympic medals goes all the way back to the ancient Olympics, when only the winner of an event would receive a crown of laurel leaves as his prize. Leaves of such crown were taken from a sacred grove, near the temple of Zeus, in Olympia. In 1896, the winners were awarded silver medals and a diploma in addition to the crown. In 1904, for the first time in the Olympic history, the tradition of awarding gold, silver and bronze medals began in St. Louis, Missouri, in the United States.

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How a trip to Haiti can get you to Harvard University

Beside the many well-intentioned young children who usually take non profit mission trips to poor countries such as Haiti and others, some college-bound students are engaged in them just to increase their chances in getting into a good university. Frank Bruni who wrote the article: "To Get to Harvard, Go to Haiti?" calls it "drive-by charity work" in a the interest to impress admission staff.

He gave examples where some friends post on Snapchat and Instagram "typically showing one of them "with some poor brown child aged 2 to 6 on their knee" and explained "while many are well-intentioned, some seem not to notice poverty until an exotic trip comes with it."

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