Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur continue to live and work in the Amazon rainforest among the materially poor.
This site tells the Sisters' stories and the stories of others who have been inspired by Sr. Dorothy Stang's life, faith and courage.
Her murder was not the end...
Sr. Dorothy Stang
1931 - 2005
A Million Trees Project
News from Brazil . . .
Protesting at the
Brazilian Embassy
4/9/12 - When Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff came to Washington, DC, to meet with President Barack Obama, some saw it as the perfect opportunity to protest Rousseff's record on socio-economic issues.Since she took office, many see that Brazil's environment, human rights records and agrarian reforms have worsened.
Sr. Sarah Fahy, who marched at the protest with Dorothy Stang's sister Marguerite and many younger members of Marguerite's family, says, "It is almost certain that President Dilma will sign into law a bill that weakens forest protections and grants amnesty for illegal deforestation. Brazilian public opinion--including the scientific community, trade unions, faith-based groups and environmentalists--is overwhelmingly against the bill." Deforestation is not the only problem facing the Amazon, but also the violence related to it. At least 1,742 peasant activists are known to have been murdered in Brazil as a result of agrarian conflicts. Less than 3% have been brought to trial. Sr. Sarah shared, "All these hundreds of unnamed people were present with us as we marched."
Helping reforest the Amazon, A Million Trees is funded by the people of Anapu, Brazil, with help from interested benefactors around the world.
Lace Makers of Maceio, Brazil - Doing Double Duty
By Sr. Leonore Coan
Women in Brazil have been tatting or making lace for centuries. Before the Sisters of Notre Dame helped the women in Maceio organize into a cooperative, individuals sold their lace for a pittace to intermediary buyers. The intermediaries would then transport the women's handwork to city markets and export it overseas at an astronomical markup--keeping all the profits for themselves. Today we are happy to report that the women's lace cooperative is now an autonomous organization, no longer relying on the Sisters' help.
And the Maceio lace makers do double duty for their community. They carry their threads, pins, bobbins and pillows to the beach, where they create their wares while guarding their community land from developers. As long as the community occupies its designated area of the beach, no one may trespass or seize the land for development. This means round-the-clock vigilance and the lace makers are doing their part!
For the past 50 years, the Sisters of Notre Dame have empowered the people of Maceio, Brazil, through Bible study, community organizing, educational programs, financial assistance
and business expertise.
