Building a Life Beyond Sugarcane in the Dominican Republic
An NGO is helping cane field workers access social services, exercise their rights and build more prosperous communities.
He Cruised to Reelection. Now Luis Abinader Has Choices to Make
The Dominican Republic’s president will weigh options for broader reforms and try to maintain momentum during his second term in office.
Letter to the Editor: Lawfare in the Dominican Republic Deserves Attention
A response from AQ’s readers
Meet the Candidates: Dominican Republic
Incumbent Luis Abinader leads in the polls ahead of the Dominican Republic’s 2024 elections on May 19.
Luis Abinader: The (Rare) Popular Incumbent
Elected on an anti-corruption platform, the Dominican Republic’s president is bucking a regionwide trend.
A Missing Maid, a Stranded Child—and an Unlikely Bond
A debut film examines the possibilities for tenderness across divides of race and class in the booming Dominican Republic.
Dominican Republic and Luis Abinader: An Overview
This article is adapted from AQ’s special report on the Summit of the Americas. Click here for the full list of countries. A wealthy former businessman with some of the Americas’ highest approval ratings, Abinader ended the Dominican Liberation Party’s 16-year hold on the presidency when he was elected in 2020. The president has made an anti-corruption push, and authorities … Read more
Will Inflation Spoil the Dominican Republic’s Success?
President Luis Abinader has high approval amid high growth—but changing economic conditions are a threat.
AQ’s Fall Playlist: The Poetry and Power of Rita Indiana
The Dominican musician’s genre-defying performances make a virtue of pandemic-imposed constraints.
A Shaken Dominican LGBT Movement Finds Strength After Orlando
The Dominican Republic’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community was shaken after the nightclub shooting in Orlando a month ago. At least four victims were from that small country, and the attack underscored the discrimination many LGBT activists feel in their own, largely conservative society. In a particularly ill-timed display of opposition to LGBT … Read more
Film Review: Dólares de Arena
This article is adapted from the Fall 2015 print edition of Americas Quarterly. To subscribe, please click here “I like your body, did you know?” Anne tells Noelí as they lie in bed with the sun shining through the windows. “How much does it cost?” The scene occurs toward the beginning of Sand Dollars, a … Read more
10 Things to Do: Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
Walk in Columbus’ footsteps. Just outside the present-day port, Christopher Columbus founded La Isabela, one of the earliest European settlements in the Americas, in 1494. Visitors can see the ruins of the explorer’s first house and a reconstruction of El Templo de las Américas, where the first recorded Catholic mass in the New World was … Read more
My Struggles as a Black American in the Dominican Republic
When I lived in the Dominican Republic, there was a point when the jeers from the streets, shouts of “Arréglate ese pelo!” (Fix that hair!) and mocking gestures about my prominent pajón (afro) became too much to deal with. In a country of complex racial dynamics, where straightened hair is a social currency and billboards … Read more
This Week in Latin America: Dilma visits U.S.—DR defends immigration policy—Honduras protests—Colombia false positives
Here’s a look at some of the stories we’ll be following this week: Dilma and Obama Meet on Climate, Trade: Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff travels to Washington, DC today to meet with President Barack Obama. The trip, partly the product of a yearlong charm offensive by Vice President Joe Biden, is a sign of warming … Read more
Monday Memo: Mexican Same-Sex Marriage—Haitian Deportation—U.S. and Venezuela Meeting—Nicaraguan Protest—ELN Leader Death
This week’s likely news stories: Dominican Republic set to deport individuals of Haitian descent; Mexican high court paves way for full marriage equality; U.S. and Venezuelan officials meet in Haiti, address strained relations; Nicaraguans protest Chinese-funded canal project; top ELN commander killed in Colombia Dominican Republic to Deport Dominicans of Haitian Descent: The Dominican Republic … Read more
