Let Us Get to Know Clara Morel
Clara Morel is a social communicator, graduated from the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo and the Jose Marti International Institute of Journalism in Havana. She trained in theater at the National School of Dramatic Arts of Santo Domingo and specialized in cultural management at the Centre for Performance Technology in Madrid.
Clara Morel is a social communicator, graduated from the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo and the Jose Marti International Institute of Journalism in Havana. She trained in theater at the National School of Dramatic Arts of Santo Domingo and specialized in cultural management at the Centre for Performance Technology in Madrid. Since 2001 she has worked in the design and implementation of projects aimed at highlighting Afro-Dominican cultural heritage in rural and urban marginalized communities, moving toward communication for political advocacy, human rights defense, and social inclusion.
Can you tell us about any project you are currently working on or have worked on recently?
As OBMICAs Communications Officer, I do not work on a specific project. The unit is in charge of the design and implementation of the Centres relationship-building and visibility strategy, generating actions and products that convey the organizational identity and provide tools so that each component can develop its functions, including socialization of research, coordination of reflective and training events, and creation of campaigns. In the same way, I provide support in this area to the platforms of which OBMICA is part. We are currently working on the advocacy and communication strategy of the Trato Digno Project, which addresses due process in deportation matters and respect for the human rights of migrants in the border zone. We also support the advocacy work of the Plataforma Dominican@s por Derecho, which advocates for the restoration of nationality and access to identity documents for the Dominican population descended from migrants.
What was most interesting about that project and how does it apply to your professional practice?
With respect to Trato Digno, it has been a very challenging experience. The project was designed prior to the pandemic and contemplated a series of in-person activities. Because of the COVID-19 quarantine and the restrictions that have taken place since the declaration of emergency, we have had to rethink our actions and propose alternative approaches, adapting to circumstances. Videoconferencing and live-streaming platforms have opened a window for communication, and along the way we have learned to incorporate these new media. However, we serve vulnerable populations for whom access to connectivity is a privilege, so we must ensure that the channels do not become exclusionary. With the Plataforma Dominican@s por Derecho we have had an accompaniment of almost seven years: the painstaking work of the organizations has made it possible to counter prejudices and gradually install in public opinion the relevance of this struggle, so significant for social justice in the Dominican Republic. I have learned a great deal about communities capacity to generate their own change. At OBMICA, communication is a bridge for understanding among diverse actors, and although the steps are small, we move forward.
Can you tell us about your experience as a member of the OBMICA team?
The OBMICA team is multidisciplinary and all areas are connected. Being able to convey through communication products and actions the spirit of the findings of our fellow researchers is like being on the front line gathering information. I have had the honor of working with high-level professionals not only because of their expertise and training, but also because of the commitment with which they undertake research. At OBMICA, research is a cycle: we strive to ensure that information gathered in communities reaches decision-makers and becomes public policies that improve peoples living conditions; then the research returns to the communities as inputs to accompany their processes of claiming rights. Being part of a pioneering organization in addressing migration from a rights-based perspective is a huge challenge. Paradoxically, in a country of migrants there are still many stigmas around the issue. It is gratifying to contribute to understanding migration as a profoundly human phenomenon that enriches our society in every sense and to show the development opportunities that appropriate migration management can bring.