Dorothy Stang

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Dorothy Mae Stang
Born July 7, 1931
Dayton, Ohio
Died February 12, 2005
Anapú, Pará, Brazil
Cause of death Murder
Nationality naturalized Brazilian
Known for Amazonian activism
Religious beliefs Roman Catholic
Relatives David Stang

Dorothy Mae Stang (July 7, 1931–February 12, 2005) was an American-born, Brazilian sister of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur order, who was murdered in Anapu, a city in the state of Pará, in the Amazon Basin of Brazil. Stang was outspoken in her efforts on behalf of the poor and the environment, and had previously received death threats from loggers and land owners.

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[edit] Life work and her murder

Sister Dorothy, born in Dayton, Ohio but a naturalized Brazilian citizen, worked as an advocate for the rural poor beginning in the early 1970s, helping peasants make a living by farming small plots and extracting forest products without deforestation. She also sought to protect them from criminal gangs who were after their land. Dot, as she was called by her family, friends and most locals in Brazil, is often pictured wearing a t-shirt with the slogan, "'A Morte da floresta é o fim da nossa vida," which is Portuguese for "The death of the forest is the end of our life."

“ I don't want to flee, nor do I want to abandon the battle of these farmers who live without any protection in the forest. They have the sacrosanct right to aspire to a better life on land where they can live and work with dignity while respecting the environment. ”

[edit] Murder

Stang was reading from the Bible when two gunmen aimed weapons at her as she walked to a meeting in the Amazon jungle. According to witnesses, while being held at gunpoint she read a line from the Gospel of Matthew: "Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for justice, for they shall be satisfied."[1] She was shot and killed at point-blank range, and then the gunmen shot her body 5 more times.

An article was done in the July/August 2005 issue [2] of Maryknoll magazine shows a particularly shocking picture of Stang's body, facing away from the camera, shortly after she was shot. It is accompanied by an article written by her brother, David Stang.

In June 2005, two men were charged with conspiracy to murder an American outside the United States in connection with her death. These men, Rayfran das Neves Sales and Clodoaldo Carlos Batista, were convicted on December 10, 2005.

On the date of 15 May 2007, a court in the city of Belém sentenced Vitalmiro Bastos Moura, age 36, to the maximum term of 30 years in prison for paying gunmen to shoot Sister Dorothy. Stang's brother David, who was at the trial, said "justice was done". Rayfran das Neves Sales was retried on 22 October 2007. He was again found guilty and a judge in Belém sentenced him to 27 years in prison, the same punishment as in the first trial, in 2005.

Prosecutors said Moura had ordered Stang's death because she had sent letters to the local authorities accusing Moura of setting illegal fires to clear land, which led to him receiving a substantial fine.

On a third trial, on May 6th 2008, Rayfran das Neves Sales was sentenced to 28 years in prison and Vitalmiro Bastos Moura was declared innocent. Moura was set free because the gunman Rayfran das Neves Sales declared in court to have killed Dorothy Stang for personal motivation.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^  reference to an Article in the January 2007 issue of National Geographic (http://nationalgeographic.com)
  2. ^  Article in the July/August 2005 issue of Maryknoll (maryknoll.org)

Murphy, Roseanne. Martyr of the Amazon: The Life of Sister Dorothy Stang.. New York: Orbis Books. 2007

[edit] External links

Persondata
NAME Stang, Dorothy
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION Amazonian activist
DATE OF BIRTH July 7, 1931
PLACE OF BIRTH Dayton, Ohio
DATE OF DEATH February 12, 2005
PLACE OF DEATH Anapy, Pará, Brazil