United Nations peace keeping men abandoning thousands of children in Africa & Haiti

In March of 2022 there was a 25 page report written about those left behind. The mixed race children of United Nations peace keeping troop fathers who’ve been abandoned.

The stigma the children live and grow up with, colorism of being mixed race, the gender-based violence and poverty women and girls experience at the hands of police officers and peace keeping troops.

‘White Child Gone Bankrupt’ — The Intersection of Race and Poverty in Youth Fathered by UN Peacekeepers

Children fathered and abandoned by United Nations peacekeepers are an unintended consequence of peacekeeping operations. Research suggests that the social identity of peacekeeper-fathered children (PKFC) is complex and contradictory. While economically disadvantaged, PKFC’s biracial background confers elements of racial privilege. Using the Democratic Republic of Congo as a case study, the present research evaluates the impact of racial differences on PKFC’s social standing. Drawing on in-depth interviews with a racially heterogeneous sample of 35 PKFC and 60 mothers, we analyse how race and poverty interact and cause PKFC’s conflicting social role. The data demonstrates that being of mixed race leads to the expectation of a higher living standard. Since most PKFC live in extreme economic deprivation, their anticipated privilege contrasts with reality.

We found that the stigmatizing effects of poverty were amplified by biracial identification, leading to additional disadvantage, epitomised in the term “Muzungu aliye homba” [white child gone bankrupt]. The findings add to research on ‘children born of war’ and show the role of culture in shaping youth’s social identities. Based on PKFC’s intersecting burdens, we make policy recommendations that address the nexus of race and poverty.

Source: Springer 25 page paper PDF format

From a 2019 article about 264 abandoned children of United Nation peace keeping troop fathers. One article from The New York times and another from The Conversation.

Marie* was 14 years old and enrolled in a Christian school when she met and became involved with Miguel, a Brazilian soldier working in Haiti as a UN peacekeeper. When she told him that she was pregnant with his baby, Miguel said he would help her with the child. But instead, he returned to Brazil. Marie wrote to him on Facebook but he never responded.

After learning that she was pregnant, Marie’s father forced her to leave the family home and she went to live with her sister. Her child is now four and Marie has yet to receive any support from the Brazilian military, an NGO, the UN or the Haitian state. Marie provides what she can for her son but she cannot afford to send him to school. She works for an hourly wage of 25 gourde (around 26 US cents or 20 UK pence) so that she and her son can eat. But she needs help with housing and paying for school fees

Source: The Conversation

Currently there is an unknown number of abandoned children in the DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo) The numbers are well into the thousands are troops have been in the Congo for about 20 years. These children face the stigma of being mixed race, many living in poverty to single parent mothers.

Lighter skinned people aren't always met with the best treatment in African countries. Racism and colorism is practiced all over the African continent, many "fair skin" people aren't considered Black people. Forced to wear the label of a white person, where many assume white people are accepted in Africa. When xenophobia is practiced often time their met with insults and told to get out of the country.

Much like other races face in Africa especially Asians, racist comments that sound much like western racism are often ignored. There is currently no legislation in many African country thats created to punish racism and xenophobia.

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