"I say that I'm Haitian first, and then we go from there," said Patrick Marcelin, the U.S.-born son of Haitian immigrants who raps in Creole and English as "Mecca a.k.a. Grimo." "I just happened to be born in America, but really I'm a Haitian brother. And Haiti is the direct daughter of Africa." The Black History Months he remembers studying never mentioned Haiti's history, even though Haiti was a destination for Black Americans searching for their cultural roots. Marcelin now also teaches in the Haitian Heritage Museum's school outreach program, exposing students to the American history he never learned. For example, when talking about writers from the Harlem Renaissance, Marcelin points out that [Zora Neale Hurston] wrote her novel "Their Eyes Were Watching God" in Haiti in the 1930s, and the poet [Langston Hughes] wrote admiringly of the Haitian peasants who walked down mountain roads barefoot, balancing baskets on their heads, to sell their wares. "They should have been teaching this in school, that soldiers from Haiti came to fight in the American Revolution," Marcelin said. "I read about [Frederick Douglass] in the history books but I don't remember anything about him being the ambassador to Haiti. Or that the founder of Chicago was a Haitian brother."
In creating Scourge, a full-length work of hip hop theater, Joseph digs into his ancestral roots to tell the story of Haiti, the poorest nation in the Western hemisphere with a long and violent history. The piece's main characters are two Haitian-American kids who are torn between their Caribbean roots and urban America where they have grown up.
"I knew in some quarters that linking the virus to Haiti would potentially raise some concerns, but for the better part often years I have been tracking the virus from Central Africa to elsewhere-which is the roadmap for useful vaccines and other control methods," [Michael Worobey] said. "Whether it be Haitian men and women or homosexual men and women there is no sense in blaming a group of people for a virus we did not know existed. Instead we as a community should be extra sympathetic to those who are infected with the virus."
Why would [Frederick Douglass], a former slave, newspaper publisher, author and United States Minister and Consul General of Haiti, so admire Haiti, its leaders during the Revolution and its contributions to the world? And why was Douglass, despite his realistic assessment of the nation, so very hopeful about Haiti's future?
In this issue, we'll see why [Frederick Douglass] believed Haiti not only worried but scared slave-holding Americans. We'll also discuss why he believed Haiti is a country of "firsts" and his answers to critics that the country is doomed due to its roots in voodo. His actual words will be in italics. While slavery existed amongst us, Haiti's example was a sharp thorn in our side and a source of alarm and terror.
It goes something like this: A Dr. James D. Watson made a statement in an interview with the Times of London, which was interpreted to mean that blacks are dumber than whites (those are my words). Here's what he actually said: "...there are many people of color who are very talented," ...he is "inherently gloomy about the prospect of Àfrica. ' "All our social policies are based on the fact that their intelligence is the same as ours - whereas all the testing says not really," the Times quoted him as saying. As a child growing up in Haiti, I often heard my peers making comments that would reflect views similar to that allegedly expressed by Dr. Watson. There's no truth to the belief that Haitians are inferior to citizens of other nations, but sadly, many Haitians believe that. Unfortunately, many non-Haitians believe that about Haitians as well. For as long as I can remember, there s been a cancer spread throughout that says that we as a people aren't capable of rising above our circumstances and becoming who we were created to be. It's time for all of us to recognize that all people are created in the image of God. One race or people group isn't created "better than another. We are all created equal and we are all loved equally by a Heavenly Father who desires the best for His creatures.
[Frederick Douglass] lamented the fact that the U.S. continues to shun Haiti although it has enriched American merchants, farmers and the country overall. He acknowledged a common complaint of Americans at the time that Haiti was more friendly to France and other European countries than the U.S. However, he partly blamed the US for not reaching out to Haiti with respect and friendship. He also cited Haiti's many institutional and cultural connections to France - language, literature, laws and government - as reasons for its friendship with France. Still, Douglass asserted that the main reason for the United States' ambiguous attitude towards Haiti was racial. In discussing Haiti's geography, Douglass lavishly praises its climate; lofty mountains; strikingly beautiful valleys, lakes, rivers and plains; blue waters and the exquisite Bay of Portau-Prince and Mole St. Nicolas. Douglass noted that the U.S. wanted the Mole for a naval station in order to dominate the area's commercial market before and after the then anticipated Nicaragua Canal was completed. The U.S. was also considering taking the Mole by force, if necessary. However, Douglass warned them that Haiti would not peacefully give up the harbor and that it would cost too much to take it by force.
Denying Haiti credit where credit is due is an established tradition. In 1893, at the end of the century that started with Haitian Independence and the Slave Trade Act, the orator, statesman and emancipated slave Frederick Douglass told an audience at the Chicago World's Fair how Haiti "taught the world the danger of slavery and the value of liberty." He pointed out that: The world had a chance to recognize Haiti three years ago, during the celebration of Haiti's bicentennial. But once again, Haiti was penalized. On the big day, January 1, 2004, Thabo Mbeki, President of the most powerful African nation, South Africa, came to celebrate. But the former slaveholding nations, led by the United States, boycotted the events, and forced the less powerful countries of Africa and the Caribbean to stay away. Instead of sending congratulations to the Haitian people's elected representatives, the United States sent guns and money to those trying to overthrow the government. When the international spotlight came to Haiti in 2004, it was to witness the return to dictatorship rather than to celebrate freedom from slavery.
[Jean Louis]' photography's diverse portrayal of Haiti is why [Eveline Pierre] chose to showcase his work during the week of the internationally renowned art exhibit, Art Basel. "We just felt it was really important to capitalize on this time," explained Pierre, "to...give the community an understanding of who the Haitian community is through this artist."
[Leon D. Pamphile], executive director of the Functional Literacy Ministry of Haiti, talked last week about his book, "Haitians' & African Americans' Struggle Against Racism Through the NAACP," as part of Harvard Law School's Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race & Justice Lecture Series. "Haiti was able to fulfill what the American and the French Revolutions could not do," said Pamphile. "Haiti witnessed the fulfillment of equal rights for all men, and this is what made the Haitian Revolution such a powerful force."
