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2. Haiti's role in abolition movement all but forgotten
- Collection:
- Black Caribbean Literature (BCL)
- Contributers:
- Concannon,Brian (Author)
- Format:
- Newspaper Article
- Publication Date:
- Aug 2007
- Published:
- Dorchester, MA
- Location:
- African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Journal Title:
- Boston Haitian Reporter
- Journal Title Details:
- 8 : 6
- Notes:
- 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.
3. Douglass's keen observations on Haiti's many firsts, failings
- Collection:
- Black Caribbean Literature (BCL)
- Contributers:
- Ibokette,Yolette (Author)
- Format:
- Newspaper Article
- Publication Date:
- Aug 2007
- Published:
- Dorchester, MA
- Location:
- African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Journal Title:
- Boston Haitian Reporter
- Journal Title Details:
- 8 : 7
- Notes:
- 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.
4. Controversial AIDS report prompts local debate, action
- Collection:
- Black Caribbean Literature (BCL)
- Contributers:
- Louis,Martine (Author)
- Format:
- Newspaper Article
- Publication Date:
- Dec 2007
- Published:
- Dorchester, MA
- Location:
- African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Journal Title:
- Boston Haitian Reporter
- Journal Title Details:
- 12 : 7
- Notes:
- "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."
5. Our national identity in limbo
- Collection:
- Black Caribbean Literature (BCL)
- Contributers:
- Sylvain,Patrick (Author)
- Format:
- Newspaper Article
- Publication Date:
- Jan 2012
- Published:
- Dorchester, MA
- Location:
- African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Journal Title:
- Boston Haitian Reporter
- Journal Title Details:
- 1 : 7
- Notes:
- While at its inception, the revolutionary ideals of the newly formed nation called Haiti held great promise, the reality as understood today detracts from this plesant image . Still , our rituals and their symbolic associations mirror these revolutionary ideals. For example, soup joummou, the New Year's and Independence Day celebratory pumpkin soup, signifies the communion of equals through the consumption of the once forbidden delicacy reserved for the colonial masters. Today, as family and friends gather around the dinner table, we are clearly proud of our freedom and accomplishments, yet know that there are countless Haitians who are hungry, sleeping under tents. Two hundred and eight years after independence, many Haitians live in abject poverty and have no rights as humans.
6. Spiritual Essence of Our People Missing from Aristide's Rule
- Collection:
- Black Caribbean Literature (BCL)
- Contributers:
- Zoboi,Ibi Aanu (Author)
- Format:
- Newspaper Article
- Publication Date:
- 2004-03-31
- Published:
- Dorchester, MA
- Location:
- African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Journal Title:
- Boston Haitian Reporter
- Journal Title Details:
- 3 : 11
- Notes:
- Who is it that speaks for our private face? Those of us who take communion at Mass on Sunday morning still intoxicated with the echoes of beating drums from the Vodun ceremony the night before. You know the saying: We are 95% Roman Catholic and 95% percent Vodun. What is it that makes a former Catholic priest more apt to run a country than say, a Vodun priest, a Hougan? To most of us, this would be an atrocity. The country would certainly fall into the wrath of hell if this were to take place. We are trying to move forward not backward, the voices of decency would say. And besides, you would not find a well-educated, well-traveled Vodun priest in the mountains of Ayiti. Ayiti's vision is found in Vodun. Not the religion that it has become, but the very essence of the spirituality. It is the essence of the Ayitian people. After all, these were the conditions under which Ayiti gained its independence. Our country was formed in a ritual - a ritual that called on the guidance and protection of our ancestors who survived the journey from Guinea, as they say in Vodun, and those who were indigenous to the land. The essence of Vodun is to give honor to those whose shoulders we stand on. It is a reverence to the unseen forces that truly determine our fate as a country and it is a time-tested method handed down to us to ensure a successful life.
7. Despite Haiti's Problems, Bicentennial of Slave Victory Celebrated Worldwide
- Collection:
- Black Caribbean Literature (BCL)
- Contributers:
- Auguste,Wilner (Author)
- Format:
- Newspaper Article
- Publication Date:
- Dec 2004
- Published:
- Dorchester, MA
- Location:
- African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Journal Title:
- Boston Haitian Reporter
- Journal Title Details:
- 12 : 2
- Notes:
- Throughout the year, UNESCO had organized many commemorative events in close cooperation with its member states" and governmental and non-governmental organizations, such as the launching of the research and information program "the Forgotten Slaves," an exhibit at the UNESCO's headquarters in Stockholm Sweden entitled "Lest We Forget: Triumph on Slavery," the Ceremony of the Award of Toussaint Louverture Prize, the International Conference on the theme "Issues of Memory: Coming to terms with the Slave Trade and Slavery," and the International Symposium on the Slave Trade Archives Project in Havana, Cuba, and so on. The worldwide, yearlong commemoration of the 200th Anniversary of the Haitian Slave Revolution Victory was very important for Haitians and Blacks all over the world. The 1791 revolution, which took place during the 18th Century, beside the American Revolution of 1774 and the French Revolution of 1789, was excluded for years from the pages of world history textbooks, despite its contribution to the abolition of slavery in the world.
8. Another World Is Possible
- Collection:
- Black Caribbean Literature (BCL)
- Contributers:
- Concannon,Brian (Author)
- Format:
- Newspaper Article
- Publication Date:
- 2005-02-28
- Published:
- Dorchester, MA
- Location:
- African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Journal Title:
- Boston Haitian Reporter
- Journal Title Details:
- 2 : 8
- Notes:
- The last week of January 2005, the Fifth Annual World Social Forum was held in Porto Alegre, Brazil, bringing together 150,000 grassroots leaders, intellectuals and activists to discuss how the world can be made more free and more just. The conference's theme was "Another World Is Possible," and the speakers and participants showed that another, more fair treatment of Haiti is possible. The conference's keynote speaker, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, discussed the debt that the world owes Haiti in a press conference. He acknowledged that Haiti's Constitutional President had been kidnapped, and declared that he and other Latin American Presidents understood that there could be no solution to Haiti's crisis without President Aristide. At a workshop in Porto Alegre, called "Haiti, the International Community's Dictatorship," speakers from Haiti, the U.S. and the Caribbean led a discussion of the human rights crisis in Haiti, and explored ways that people from outside Haiti could promote the country's sovereignty and the return of its democracy.
9. HAU, St. Fleur Host Town Meeting On Crisis
- Collection:
- Black Caribbean Literature (BCL)
- Contributers:
- DesRosiers,Steve (Author)
- Format:
- Newspaper Article
- Publication Date:
- 2004-03-31
- Published:
- Dorchester, MA
- Location:
- African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Journal Title:
- Boston Haitian Reporter
- Journal Title Details:
- 3 : 16
- Notes:
- Rep. St. Fleur and the panelists also called for a change in the Bush administration's policy denying safe harbor to Haitians fleeing Haiti for the shores of Florida by boat. In a strong show of support for St. Fleur's resolutions, representatives of presidential hopeful [John Kerry] circulated a statement from the candidate supporting the presence of a multinational police force in Haiti including police from the United States, OAS and CARICOM. The statement also called for U.S. funded training and support for Haiti's police force, the lifting current sanctions on aid to Haitians for health and education programs, and renewed pressure on international financial institutions to assist the Haitian government in confronting these issues. Kerry's statement went on to state, "If we hope to lead the nations of the world toward a more democratic future, we must act now to protect a fragile democracy in our own backyard."
10. Students Raise Money for Haiti
- Collection:
- Black Caribbean Literature (BCL)
- Contributers:
- Healey,Caitlin (Author) and Harnois,A. Kent (Author)
- Format:
- Newspaper Article
- Publication Date:
- Dec 2004
- Published:
- Dorchester, MA
- Location:
- African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Journal Title:
- Boston Haitian Reporter
- Journal Title Details:
- 12 : 4
- Notes:
- Mr. [Kevin Murray] explained that one of the best ways to help the people of Haiti is to buy pigs for them. This is what the money they raised will be used for. The students learned that not too long ago in Haiti all the pigs were lost due to a flu outbreak. He told the students that in Haiti these new pigs would be bred. Some of the animals would be used for food and others would be sold to help them pay for shelter and clothing. He thanked them for their help.
11. Frederick Douglass offered keen insights into Haiti's strengths, weaknesses
- Collection:
- Black Caribbean Literature (BCL)
- Contributers:
- Yolette Ibokette (Author)
- Format:
- Newspaper Article
- Publication Date:
- May 2007
- Published:
- Dorchester, MA
- Location:
- African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Journal Title:
- Boston Haitian Reporter
- Journal Title Details:
- 5 : 9
- Notes:
- [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.
12. Haitian Influence on Early U.S. Has Been Long Underestimated
- Collection:
- Black Caribbean Literature (BCL)
- Contributers:
- Zephir,Flore (Author)
- Format:
- Newspaper Article
- Publication Date:
- Aug 2004
- Published:
- Dorchester, Mass., United States, Dorchester, Mass.
- Location:
- African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Journal Title:
- Boston Haitian Reporter
- Journal Title Details:
- 8 : 11
- Notes:
- Just as dance forms originating from Saint-Domingue made their way into southern culture, religion also left its indelible marks. It is well documented that the Vodou religion in New Orleans began to blossom around 1800 with Sanite Dede, a free woman of color who arrived from Saint-Domingue. The Saint-Domingan Vodou priestess was replaced in 1820 by New Orleans's native Marie Laveau, who became legendary. Haitians were for the most part Catholic; their presence in the various U.S. cities where they settled gave rise to the establishment of a number of biracial congregations. In Baltimore, in 1829, four colored Saint-Domingan women--Elizabeth Lange, Marie Magdelene Baas, Marie Rose Boegue, and Marie Therese Duchemin--established the Oblate Sisters of Providence, the world's first Black religious community, and founded the School for Colored Girls.
13. The Early Haitian Presence in the United States
- Collection:
- Black Caribbean Literature (BCL)
- Contributers:
- Zephir,Flore (Author)
- Format:
- Newspaper Article
- Publication Date:
- Jul 2004
- Published:
- Dorchester, MA
- Location:
- African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Journal Title:
- Boston Haitian Reporter
- Journal Title Details:
- 7 : 11
- Notes:
- Pierre Toussaint, considered the first American Black saint, is also of Saint-Domingan origin. He was born in 1778 of Haitian slaves in Saint-Domingue, and was owned by a well-educated French family, the Bérards, who brought him to New York with them in 1797 when they fled the slave uprising. While living with the family as a domestic slave, Toussaint learned to read and write and also learned how to be a hairstylist. It is said that he developed a devoted clientele among the city's social elite and was allowed to keep his earnings. Mrs. Bérard freed Toussaint before she died in 1807. Upon Mrs. Bérard's death, Toussaint married a woman from Haiti and, since they had no children of their own, they took in orphans, refugees, and other unfortunate people. In fact, he co-founded with Elizabeth Seton one of the first orphanages in New York City, and helped with fundraising for the city's first cathedral.