Haiti

Alpha Kappa Alpha Presents MLK Virtual Youth Symposium, Sun. Jan. 16, 2022, 2pm ET

Social Distancing from the Dream

The W.I.S.H. Foundation (Women Involved in Service to Humanity), Incorporated, in partnership with Gamma Zeta Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated presents the 2022 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Virtual Youth Symposium on Sunday, January 16, 2022, from 2:30 pm to 5:00 pm.  This year’s theme is "Are we Social Distancing from the Dream?".

This event is free and open to students of all grade levels from elementary through senior high school. Organization mentoring groups, church youth auxiliary groups, parents and organization members are encouraged to attend. The deadline to register to attend this event is January 12, 2022. Please note that parents must register separately and join the Parent's Forum on event day via a separate device.

Dr. Martha Johnson-Rutledge is the president of the Gamma Zeta Omega Chapter. Islamiyat Nancy Adebisi Elus is the Chairman of the W.I.S.H. Foundation, Incorporated. This is the eleventh year the organizations have presented this community event. Click HERE to register.


City of North Miami Beach Commission Names Street in Honor of Miami-Dade Commissioner Jean Monestime

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NORTH MIAMI BEACH, FL __ The North Miami Beach City Commission has voted to name Northeast 159th Street in honor of Miami-Dade County Commissioner Jean Monestime for his advocacy and trailblazing leadership in the community.  The Commission voted unanimously to name the road from West Dixie Highway to Northeast 8th Avenue "Jean Monestime Street," making it one of the longest roads named after a Haitian American in South Florida. Commissioner Michael Joseph was the prime sponsor of this resolution, and  Commissioner McKenzie Fleurimond was the co-sponsor.

"The City wanted to recognize Commissioner Monestime for his leadership, vision, and longtime support of our community's quality of life. May is Haitian Heritage Month, which makes the timing of this honor especially meaningful," Commissioner Joseph said.

Commissioner Monestime represents District 2 on the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners, which includes parts of North Miami Beach. He is the first Haitian American to serve as a Miami-Dade County commissioner and the first to serve as its chair. He is also in his last tenure of office due to term limits.

The resolution passed by the North Miami Beach Commission also urges the Miami-Dade County Commission to co-designate the remaining county road section of 159th Street, from Northeast 8th Avenue to Northwest 6th Avenue, in solidarity with the municipal resolution. The co-designation awaits the confirmation of the Miami-Dade County Commission before becoming final.

 

 


Commemorating the 10th Anniversary of the Haiti Earthquake

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3:30 pm- Gathering at the Statue of Toussaint L’Ouverture (62nd St and North Miami Avenue)

4:51 pm- Moment of silence 

5:00 pm- Processional march to the Little Haiti Cultural Complex (260 NE 59th Terrace)

5:30 pm- Program at the Little Haiti Cultural Complex


Happy 93rd Birthday to the Honorable Carrie P. Meek!

Carrie P. Meek
Happy Birthday to one of the true living legends of Florida history, the Honorable Carrie P. Meek!

 

The daughter of Willie and Carrie Pittman, Former Congresswoman Carrie Pittman Davis Meek was born on April 29, 1926, in Tallahassee, Florida. Her grandmother was born a slave in Georgia. Her parents began their married life as sharecroppers. Her father would later become a caretaker and her mother, a laundress and owner of a boarding house. The youngest of 12 children, Meek grew up in segregated Tallahassee, Florida. An honors student and track & field star athlete, she graduated from Florida A&M University (then Florida A&M College) in 1946 with a bachelor's degree in biology and physical education. At that time, Blacks were not allowed to attend graduate school in Florida. The state of Florida paid her graduate school tuition for her to go north to continue her studies. She graduated from the University of Michigan in 1948 with a Master's degree in public health and physical education.

After graduating from the University of Michigan, Meek was hired to teach at Bethune-Cookman University (then Bethune-Cookman College) in Daytona Beach, Florida, and then later at her alma mater, Florida A&M University. She moved to Miami in 1961 where she served as a professor, administrator, and special assistant to the vice president of Miami Dade College, then Miami-Dade Community College. The school was desegregated in 1963. Meek played a central role in pushing for integration. Throughout her years as an educator, Meek was also active in community projects in the Miami area.

Meek was elected Florida state representative in 1978. She would go on to make history as the first Black female elected to the Florida State Senate in 1982. As a state senator, Meek served on the Education Appropriations Subcommittee. Her efforts in the legislature also led to the construction of thousands of affordable rental housing units.

In 1992, Meek was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida’s 17th Congressional District. This historic election made her the first black lawmaker to represent Florida in Congress since Reconstruction. Upon taking office, Meek faced the task of helping her district recover from Hurricane Andrew’s devastation. Her efforts helped to provide $100 million in federal assistance to rebuild Dade County. Successfully focusing her attention on issues such as economic development, health care, education and housing, Meek led legislation through Congress to improve Dade County’s transit system, airport and seaport; construct a new family and childcare center in North Dade County; and fund advanced aviation training programs at Miami-Dade Community College. Meek has also emerged as a strong advocate for senior citizens and Haitian immigrants.

Meek has received numerous awards and honors. She is the recipient of an honorary doctor of laws degrees from the Florida A&M University, University of Miami,  Barry University, Florida Atlantic University and Rollins University. The Foundation that carries her name focuses on improving the lives of individuals in Miami-Dade County and throughout the broader community of  Florida.

We are delighted to join family and friends in celebrating the ninety-three years of awesomeness of the legendary Carrie Pittman Davis Meek and wish her many more.

[Biography adapted from The History Makers and U.S. House of Representatives History.]

 


Miami-Dade County School Board Member Dr. Steve Gallon III Urges the extension of Temporary Protected Status for Haitian nationals

Dr. Steve Gallon III
Dr. Steve Gallon III



At today's regular monthly meeting of the Miami-Dade School Board, District 1 School Board Member Dr. Steve Gallon III will advance agenda item H-18, authorizing Schools Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho to urge Pres. Donald Trump and Secretary of Homeland Security John F. Kelly to extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian nationals for at least another 18-month period. 
 
TPS was granted to Haitian nationals who were in the U.S. as of January 12, 2010, the date of the devastating earthquake in Haiti. The U.S. has provided a safe haven to approximately 50,000 Haitians who have been unable to return to their home country because of insurmountable environmental obstacles, deadly diseases and violence. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) granted a six-month extension in TPS to Haitian nationals on Monday. The sad reality is Haiti will be in no better position to humanely receive and care for the more than 50,000 people affected, when the extension expires January 22, 2018.
 
The vast majority of these individuals has been in the US for at least 6 1/2 years, well before the 2010 earthquake, and has strong community ties including families with U.S.-born children. Haiti’s government is in no position to insure the safety to or assimilate these 50,000 Haitians, nor to make up for their remittances should they be curtailed by their deportation, and it remains unsafe to deport them. Their deportation would consequently tend to destabilize Haiti, which is contrary to the national security interest of the U.S.
 
DHS’s announcement extending Haiti’s TPS designation for six months, rather than the usual 18 months, sends mixed signals and omits significant facts.  The announcement stresses this is likely the last extension, that TPS holders should prepare their travel documents for return to Haiti, and that conditions have greatly improved. Further, the announcement also misleadingly states, “96 percent of people displaced by the earthquake and living in internally displaced person camps have left those camps.  Even more encouraging is that over 98 percent of these camps have closed.” This is misleading because many camps were forcibly closed due to regular, unchallenged, large-scale evictions by landowners, not because other housing had been found, which it had not been, or because residents had any place else to go.  This has been a huge problem in Haiti.  Even more significantly, several of the larger camps were reclassified by the Haitian government as "permanent housing," simply because the residents had attached so much salvaged building material to their shanties.
 
Recent leaked DHS efforts to demonize Haitians as criminals and welfare cheats as a means of justifying termination were reprehensible: inherently racist, such considerations are irrelevant since TPS is a humanitarian program, TPS recipients are ineligible for welfare, and criminals are ineligible for TPS.
 

The Miami-Dade County School Board Meeting starts 11 a.m., today, in the School Board Administration Building auditorium at 1450 Northeast Second Avenue, Miami, FL 33132. 

 

Hillary for Florida Releases New Haitian Radio Ad, "Our Home"/Hillary pou Florid ap anonse yon nouvo reklam nan radyo ayisyen ki rele: “Lakay nou”

 
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Miami, FL - In a new Hillary for Florida radio ad, "Our Home", a Haitian American supporter describes what's at stake for the Haitian American community this election and explains why everyone must do his or her part to elect Hillary Clinton as our next president.
 
The ad describes Hillary Clinton's vision for the Haitian American community, including good-paying jobs; quality, affordable health care; quality education; and comprehensive immigration reform. The ad also argues how important it is to cast a vote in this historic election: "If you do not vote, you do not count. We must do our part and vote for Hillary Clinton for President."
 
The ad will be running in key markets across the state of Florida starting Thursday, September 8. Audio available here.
 
Hillary pou Florid ap anonse yon nouvo reklam nan radyo ayisyen ki rele: “Lakay nou”
 
Miyami, an Florid –Nan yon nouvo reklam nan radyo pou Hillary pou Florid ki releLakay nou,” gen yon  sipòte ki yon Ayisyen–ki-Ameriken  ki dekri  sa ki an je pou nou nan eleksyon sa a  epi sipòtè esplike poutèt ki sa tout moun dwe fè tout sa yo dwepou yo voye Hillary Clinton monte kòm pochen prezidan peyi isit.
 

Reklam nan dekri vizyon Hillary Clinton genyen pou kominote Ayisyen ki Ameriken yo paregzanp: travay ki peye byen, swen medikal ki abòdab epi ki debòn kalite, edikasyon lekòl ki siperyè, epi refòm total kapital nan sistèm imigrasyon peyi isitReklam nan fè moun santi jan li enpòtan pou yon moun al vote nan eleksyon istorik sa a:  “Si w pa vote ou pa konte Se devwa nou pou nou vote  Hillary Clinton prezidan.’’ 

Y ap pase reklam nan  nan yon seri sipèmakèt kle kòmanse jedi 8 sektanmOu kab tande yon anrejistreman reklam nan isit la.

 


Miami's Liliane Nérette Louis selected one of five master artists for Florida Folklife Apprenticeship Program

TALLAHASSEE — Secretary of State Ken Detzner announced the selection of five folk artists to serve as master artists in the 2016-2017 Florida Folklife Apprenticeship Program. The chosen artists are Tomás Granado (Webster), Norteño accordion musician; Liliane Nérette Louis (Miami), Haitian storyteller, culinary artist, and herbalist; Bob Pitt (Bradenton), traditional boat builder; Jamal Jones (Jacksonville), freestyle hip hop artist; and Aida Rodriguez (Winter Garden), Puerto Rican bobbin lace maker.

 

“Florida is home to a diverse body of traditional arts and these five artists are representative of the state’s unique cultural heritage,” said Secretary of State Ken Detzner. “The Apprenticeship Program recognizes master artists and apprentices devoted to learning and sharing folk and traditional arts, and ensures the preservation of those art forms for future generations.”

 

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From Left to Right: Tomás Granado, Liliane Nérette Louis, Bob Pitt, Jamal Jones, and Aida Rodriguez

 

The Department of State’s Folklife Apprenticeship Program fosters the continuation of Florida folk arts by supporting masters who teach selected apprentices. Under the program, each master artist works intensively with one or more apprentices during a period of up to eight months. Program support consists of honoraria to the masters and apprentices to cover expenses for lessons and supplies.

 

To apply for the Florida Folklife Apprenticeship Program, master artists should be known in their community as expert practitioners of a living traditional art form that is considered a valued aspect of that community’s folklife. The Florida Folklife Program defines folklife as the living traditions that are currently practiced and passed down by word of mouth, imitation, or observation over time and space within groups or communities. Each apprentice must have demonstrated an aptitude for, and a commitment to, the art form he or she wishes to study and an involvement with the cultural community that sustains the tradition. The next deadline for applications to the Folklife Apprenticeship Program is May 15, 2017.

 

The Florida Folklife Program is funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts’ Folk and Traditional Arts Program. For further information about the Department’s Folklife Apprenticeship Program, visit their website, or contact the Florida Folklife Program at (8500 245-6427.

 


Miami Book Fair Presents Former Haitian President Michel Joseph Martelly’s New Autobiography

Jean Michel Martelly

Miami – Miami Book Fair (MBF) produced by Miami Dade College (MDC), in partnership with Imagineart Media Productions, will present Mr. Michel Joseph Martelly, former President of Haiti who will discuss his new book, Michel Martelly Autobiographie. The event, part of the college’s Haitian Flag Day celebrations and open to all who purchase a book, is scheduled for 8 p.m., Wednesday, May 18, at MDC’s Wolfson Campus.

In Michel Martelly Autobiographie, Martelly takes a close look at his childhood and adolescence and how he came to be one of the most influential musicians in Haiti and beyond. He also recounts the road that led him to the presidency, discusses his education, the formative influences and strong convictions that guided him while in office. 

Books will be available for sale before and after the event, and online at www.michelmartelly.net

For more information about MBF, please call 305-237-3258, or visit www.miamibookfair.com.

 

WHAT:     Former President of Haiti Michel Joseph Martelly Presents Michel Martelly Autobiographie 

WHEN:     Wednesday, May 18, at 8 p.m. (Cocktail reception at 6 p.m.) 

WHERE:  MDC Wolfson Campus Auditorium, Bldg. 1 (second floor), 300 N.E. 2nd Ave., Miami, FL 

RSVP for free at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/book-signing-tickets-24749481365

 


Resettlement Community Gives Hope to Haiti Six Years after Earthquake

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Six years after the devastating January, 12, 2010 earthquake in Haiti, the community of Leveque has emerged as one of the most successful resettlement communities in the country and a beacon of transformation.  

The once barren land where Leveque now sits was granted to Mission of Hope, Haiti (MOH) by the Interim Haiti Relief Commission after the earthquake as a place to rebuild homes for those who lost everything. Over the last six years, MOH built more than 600 block homes in Leveque through its Blue to Block program, enabling families to move out of the blue temporary tarp huts that were erected following the quake and live in a truly thriving community with a church, school, clean water, and sustainable farming. Over 150 hearing-impaired families have been integrated into the community as well.  

"These people not only have a new home, they have a new life. They have hope again," says Brad Johnson, President of MOH. "And it could not have happened without the collaborative effort of many partners, including New StoryInternational Deaf EmergencyWater Missions Intl and many others."

The cost of each home built through MOH is $6,000 and includes 3 rooms, a small plot of land for farming, a detached bathroom, and fruit trees.  The overall objective of Blue to Block is to build a community, not just a housing project. This has been accomplished by establishing a school, a church, clean water solutions, and agricultural training in Leveque. 

"Our mission is not just to change a village, but to change a nation. We want to empower Haitians to transform Haiti," says Johnson.

Mission of Hope currently works with over 420 indigenous organizations in Haiti and is committed to seeing the nation transformed through sustainable growth. To reach that goal, MOH trains and supports over 3,000 local farmers in sustainable farming techniques, feeds over 90,000 children a day, and hopes to have 100% of the food used in its food distribution program to be grown by Haitian farmers by 2020.  MOH also educates over 6,500 students and is currently building a technical school that will provide further education and job training.


May 18 - Haitian Flag Day

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May is Haitian Heritage Month and May 18 is Haitian Flag Day. The story of the national flag of Haiti is a magnificent story of the struggle for freedom. On May 18, 1803, an official flag of Haiti was agreed upon. The first flag was blue and red bands placed vertically. The first flag was sewn by Catherine Flon

On January 1, 1804, Haitian Independence Day, the flag was modified again. Changes in leadership resulted in the adoption of several versions of the flag until February 1986, after the fall of Baby Doc and the Duvalier regime, when the people of Haiti requested the return of the red and blue flag.

For details on the history of Haitii and the Haitian flag, visit the website of the Embassy of the Republic of Haiti in Washington, DC. It displays a picture of each of the different flags of Haiti and a synopsis of each flag’s historical perspective. A detailed narrative of the history of Haitian Flag Day is available here