Photos: YouTube\Haitian Times
Haitian Times publisher Vania Andre (above) released the following statement regarding the news of today’s assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse:
The Haitian diaspora is upset and searching for answers. Although Jovenel Moise was wildly unpopular with several calls for him to step down, there’s still a feeling of disappointment given what this indicates for the state of the country.
Folks are scared about what’s to come next, and there are very real fears about whether or not violence in the streets will ensue.
This generation of Haitians in the Diaspora is living in two worlds, where they are confronted with the challenges of being Black in America, championing Black Lives Matter, fighting against gun violence, and impacted by what they see happening with George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and the countless other Black Americans that have died at the hands of police, while also dealing with the persistent political and social problems in Haiti that also have racial and class undertones.
For a while, Haitians in the Diaspora were hopeful about Haiti’s future, especially given the outpouring of support for the country in the wake of the 2010 earthquake. There was a sense that Haiti was going to build back bigger and better. Folks left their corporate jobs and stability in the U.S. to be a part of that reawakening for Haiti, and sadly the reality has been the complete opposite, and Moise’s assassination is the final nail in the coffin for them.
This is a generation of change; anyone who had a nonprofit, a business, an idea for initiatives that support sustainability in the country will now think twice on whether Haiti is worth it.
Vania Andre, Journalist for The Haitian Times, who also works for the nonprofit newsroom THE CITY (www.thecity.nyc)
