When my sisters and I were kids in the ’90s, our grandmother came from Haiti to Boston to look after us. Our parents were trying to find their footing as Black immigrants, working low-wage jobs and taking on overtime shifts. Boston was an adjustment for my grandmother — she didn’t speak the language, she didn’t like the cold — but she adored her grandbabies and wanted to help our parents carry their load. She was an ever-present figure in our lives, both when she resided in Mattapan as our permanent babysitter and later when we would visit her in Port-au-Prince. I have fond memories of those visits — getting soda and treats, watching my grandmother buy livestock to prepare our meals, and basking in the heat of the Caribbean sun while learning new words in Creole.
My grandmother died a year and a half ago. Because of the gravity of the security issues in Haiti, my sisters and I couldn’t travel there to bury her. When my grandfather died three years before her, we had been able to travel to Haiti to bury him. I remember how amazed and frightened I was when we drove past my grandparents’ old neighborhood: a group of teenagers was standing on a street corner with AK-47s, eyes deprived of any hope or youthfulness. It was a harbinger of what was to come.
Gangs now control 80 percent of Port-au-Prince. They have conducted jailbreaks, committed killings and sexual violence with impunity, and have forced people to shelter inside their homes for days on end. Haitians are living in a state of emergency.
The story of Haiti, the only country founded from a successful slave revolt and the first free Black republic in the Western Hemisphere, is complicated. But what has been clear throughout Haiti’s bumpy ride is the failure of the United States to be a true ally to Haiti. For the past three years, Haitians have been pleading with the US government to stop propping up Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who governed without a constitutional or popular mandate after the 2021 assassination of Jovenel Moïse.
These pleas came at a time when the gangs were gaining power but had not yet taken over the capital. Members of the National Haitian American Elected Officials Network held press conferences across the country asking the US government to work with civil society on a transitional government that would pave the way for free and fair elections; end its reliance on Henry; appoint a special envoy to Haiti, given that the ambassador seat was vacant; assign a terrorist designation to those engaged in weapons trafficking, making it easier to block the transport of arms; and halt all deportations to Haiti. I am grateful that the Massachusetts federal delegation echoes many of these demands.
Henry finally agreed to resign last month after escalating violence prevented him from returning to Haiti after a trip to Kenya. On the part of the US government, there appears to be a willingness to finally listen to the Haitian people and civil society on how to achieve stability. A US ambassador to Haiti has been appointed. As more news comes out about Miami ports being responsible for weapons being smuggled into Haiti, the Department of Homeland Security appears to be recommitting to efforts at export controls. There has been more outreach to the Haitian diaspora so that we can continue to center the interests and safety of the people of Haiti above all other interests. Time will tell if true partnership will follow this outreach.
Young people in Haiti are losing hope that they will ever know a stable Haiti. There are no young Haitian voices — and no women — represented with a vote on Haiti’s proposed transitional council. And while work is being done to provide much-needed humanitarian assistance and stabilize the country, it is inhumane that deportation flights to the troubled island are resuming while the US government warns against travel there.
As we work to address the turmoil in Haiti, there are actions the White House can take to ease the emergency: hasten the issuance of work permits for Haitians in the United States; redesignate Temporary Protected Status for Haiti and halt all deportations amid the crisis; and work in partnership with Haitian-based organizations like NHAEON to help find Haitian-based solutions.
A month before my grandmother died, I held a press conference on how the United States can be a true ally to a sovereign Haiti. I honor my grandmother through my advocacy for Haiti and and through a disciplined hope that there will be a day when Haiti’s glory is unburied. Until then, we work.
Ruthzee Louijeune is president of the Boston City Council.
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