Haiti
Gabriela Clesca Vallejo is crowned the new ‘Miss Haiti’
The seventh edition of the Miss Haiti contest took place on July 18 in El Rancho where 13 women competed to see who will get the opportunity to win the crown and represent the country in the upcoming Miss Universe in December.
Gabriela Clesca Vallejo, who was crowned this year’s Miss Haiti, dazzled the stage with her presence and her answer to the question regarding whether political instability and tourism mixed. Lory-Anne Charles, one of the finalists, was elected Miss International 2019 while Régine Amanda Métayer was first runner up. Continue reading
United Nations concerned over humanitarian situation in Haiti
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his concern over the humanitarian situation in Haiti on Thursday and urged donors to increase their financial contributions to the 2019 humanitarian assistance plan and to support the Directorate of Civil Protection.
Approximately 2.6 million Haitians lack access to food according to the Integrated Framework for Food Security Classification. According to the Famine Early Warning System and the Haitian Institute of Statistics and Informatics, the price of local foods such as plantains, cassava and breadfruit increased by 41%. Continue reading
Undocumented Haitian migrants expelled from the Dominican Republic
The Migration Board of the Dominican Republic reported on Friday that 1,121 Haitian undocumented migrants residing in the country were apprehended this week at the National District in Santo Domingo, and in the provinces of Vaverde, Azua Dajabon, Santiago, Monte Cristi and Duarte.
Since January 2019, 30,000 undocumented migrants, mainly Haitians have been sent back to their countries of origin. Continue reading
Florida bids a cultural farewell renowned Haitian professor Alfred Mentor
The funeral of renowned professor and writer Alfred Mentor, who died on July 9 from prostate cancer, was held on Saturday at Saint Barthelemy Roman Catholic Church in Miramar, Florida.
Despite his illness, Mentor was often involved in cultural activities throughout Florida, including the annual Book Fair organized by the Mapou Bookstore in the Little Haiti district.
He began his teaching career at Jérémie High School in southwestern Haiti in the 1960s and went on to teach at the Collège de Salvation Army in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. Mentor held numerous political and cultural positions including: Secretary General of the Secretariat of State of the Presidency under Jean Claude Duvalier, Deputy Mayor of Port-au-Prince and Director General of the National Television of Haiti. Continue reading
Special Reports
Addressing the Plight of Haiti’s Orphans
Blaise Emilson, 25, spent his early years with his family, which included his mother and 13 siblings. But in 2003, he explained, a group of people connected to St. Joseph’s Home for Boys, an orphanage focused on arts education, saw him dancing at a carnival. They invited Emilson to leave his hometown of Jacmel and live at their Delmas facility. Continue reading
Immigration
Marco Rubio Wants to Extend TPS for Haitians in the U.S.
From his perch as chairman of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., wants to extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for eligible Haitians currently in the United States.
Last week, Rubio brought out a proposal giving those Haitians in the U.S. an extra 18 months of TPS which would start on July 22. After the massive earthquake in 2010, eligible Haitians have had TPS in the U.S. Continue reading