Haiti in the Kindergarten Classroom

Last week I taught a lesson about Haiti in my son's K0 class.  I had spoken with the teacher about coming in to do some kind of a French lesson, but as I planned and spoke with my son, it evolved into a lesson about culture.  Really, I suppose I have J.Perry to thank for this—the song Dekole is on the playlist we listen to daily in the car, and my son is soo into this song.  He sings at the top of his lungs “Haiti for life!”  and “Dekole ole ole ole…”  My favorite is the passion he brings to chanting “Pa pale m mal” during the second part of the song.  Anyway,  my son said he wanted to play this song and dance to it with his class when I come to school.  At this point a light bulb went off in my head and I decided to make the lesson one about Haiti.  There are actually a lot of Haitian and Haitian-American families at the school, and with May being Haitian Heritage Month here in Boston, I thought what better time to do so?  

Since my audience members would be a class of 3 to 5 years old children, I had to choose the content wisely.  My goals were to teach them things about Haiti that they could remember and relate to in ways that would be fun and interactive.  So I divided the lesson into three sections:  History, Language and Art.  

For the history part, I used the theme of the “Avengers” which is a hot pop culture topic in the US these days, what with the movie having just been released.  My son and his friends are in the superhero phase of life -- they spend a lot of time discussing which superheroes they want to be, what their attributes are, and who the strongest is. Of course I have to give credit to historian Laurent Dubois here because his book Avengers of the New World is a thorough look at the Haitian Revolution that I often use to teach in my classes. Using this idea, I    
   told them that over 200 years ago in Haiti there was a team of Avengers who fought for their freedom, but instead of having names like the Hulk, Iron Man and Captain America, they had names like Boukman, Makandal, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, and Toussaint Louverture.  (As some of you may know, my boys’  
names are Bediako Dessalines and Kwaku Toussaint and as soon as I said those names my son said “that’s me Mommy!  I was there?”).  I explained to them that these Avengers were fighting for freedom and what they did not only gave us the place we know as Haiti, but it changed the world forever.  I ended the section by showing them the Haitian flag and telling the famous story about its origins which they also loved.

The next section was on language.  I explained to them that Haiti has two official languages that are different from each other.  I taught them basic words and exchanges as well as a few basic commands in both Kreyòl and French.  The best part was getting them to stand up and sit down by saying “chita…kanpe…”  or “asseyez-vous…mettez-vous debout…”  They took turns being the leader on this to see who could remember the words in the right language. 

For the art forms I used visual art, crafts, music and dance. I began by showing them a painting of a market scene of women selling fruit with lots of bright colors.  I asked them questions about grocery shopping, then connected this to buying fruit at the market (I was careful to explain that there were regular grocery stores in addition to the market option). Then we talked about some of the different kinds of fruits you can get and each of them talked about what their favorite fruits were. I then brought out a few wooden crafts that I let them touch and look at.  I explained woodworking as a tradition that has been practiced for years and let them give the crafts as gifts to their teachers.  One of the crafts was a mug with the Haitian coat of arms so I tested them to see how many remembered the image from the flag.  My last object for this section was a tanbou which helped us to transition into the last part of the lesson on music and dance. They all went around and took turns beating on the drum, then we all got in a circle.  I showed them two dance moves, Kongo and Yanvalou (which I learned in graduate school by attending a few Haitian dance classes at the Dance Complex in Cambridge). We danced around the room trying these moves for a while and then finally we played Dekole and did some freestyle.  

That morning was the highlight of my week!  I especially enjoyed thinking about how to translate what I do to a small child.  It forced me to think creatively and less complexly to render the message about things I think about every day.  Of course, by far the best part was seeing my son sharing his knowledge with his friends--at different points he mentioned traveling there and eating Haitian food-- beaming with pride for his cultural heritage.

RMJC

Open for Business?

Depi kèk tan, gen yon slogan ki vin alamòd pa bò isit ki fè konnen Ayiti ouvri pou biznis -- Haiti is open for business. Pawòl sa a nan bouch dirijan ak nan bouch etranje ki gen enterè isit. Plizyè moun, isit kou lòtbò ap eseye konprann kisa sa vle di. Lòt jou, pitit mwen rive lekòl avèk anpil reta paske depi gwo lapli tonbe wout bò lakay mwen tounen larivyè. Yè maten, mwen jwenn wout kote m abitye pase pou m al travay Lekòl Nòmal bloke. M pa konn pou ki rezon, ni m pa konn kilès ki deside bloke l. M kase tèt tounen, chèche yon lòt wout. Depi kèk mwa, mwen pa kapab fin rive devan Lekòl Nòmal ak machin mwen paske lari a tounen yon pakin. M pa konn si gen anons ofisyèl ki te fèt sou sa. Antouka, se rive m rive yon jou maten mwen wè machin pake tout devan Lekòl la. Si Ayiti ouvri pou biznis, m pa konn pou ki moun. Petèt pou moun ki gen elikoptè.

Men depi semenn pase a, gen yon kote ki ouvri pou biznis vre. Plis pase 2 ane apre tranblemantè 12 janvye 2010 ki te kraze Lekòl Nòmal la, bibliyotèk la resi ouvri pòt li. Lè m di bibliyotèk, se poko yon vre bibliyotèk inivèsitè kote etidyan ak pwofesè kapab fè rechèch avanse nan domenn yo. Men se yon kote nou kapab konsilte liv, kote nou kapab li. Chans pou nou pi fò liv ki te deja nan bibliyotèk la pat pèdi an 2010.

Gen nouvo liv tou ki vin ajoute sou sa k te la deja. Nan dènye tèks mwen te fè pou ane 2011 lan, mwen te   di jan m te apresye jès etidyan Régine yo ki te voye liv pou pataje ak kominote Lekòl Nòmal la. Fòk nou remesye tou Mark Schuller ki fè bibliyotèk Lekòl Nòmal la kado yon egzanplè Tectonic Shifts, yon liv li kowòdone sou sitiyasyon peyi a depi 12 janvye 2010. Claudine Michel ki se yon ansyen etidyan Lekòl Nòmal dirije Journal of Haitian Studies, yon revi ki spesyalize l nan domenn etid kap fèt sou Ayiti. Claudine fenk voye pi fò nimewo revi a bay bibliyotèk la pou ajoute sou seri nou te deja resevwa an 2008. Ane pase, Gina Ulysse te kowòdone yon nimewo spesyal revi Meridians ki rele Pawòl fanm sou douz janvye. Gen yon egzanplè nan bibliyotèk la. Genyen tou Dictionnaire des écrivains francophones classiques ki ka sèvi kòm referans pou etidyan seksyon Lèt Modèn lan menm jan ak nimewo spesyal The Caribbean Writer a fè sou Ayiti. Gen yon egzanplè liv mwen edite a, Ecrits d'Haiti ki disponib nan bibliyotèk la tou. Kounyè a se plis etajè nou bezwen pou li kapab pi fasil pou nou konsilte tout liv sa yo! Mwen swete kominote Lekòl Nòmal la ap chèche itilize tout resous bibliyotèk la gen pou l ofri. M ap tou pwofite remesye ekip kap travay nan bibliyotèk la, ki pa janm mete m deyò menm lè yo wè m souvan! 

Se vre resous bibliyotèk la limite. Tankou resous tout inivèsite a. Semenn sa a rektora inivèsite deta dayiti ansanm ak pifò fakilte l yo lanse yon mouvman pou mete sosyete a okouran pwoblèm grav inivèsite a genyen pou l fonksyone. Se yon fason tou pou fòse dirijan yo ajiste bidjè nasyonal la pou l ann akò avèk enpòtans edikasyon dwe genyen nan sosyete a. Li pa nòmal pou inivèsite leta a resevwa sèlman 0.54% bidjè a. Kijan pou inivèsite a jwe wòl li nan sosyete a nan kondisyon sa yo? Kòman pou li fòme kad pou jere biznis (Ayiti) dirijan yo deklare k ouvri a? Petèt tou otorite yo panse inivèsite a pa nesesè pou kalite biznis yo vle ouvri a. Antouka, mwen kontan omwen ti bibliyotèk Lekòl Nòmal la ouvri pou biznis vre. 

NM

Tande's Second Anniversary!

Last week, April 6th was the second anniversary of this blog.  In my "other life" as the mother of two little boys, ages 4 and 3, I have become fond of taking their birthdays to think about the actual days of their births, remembering the trip to the hospital etc.  When I have my birthday I like to reflect on the year, to appreciate the blessings, and to set new goals.  Since this blog is in a way both our child, and a piece of ourselves, I am taking the occasion to do each of these for this post.

When we began this blog it was because we wanted a place to discuss our thoughts on Haitian literature and culture outside of an academic context.   How to approach the former was obvious.  Two trained literary scholars and professors, avid consumers of books by or about Haitians, books written in French, Kreyòl or English, books of all kinds from all disciplines, our love for reading and learning about and critically analyzing scholarly and literary material related to Haiti was one of the main reasons for this pursuit.  It is from this perspective that we share our reviews of books, about our experience in the classroom, contemplate our syllabi, and report on literary festivals.  Yet this is not a blog only on literature like Writers of Haiti or Thomas Spear's exhaustive Île-en-île both of which focus exclusively on writing.

The second area, "culture," is perhaps harder to define.  There is first "culture" in the sense of traditions, beliefs, and practices that are focused on Haiti.  But, as my anthropologist friends enjoy asking what do we really mean by culture?  Are we referring to that ubiquitous complex whole which includes beliefs, knowledge, morals arts and institutions?  Are we claiming that there is a definitive and exclusive set of the aforementioned that can be labeled as Haitian culture?  In other words if culture is always evolving, shouldn't the scope of what we cover in this area always be evolving as well?  A cognitive definition of culture extends to the social and communicative aspects of life, which include language, gestures, and various practices.  As someone who approaches much of my scholarship from the perspective of cultural studies--a field that stems from literary criticism--I am certainly invested in approaching these topics in a way that is also critical about the position from which I enter and in relation to power relations and social dynamics.  There is a difference, cultural studies reminds us, between studying "culture" as in how a group of people bound by a national identity do things and cultures as in subcultural fields.  For example Jean-Price Mars' Ainsi parla l'oncle stands as a classic example of an exploration of Haitian culture through a focus on folklore, Kreyòl language and African ancestral roots.  

Determining the balance between how we understand culture, and what constitutes culture and how we represent it in this blog has been one of our greatest challenges and achievements.  There have been times that we have considered approaching topics such as the presidential election, but were not certain about which cultural angle to take.  President Martelly presented a rich opportunity for us to explore the intersection of music, celebrity and politics but we were hesitant to delve into politics with much of the conversation in the Haitian blogosphere already covering this area.   

A New York Times article on the celebrated Orchestre Septentrional had a nice quote on the importance of highlighting the sonic elements of Haitian culture.  According to Whitney Dow whose documentary "When the Drum is Beating" airs on PBS tonight, “Because music is not just a source of entertainment, but one of the primary elements within Haitian culture, it offers a different path into the country..." Indeed this is one of the main reasons that we find it important to think about culture, both broadly and narrowly in different forms.  Yet more often than not our focus on culture has taken it to mean art forms beyond the literary—we’ve had posts on music and painting and in the future you can expect posts on film as well. 

To this end one of my goals for our third year will be to post more frequently about visual culture, and in particular on photography.  Perhaps through a post on Daniel Morel or Régine Romain, whose work I find so compelling, or through an exploration of how creative writers like Myriam Chancy and Patrick Sylvain also express their artistry through photography.  My other goal relates back to one of my posts earlier in the year, the one on Gina Ulysse for the Moun nou section.  Because of my own work I have benefited from an amazing community of Haitian scholars, artists, intellectuals and activists whose work inspires me and enriches my scholarship.  One of the goals of Moun nou is to profile some of these people in a way that also describes their impact not only in the broad field of Haitian representation, but also on what their work means to us.  I suppose this could also be thought of as a way to make what we cover a bit more personal which is one of the benefits of blogging compared to academic writing!

Among the best parts of doing this blog is of course the partnership aspect.  Nadève and I have known each other for over a decade, but collaborating on the blog has energized or friendship, sharpened our intellect, and opened us to new ways of thinking.  It is truly a transnational exchange between two women--writers, scholars, friends, professors, mothers, and thinkers passionate about engaging Haiti in the arts and the letters--that we continue with pleasure into its third year.  So with that I say chapo ba to you my sister blogger, and happy birthday to Tande! 


RMJC

Haitian women writers et bonus

As I stated in my previous post, I was invited to speak at Swarthmore College last week. Thanks so much to Micheline Rice-Maximin for the invite! The title of my talk was Women Write Haiti and during the question and answer session, someone asked me to post a list of Haitian women writers. As I said on Friday, there are many of them -- too many to name them all. I invite you to explore this list compiled by the good people at Women Writers of Haitian Descent.

Let me also write out the names of the authors I mentioned in my talk. I know it can be heard to catch them if you're not familiar with French, don't see them written, or if the speaker talks too fast! I'm listing them "in order of appearance" and including links to bios where available or to English translations of their books. Happy Reading!

Anacaona
Cléante Valcin
Annie Desroy
Janine Tavernier
Jacqueline Beaugé-Rosier
Jessica Fièvre
Madeleine Sylvain Bouchereau
Madeleine Gardiner
Marie-Alice Théard
Myriam Chancy
Yanick Lahens
Kettly Mars
Evelyne Trouillot
Virginie Sampeur
Mona Guérin
Jacqueline Scott Lemoine
Paulette Poujol Oriol
Barbara Bastien 
Cynthia Bastien
Marie Chauvet
Lilas Desquiron
Marie-Célie Agnant
Edwidge Danticat
Emmelie Prophète
Jaira Placide
Katia Ulysse


En ce qui concerne le bonus: les lecteurs avides sont toujours à la recherche de livres. Si possible, pour pas cher et pourquoi pas gratuit? Figurez-vous que j'ai reçu cette semaine des liens pour des livres gratuits que je m'empresse de partager avec vous. Qui sait? Peut-être qu'on y trouvera des femmes auteures méconnues!

Feedbooks
Ebooks libres & gratuits
Project Gutenberg
Livres pour tous
Livres & Ebooks
Bibliothèque et Archives Nationales du Québec

NM

Des voyages

Le mois de mars semble être le mois des voyages pour nous. Régine était ici en Haiti au début du mois et je serai aux Etats-Unis demain. Je ne serai pas à Boston, donc je ne pourrai malheureusement pas vous donner mes impressions sur un des cours de Régine. Ce sera pour une prochaine fois! En fait, ce n'est pas correct de dire que c'est le mois de mars qui est le mois des voyages. On voyage beaucoup en tant que professeurs et critiques littéraires. C'est un aspect du métier auquel je ne m'attendais pas en tant qu’élève au secondaire rêvant de travailler entre littérature et enseignement, mais je ne m'en plains pas. Au contraire! C'est un réel plaisir de pouvoir rencontrer tant de personnes différentes, de voir comment la culture et la littérature se transmettent dans différents espaces.

Pour continuer sur ce thème du voyage, le Festival Étonnants Voyageurs s'est tenu en Haiti du 1er au 4 février 2012. J'avais l'intention d'écrire quelque chose la-dessus le mois dernier, mais bon, entre le festival, les cours et la famille, ce n'est qu'aujourd'hui que je trouve le temps de le faire. Mais, j'ai choisi un bon moment car des extraits sonores et visuels du festival sont maintenant disponibles sur le site du Festival Étonnants Voyageurs. Donc si vous n'avez pas pu participer au festival ou si au contraire, vous y étiez et voulez revivre certaines manifestations, voici l'occasion de le faire.  En plus, le festival se poursuit un peu sur le site avec des documentaires, un recueil de poèmes et des réponses à la question: après Haiti, ou êtes-vous? Question à laquelle Hubert Haddad répond "j'y suis, j'y suis toujours." Léonora Miano nous livre ses réflexions sur les rapports entre Haiti et le continent africain, tandis qu'Anthony Phelps évoque l'un des moments les plus émouvants pour lui.  Et Kebir Ammi rêve déjà de revenir. C'est que le festival a été beau. Et les moments de beauté et de partage sont toujours à chérir. Cette édition du festival a rendu hommage à Georges Castera, poète du partage.

Demain, donc, je pars vers un peu plus de partage. Je serai à Swarthmore College en Pennsylvanie pour parler de la litterature haïtienne en compagnie de deux de nos grandes dames de lettres: Yanick Lahens et Evelyne Trouillot.

Le monde est un livre et ceux qui ne voyagent pas n'en lisent qu'une page.

                                                                                                      -St. Augustin
J'essaie de lire beaucoup!

NM

Enseigner la littérature haïtienne II

Enseigner la littérature haïtienne II

La semaine dernière j’ai eu l’occasion d’assister au cours de ma chère collègue et « co-blogger », Nadève, à l’Ecole Normale Supérieure de l’Université d'Etat d'Haïti.  C’était un vrai plaisir de voir les étudiants et d’observer Nadève en tant que prof.  C'était aussi une bonne occasion de réfléchir au sujet de l'enseignement de la littérature haïtienne dans un contexte différent.  De même, j'étais contente de voir les divergences et les convergences entre nos styles d’enseignement ainsi qu'en ce qui concerne les étudiants.  

Comment est-ce que ce cours de littérature haïtienne ici en Haïti diffère d’un tel cours aux États-Unis?  Ce cours de première année a comme sujet la nouvelle haïtienne—son objectif est d’approfondir la connaissance du genre en général et de se focaliser sur le développement de la nouvelle haïtienne en particulier.  Une question que Nadève a lancée au début du cours m’a fait considérer une des grandes différences entre nos étudiants: « Pouvez-vous nommer quelques  nouvellistes haïtiens ? »  Ils ont nommé :  Yanick Lahens, « Maître » Marcelin, Gary Victor et d’autres encore.  Leur capacité d’identifier une telle variété d’écrivains m’a frappé surtout parce qu'évidemment cela n’est pas le cas dans mes propres cours aux Etats-Unis où la plupart des étudiants n'ont jamais lu d'autres écrivains haïtiens.  Voici peut-être la plus grande différence.  

Dans le contexte haïtien, pas question de lire les textes littéraires comme des études anthropologiques, c'est-a-dire, on peut vraiment rester dans la forme du texte.  De mon côté souvent les étudiants se perdent dans le fond sans vraiment délibérer au sujet de la forme.  Par exemple, quand on enseigne un roman canonique comme Gouverneurs de la Rosée il faut introduire la vie paysanne, le vaudou, la situation linguistique...  Quelquefois le désir d'approfondir la connaissance de l'aspect culturel mène à un manque d'attention aux détails littéraires.   

La question linguistique est un autre endroit où il y a des distinctions notables.  Pour mes étudiants l'utilisation du Kreyòl doit être expliquée, et si l'auteur ne le souligne pas (avec les italiques etc.) je suis chargée de définir et expliquer les expressions.  Mes étudiants ne sont pas toujours capables d’analyser ce choix linguistique ou celui de passer d'une langue à l'autre.  Alors que dans le cours à l'ENS la situation de diglossie se présente en pleine classe.  Ces observations sont surement évidentes, mais étant donné la diversité de nos lecteurs ici à Tande, c'est bien d'y penser, car nous venons chacun de notre propre contexte, même si la mondialisation de la littérature nous permet de lire ces auteurs et étudier la littérature et la culture haïtiennes partout dans le monde.  

En gros, j’étais impressionnée par les étudiants et le professeur (aucune surprise) !  J’ai surtout apprécié comment Nadève faisait référence à la littérature française pour contextualiser la nouvelle haïtienne et pour faire des comparaisons utiles.  C’est quelque chose que je ne fais pas assez souvent dans mes propres cours.  Peut-être cette différence existe parce que je suis très (trop ?) consciente du fait que mes étudiants suivront beaucoup d’autres cours de littérature française des différents siècles et que pour la plupart d'entre eux, la littérature francophone en général et la littérature haïtienne en particulière demeure ici une « littérature mineure »...

RMJC

The power of the metaphor

It's that time of year again: Kanaval! Some people love it, some people hate it. I imagine some might be indifferent. But, if you love carnival and Haitian carnival in particular, chances are you've been busy these past few weeks -- listening to the different merengues, debating with friends, watching videos, settling on your top picks. Personally, I don't feel like 2012 is shaping up to be stellar as far as carnival songs go. Some of my favorite years were 2002, for example -- Chandèl's Ma Patrie and Tokay's O Senyè come to mind, and who could forget Mizik Mizik's Zoukoutap? 2009 was a good year, too. There was Carimi's catchy Zandolit, but Barikad Crew and Rockfam stole the show. I don't think I will ever forget watching those two floats surrounded by thousands on the Champ de Mars. It was magic. But, Vwadèzil's Tèt Grenn stole my heart that year.Tèt grenn pa jwe. 

This year, Vwadèzil has done it again with M p ap ka ba ou Metafò w. It is definitely a contender for this year's most popular merengue. Besides the music, what is driving this song's popularity is its play on words and the political and social commentary it contains. The text is a virulent critique of Minustah, the UN forces currently in Haiti, specifically referring to the cholera outbreak instigated by UN troops, but especially the various cases of sexual abuse and violence that they have been involved in, such as the one which occurred in Port-Salut last year. They also mention Michel Martelly's tendancy to literally drop his pants. So, of course, everyone immediately thought of the song's brash lyrics when the group's lead singer was attacked last Sunday while taking part in pre-carnival activities at Champ de Mars.


Brother's Posse's Antonio Chéramy, better known as Don Kato also faced physical retaliation for the views expressed in his music. Brother's Posse's 2012 merengue, Stayle is a big hit. Like Vwadèzil's merengue, it also criticizes both Minustah and the president.  You can read the words here. In addition, last week, Kato was on television criticizing Michel Martelly and his actions as president. That very night, the house where he was staying was attacked.

According to news reports, certain radio stations refuse to play Stayle. And both Vwadèzil and Brother's Posse were initially excluded from the national parade in Okay. It's not difficult to understand how they would pose a threat to official authority by poking fun at those in power and encouraging the crowd to do the same. As Mikhail Bakhtin explains in his analysis of carnival: “[…] festive folk laughter presents an element of victory not only over supernatural awe, over the sacred, over death; it also means the defeat of power, of earthly kings, of the earthly upper classes, of all that oppresses and restricts”.

Haitian carnival merengues have long held this function. In the final chapter of his seminal book, A Day for the Hunter, a Day for the Prey, Gage Averill reviews various carnival songs banned in the 1990s and their political signifying. Haitian carnival has always been a time for artists to attempt to convey the population’s grievances. Often the most popular song is the one who best fulfills that mission. Averill spends a lot of time on Boukman Eksperyans, and such politically charged pieces as Kè m pa sote and Kalfou Danjere. He rightly points out that mostly rasin bands do the criticisizing. But, not always. There was Sweet Mickey’s own 2002 merengue, for example, which refers to a rice scandal involving government officials.

Carnival is FUN. It's a time to relax, to party hard. But carnival in Haiti is also serious business, and both the population and authorities recognize it as such. Merengues have helped topple governments, or at least signaled their impending demise. It's the power of the metaphor. Not to be taken lightly. On another note, it is precisely because the words chanted/shouted/sung during carnival do matter that various social organizations make sure to call attention to those that are discriminatory and/or oppressive. Often, women's rights groups lead the charge. This year, an organization of citizens discriminated against due to gender or sexual orientation have published an open letter to the president on the matter of homophobic lyrics in carnival songs.

In the latest news, it looks like Brother's Posse will have a float in Okay after all. And Vwadèzil's Fresh la might be on it. It'll be interesting to see whether they remain as virulent in their critiques or if their tune will change. Other songs of note this year: Boukman Eksperyans with Banm pam ladan l and Zatrap's Moun Pa. Check out Plezikanaval for an extensive list of this year's merengues. What's your favorite?

NM