| |
The Distant Past
Haitian migration to the Washington area has deep roots. In 1793,
in Fells Point, near Baltimore, a group of affranchis, or
free people of color, arrived from the French colony of San Domingue
(Haiti’s colonial name) seeking a place of refuge in the predominantly
Roman Catholic area from the unrest beginning to sweep the colony.
In 1829, several women from the San Domingue refugee community,
including Elizabeth Lange, Marie Balas, Rosine Boegue, and Almeide
Duchemin Maxis, entered into religious life, forming the first black
religious congregation in the United States: the Oblate Sisters
of Providence. Lange, the order’s superior, has been born
in Cuba of San Domingue refugees. With the support of the archbishop,
she and her associates identified their mission as the education
of underprivileged children.
A century later, a new type of immigration began,
this time the destination was Washington, DC. |
Twentieth Century Origins
A century later, a new type of immigration from Haiti began, this
time with a destination of Washington, DC. When Francois “Papa
Doc” Duvalier became Haiti’s ruler in 1957, a trickle
of Haitian elite - intellectuals, technicians and former diplomats
- flowed into the city. While some found work they had been trained
for, principally in international organizations, others were left
to scramble. A number of intellectuals landed jobs as parking lot
attendants as a result of the efforts of a local writer and poet
who had befriended them.
These immigrants from Haiti, along with diplomats
and others in professional or elite positions, usually arrived with
servants, or “house personnel,” in tow. Eventually,
individuals from this group found ways of settling down in the Washington
area, eventually receiving other family members from Haiti looking
to improve their lives. Hence it was in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s
that the Haitian community in the Washington metro area began, timidly
at first, to grow.
 Washington
as the Ultimate Destination
Also drawn to Washington during these years were individuals who
initially migrated from Haiti to someplace else in the US, such
as New York, and, like Yvon
Aristide, and Lionel
“Yon-Yon” Simeon, relocated to Washington either
to complete their studies, or in search of professional opportunities.
Included among the latter are a number of prominent and successful
physicians, such as Dr. Berthie Labissiere, and their families.
Haitians in Washington’s Periphery
Throughout this period, other Haitians were present on the fringe
of the Washington metro area. Farm laborers, usually recruited in
South Florida, worked the apple orchards of Virginia and the farmland
of the Delmarva Peninsula, or Eastern Shore, particularly during
harvest time. Some of these Haitians found ways to remain permanently
in the area, developing small enclaves in such places as Morgantown,
West Virginia, Norfolk, Virginia, and along Maryland’s Eastern
Shore.
The more recent arrival in Washington of activists
and refugees who fled the country during the extended period
of political unrest that followed the 1986 fall of the Duvalier
family dictatorship have added numbers to the Washington area
Diaspora. |
Activists and Refugees
The more recent arrival in Washington of activists and refugees
who fled the country during the extended period of political unrest
that followed the 1986 fall of the Duvalier family dictatorship
have added numbers to the Washington area Diaspora. This flow reached
its height following the 1991 coup d’etat and the following
three years of repressive military rule in Haiti. The activists,
in particular, were drawn to the power of Washington, with the hope
of exerting influence on policy makers and professionals working
in Washington’s famous ‘think tanks.’ One of those
think tanks was the Washington Office on Haiti, supported by U.S.
church groups and initially established to advocate on the behalf
of Haitian migrant workers. By the late 1970’s, under the
direction of Fritz Longchamps, the organization had expanded its
mandate to work as a lobby group on US – Haiti policy issues.
To read more about Fritz Longchamp and the Washington Office on
Haiti click here.
Members of today’s Washington Haitian community
represent a diversity of Haitian hues and have both urban and rural
roots. While the origins of the Washington Haitian community are
traced to elite’s, the community today is predominantly one
firmly rooted in the American middle class. |
|
