Greetings from Puerto Plata!

This blog post is long overdue (and quite lengthy in general)! I have been in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic for a month and naturally, I have many ruminations. Three words to sum up this experience thus far: perspective-enhancing, refreshing and challenging.

You may be wondering what brought me here. I am a Haitian-American who was born in Les Cayes, Haiti but raised in the United States. Growing up, I heard a lot of my family members talk about what I would later come to know as anti-haitianism in the Dominican Republic. Unlike most Americans, I did not think of beautiful beaches, bachata music and the infamous phrase “ke lo ke” when I thought about this country. Instead, I thought about mass deportations of my people, violence against Haitian immigrants unabashedly ignored by the government and pervasive anti-blackness. I decided as a self-respecting Haitian, I would never go to the Dominican Republic.

However, this all changed when I began learning about the social construction of borders and the actual history between the two nations. I wrote my final Introduction to Global Studies paper on Haitian-Dominican relations, emphasizing the difference in racial identification as the cause for this "Hispaniolan Division." Both countries bore witness to ethnic cleansing as a means of creating/enforcing a sense of national identity: Haiti's massacre of French citizens post the Haitian Revolution aimed to create a predominantly Black and mixed raced citizenry versus dictator Trujillo's 'Parsley massacre' of Haitians in 1937 in order to "whiten the race." Through this research, I learned how connected the two countries were, given that for 22 years, they were known as one: Haiti Español. Many Dominicans have Haitian ancestry and the opposite is likely true. Evidently, the border between these nations was not as essential as I had been taught to see it. I wondered what I could do to see the island as home, rather than viewing the nations and their respective citizenries as historically and contemporarily at odds with one another. Many Dominicans, in fact, are very anti-Trujillo and the senseless violence he inflicted upon Haitians. This meant that I would need to put my so-called national pride and fury aside and actually visit this country. I told myself, however, that I would seek out Haitians if I ever visited the Dominican Republic. These intentions are what brought me to Project Esperanza: a non profit organization based in Puerto Plata that predominantly works with the local Haitian community specifically by offering community aid and access to free and quality education. I decided that I would kill two birds with one stone: further my understanding of international advocacy as part of my Human Rights major via a summer internship with Project Esperanza AND deconstruct my preconceived notions of the Dominican Republic and its people.

So far, I have:

• been to several beaches

• gotten head butted by a cow

• been stared at, whistled at, and cat called by Dominican men

• connected with the predominantly Haitian community within the Muñoz community

• been in countless carritos (taxis) and guaguas (public vans)

• fallen in love with teaching

• danced bachata and kompa in one night

• begrudgingly showered with cold water everyday

• experienced frustration, excitement, fulfillment and more

I am so grateful that I have been able to experience traveling this way. Because of the nature of the work I am doing here, my experience has not been the typical visiting a country for a few days, interacting only with the people there to cater to your every need. Instead, I have been living at a farm with unstable wifi (and water, and power) and a frustrating amount of mosquitoes and will continue to do so for the next month. I am by no means the average tourist. Tourism aims to only show people just a fraction of what the country actually has to offer. You can enjoy your air conditioning, jet skiing, and catered meals while completely disassociating with the local culture. I understand that I, a 20 year old on summer vacation who got funding from her insanely wealthy elite private college, am afforded privileges that many people do not have. I say this not to ignore those privileges but to urge people to venture outside of their comfort zone when traveling. You won’t get a picture perfect vacation. You’ll be face to face with poverty and the lack of education. Otherwise said, the humanity of the nation. Just the same, you’ll get to truly say that you have experienced life elsewhere. That you know what it’s like to be welcomed into the homes and hearts of the local community. That your perspectives have truly been broadened.

Truthfully, I have not engaged with many Dominican people. My role as part of this organization is to translate health content into Haitian Creole and to teach English to the Haitian or Dominoco-Haitian population (meaning the children of Haitian immigrants that were born in this country yet lack the citizenship privileges of full Dominicans). My Haitian upbringing has been such a blessing as it has allowed me to truly connect with my students and the people in the Munoz community. Though my Haitian-Creole is far from perfect, I have had engaging conversations with new friends, laughed, drank and had countless adventures because of our cultural connection. Unfortunately, that means that my Spanish speaking skills have not improved as much as I would like them to but I have a feeling that I will be spending significant time in Latin America in the future. My status as a future polyglot is slowly loading…

Another challenge that I have faced is within my identity as a Haitian-American and the inherent power dynamics that this hyphen creates between myself and the local community. Though I recognize that this blog post has been long enough and that this should perhaps be the topic of another article…

In about a month, I have come to see the Dominican Republic as deeply connected to my home country. I have met so many hardworking Haitians that have found some degrees of acceptance here along with a more productive economy and safer living conditions. I have been able to place names and stories to the research that I have done concerning Haitian-Dominican relations; I plan to conduct more as part of my thesis. I have taught kids about prepositions, numbers, and even the Beatles and watched as their little brains absorbed a language that is foreign to them. Teaching can be frustrating at times, given the stark contrast between what these children have experienced in contrast to a typical American kid. However, I have found joy and perspective in navigating this challenge and it has shown me that I have a true talent for this.

That is all for now! I will continue to share my experiences with all of you via this blog and instagram. I am looking forward to new adventures, swimming in the beautiful Caribbean beaches and experiencing the most fulfilling summer of my life so far.

Adios!