The #FreeHaiti Movement is a movement calling for the newly elected President, Jovenel Moise, who became the President of Haiti in March 2020, to step down completely. He changed the political policies that Haiti had once been about: republic today’s time, semi republic. This article will give you a breakdown of the free Haiti movement, my background, Haiti’s political system, the celebrities who have spoken up about the movement, and some articles that you can look at as a resource to educate yourself. 

I have an ethnic background of American, Jamaican, and Haitian descent, and have been learning about the unrest happening in Haiti. My mother, Sheila Joseph, is a Haitian American woman raised in Haiti but has grown up everywhere in the United States, from Florida to New Jersey. I loved listening to Kompa music groups such as “Kreyol La” and “Boukman Express,” which I first learned about my Haitian roots. I want to thank my mother for exposing me to these musicians growing up at home (on top of exposing me to Michael Jackson). I grew up speaking French, and I learned about my Haitian culture through Haitian Lalo, a spinach and rice dish made with beef and crab. My mom makes it with Haitian beef Patties.

The #FreeHaiti movement has had several protests over the last few days to hope that Haiti’s current president leaves office. Over the past year, Haitian citizens have been killed and kidnapped, including Evelyne Sincère, a high school senior kidnapped and killed in Haiti last year. She is one of the many victims of the violence happening over the past year in broad daylight, caused because of the president’s policies. He does not have the best interest for Haiti in mind and only thinks about himself. There has to be a change for the future of Haiti.

Haiti’s political system had been a unitary republic. Republic means a government that is supposed for the people, not for the government officials—unitary means to form a union together. In 2021, Haiti’s government became a Semi-Presidential Republic, which means the president is the head of state and wins the elections every year. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister is the head of the government, and he is chosen from the majority party. Haiti today has four main government branches, which are the cabinet, executive, judicial, and legislative branches.

Many celebrities have spoken up about the #FreeHaiti Movement, including Cardi B, a Grammy-winning rapper from originally the Bronx. Bobby Shmurda, a rapper from Brooklyn, New York, and who had just come home from prison, tweeted in support, sending love to the Haitian people and his fellow Haitians. Chicago rapper, Noname, used her platform to educate her supporters on what is going on in Haiti and what type of policy the president uses on his citizens, which is influenced by American imperialism. To me, this means another leader wants the country to be like the United States.

This saddens me as a fellow human being because they could not move forward as a country due to the deplorable leadership of the president. The only way to educate ourselves on the movement is through social media and YouTube, and through artists and influencers who are using their platform for good to speak on movements such as #FreeHaiti. We are thinking of Haiti and its many people. Now is the time to come together in Love and stand by your friends no matter who they are and their walks of life. I hope you can understand another part of my being and culture. I want to bring the movement to light, understand Haiti as a country. 

Here are some articles that you can look at as a resource to help educate yourself.

Articles/ Videos:

https://www.hot97.com/hip-hop-news/hot-news/cardi-b-bobby-shmurda-no-name-more-show-support-for-free-haiti/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lp5zc5ROtzE

https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2021/country-chapters/haiti