15th Annual Miss Haiti Pageant

On November 7^th, 2009, USF’s Club Creole had its 15^th annual Miss. Haiti Pageant. What is the significance of this you may ask? Well, The Miss Haiti pageant is the biggest Haitian event in the city of Tampa Bay where hundreds of supporters come out to see a display of Haitian culture at its best. Fans come out every year with the anticipation of a laughed-filled show, extravagant productions, beautiful contestants and family styled ambiance.

**CLICK HERE TO SEE THE DANCE NUMBER OF LAST YEAR'S PAGEANT**

**CLICK HERE TO SEE PROMO VIDEO**

**CLICK HERE TO SEE GEICO COMMERCIAL PLAYED AT LAST YEAR'S PAGEANT**

General Information:

First off, Club Creole is one of USF’s largest student organizations, consisting over 400 members. Every Friday afternoon at 5 PM, Marshall Center room 3708 becomes packed with members as well as guest craving to know more of Haitian Culture.

Their mission statement is: To dispel the negative myths people may possess about Haiti and Haitian people while displaying our rich culture on campus and the Tampa Bay community at large through events, dances, and cultural presentations”. Every year in the fall, they host the Miss. Haiti Pageant that consists of contestants representing a city in Haiti.

This is by no means a beauty pageant—it is strictly cultural. As a contestant, you are REQUIRED to attend all club meetings, social events and community service projects. Each event contributes to the pre-pageant points of the contestants. This is mandated because as Miss. Haiti you are the Ambassador of Club Creole, the Community Service Chairperson, and a member of the Executive Board.

On the night of the actual show, contestants are judged on:

1. Introductions
2. Cultural Presentations
3. Impromptu

The contestants’ introductions include information about the city they are representing as well as their names, majors etc. The introduction gives the judges a chance to see how each contestant handles a large crowd while at the same time having poise and personality.

Cultural Presentations are the highlight of the pageant. Club Creole does not believe that talent alone is enough for the Miss Haiti Pageant. Each contestant must take whatever skill they have and present a cultural presentation that incorporates Haiti as well as the theme of the pageant and relay a message to the audience teaching them about an aspect in Haitian Culture.

Impromptu is the segment where each contestant is asked a question regarding anything under the sun relating to Haiti. Such questions that have been asked are:

1. What natural resource in Haiti is contributing the advancement of agriculture?
2. Why is Haiti called the Pearl of the Antilles?
3. If you had $50,000, what charity that focuses on Haiti would you donate to?

The Miss Haiti

pageant gives Second-generation Haitians a chance to reconnect with the culture, and gives non-Haitians a chance to learn about it. By the end of the pageant, you will know at least 3 catch phrases in kreyol, the meaning of “sak pase” and “nap boule”, and be introduced to at least 4 dance styles of the Haitian Culture. With the recent pageant on last Saturday, the crowning ceremony will take place on November 13, 2009 at 5 PM in MSC 3708. If you were not able to attend the pageant, this meeting would be a great experience for you to see the new Miss Haiti crowned and learn about Great Haitian Women. The Haitian culture is everything filled with sugar, spice and everything nice. Submerge yourself in the culture and come find the inner Haitian in yourself!

USF Club Creole's

2009-2010

Miss. Haiti:

Beverley K. Joseph

The Double Standard

“On March 28, 101 Haitians landed on a South Florida beach after a grueling 22-day voyage which claimed the life of one of their fellow travelers. But unlike Cuban émigrés who make it to U.S. soil (who are generally allowed to stay in the country and to apply for green cards after a year), these destitute Haitians have been detained by immigration officials for "expedited removal. U.S. immigration policy has consistently turned Haitians away from its shores. Conversely, Washington's "open door" immigration policy for Cubans has become a mechanism for undermining the Cuban government." –Ben Terrall

1^st glance:

This excerpt above was taken from Ben Terrall’s article: “Cuban Refugees Get Hero’s Welcome, Haitian Refugees Turned Away.” Immediately, I started to research other sources in which I could find more information about this double standard treatment of refugees. As I continued reading the article, I became angered at America’s treatment of Haitian immigrants through each Presidential administration. In all honesty, if anyone lands on American soil, they should all have the same treatment.

Haiti is a country that is suffering from internal and external conflicts. Internally, Haiti has political issues. The relationship between the government, which consists of: The President and Parliament, as well as the constituents, are very rocky. Killings of residents that are often sanctioned by the militia and small power groups, force Haitians to seek protection in whatever places that can receive it from; for most, America is the only option. Getting a visa the legal is very difficult because the government controls who does what and who goes where. They often times inflate the price of retrieving official documents in hopes of keeping them in the country. So, the only option is getting out of the country through boat, into another country illegally.

It affects my life:

This story hits home to me, because my father came into America illegally. He told me right before I headed to college my freshman year that he risked his life in order for my brothers and I to have a better one. In the 1980s, Haiti experienced a mass exodus. Many lost their lives in the oceans as they often times left their homes in the middle of the night to board a raft, or ship, and sail for 20 or more days at sea with only salt water as food and nourishment. Just two weeks ago, my father became a US citizen. With the double standard treatment on Haitians, my father could have possibly been sent back to Haiti, where he could have been killed, and I would have never existed.

What is being done?

Florida Representative Alcee Hastings introduced an act called: Haitian Protection Act of 2007. It would allow TPS (Temporary Protected Status) to about 20,000 Haitians who are facing deportation from the United States. According to US Citizenship and Immigration Services, “TPS would provide relief to nationals of countries suffering natural disasters or political violence. The status suspends deportations of people who have overstayed their visas or entered illegally, for renewable 12-18 month periods.” TPS provides important relief to such visitors, their families and their governments, at very little cost to U.S. taxpayers. It would allow Haitians in desperate straits to keep working to support themselves, and to keep sending money back to their families.

Haiti: Its history and the negative connotation of being called Haitian.

Haiti: Its history and the negative connotation of being called Haitian.

The History:

A lot of people do not know the incredible History of Haiti. I believe that in order to understand the culture, it is imperative to know the history of Haiti. In 1492 when Christopher Columbus landed in the northern part of Haiti, he was astounded at the beauty of the island that he declared Haiti as the Pearl of the Antilles. The island soon transitioned from being colonized by the Spanish to the French.

At the time, the revolution in France had an extreme effect of the relationship between the slaves and the colonists. On August 22, 1791, slaves in the northern region of the colony staged a revolt that began the Haitian Revolution. Tradition marks the beginning of the revolution at a ceremony at Bois Caïman (Alligator Woods) near Cap-Français. The call to arms was issued by Dutty Boukman. Within hours, the northern plantations were in flames. The rebellion spread through the entire colony. Boukman was captured and executed, but the rebellion continued to rapidly spread.

With the colony facing a full-scale invasion by Britain, the rebel slaves emerged as a powerful military force, under the leadership of Toussaint Louverture, Jean-Jacques Dessaline and Henri Christophe. L’Ouverture successfully drove back the British and by 1798 was the defacto ruler of the colony. In 1799, he defeated the mulatto General Andre Riguad who controlled most of the south and west and refused to acknowledge Toussaint's authority. By 1801, he was in control of the whole island, after conquering Spanish Sanr Domingo and proclaiming the abolition of slavery there.

On January 1, 1804 Dessalines then declared independence, reclaiming the indigenous Taíno name of Haiti ("Land of Mountains") for the new nation, cementing Haiti as being the first black establish republic.

The Negative Connotation:

With such powerful history, you would expect a measure of respect as to being Haitian, instead of the ostracizing. When I was in elementary school, if a kid wanted to hurt your feelings or belittle you, they would say: “You Haitian” about 99.99% of the time. I have always had pride in my culture, but to see people using being Haitian as a negative characteristics called into question its negative connotation. First, a lot of people attribute Voodoo to something that came from Haiti. In fact, it came from Africa, and spread among South and Central America, and the West Indies. Most do not know that Voodoo is a religion; a spiritual belief that has been misconstrued by the media to portray something that is barbaric and savage. It is a shame that people believe what they hear instead of what they see. Another misconception is that Haitians eat cats. How did this originate? I wish I knew, because that is so farfetched. In all honesty most of us do not even like animals, much less eating a cat. But when you have people that believe a lie, it turns into a societal truth; and that is when it is the most hindering on any culture.

From the early stages of elementary and school, kids had this negative outlook on the country that I love so dearly. Being called Haitian turned from something prideful to now shameful. So many young Haitian adults deny their true identity with the fear of standing out. It saddens me to think about not only how some Haitians are ashamed of their culture, but also how in other cultures, people are embarrassed by their ethnicity. Are you one of them? If you are, please understand that your background is what makes you unique; being Haitian lifts me up into a whole different level. I am more grounded and sure of whom I am as a young lady. Despite the negative stereotypes that are attributed to your culture, have pride in it; because having pride in it, is also having pride in yourself.

Qu'est-ce qu'une femme? -- What is a woman?

“It’s a girl,” hollers the doctor as he extracts the newborn from her mother’s womb. Sadly, if she just so happens to be Haitian, she technically isn’t a “girl”. Growing up in the Haitian culture is no small feat, especially if you’re blessed or cursed (considering your standpoint) with being a female. From the tender age of 5, I was trained to cook, clean, walk, talk and conduct myself like a lady; there was no choice in the matter. By Haitian standards, a girl is not considered a woman unless she can manage a household with the utmost efficiency. I have had many debates with “old-school” Haitians about the criterion set before young girls. The usual reply is: “it is so once she becomes old enough and gets married, her in-laws cannot shame her for not being able to run her house.” For one, who is to say that every Haitian girl is going to get married? The desecrations of these traditions are diminishing the love of the Haitian culture by young Haitian adults.

Honestly, for anyone to be raised with such high standards, which for some are daunting, is bound to make anyone feel lesser than a person. The psychological strain that are placed on these girls lead to distressing futures in which they are incapable of having healthy relationships. A couple of my friends are now in precarious relationships because they are so caught up in trying to fit this mythical norm set by God knows who, and in the end, they fail to realize that trying to fit this mold is unattainable. What really stands out is that fact cases such as this that is in the Haitian culture, appears in numerous cultures. For instance, in the American culture, we have images set forth through the media that portray unrealistic standards for girls; the need to be thin, sexy and popular exudes through television and magazines. Also, there is the “colorism” issue in India has girls with darker skin trying to lighten up by bleaching their skin. Needless to say, the same issue is prevalent in every culture.

The Haitian culture’s influence of the lives of us Haitians overpowers our senses. It seems like it controls our actions and mindsets as well as decisions. Being a girl makes this influence even greater. To have the first 18 years of your life defined by protocol takes it toll. You do not have a traditional childhood; while most kids are playing in the sand boxes, girls of Haitian descent can be found in a kitchen learning many intricate dishes, or learning how to do upholstery. Endless hours of learning how to sew and match china sets take the place of naptime.

All in all, being a girl in the Haitian culture sentences you to pretty much a lifetime of speculation by those who deem a girl’s right to womanhood by her capability of running a household will critique every action and decision you make. Now how fair is that?