How many live in the US? In the tristate area? How many in the home country?
As of 2018, there are approximately 687,000 Haitian immigrants in the U.S. There are about 1.2 million individuals if you count descendants. The number of immigrants in the tri-state area is said to be 163,000, with the diaspora being well over 400,000. The population of Haiti is over 11 million.
In the tristate area, where do they live?
The largest Haitian population is in Brooklyn, with the most concentrated area being a micro neighborhood in Flatbush now termed Little Haiti.
What jobs do a significant percentage of them have?
About 77% of Haitian immigrants are working age in the U.S. Haitian immigrant labor statistics suggest 37% of them work in the service industry, with 23% in management, business, STEM, and arts, 16% in office management and sales, 18% in production and transportation, and 6% in construction and maintenance.
Why did they come? When?
Data suggests the main period of Haitian immigration was in the 1960s and 70s in response to the oppressive dictatorship of François Duvalier and his son, Jean-Claude Duvalier. Surprisingly, the 2010 earthquake did not cause a significant migratory event.
What are some major organizations/advocacy groups/resources in this community?
- Haitian American Caucus
- Haitian Americans United for Progress
- Friends of Haiti in NY
- Haitian American Community Coalition
Do they have local media house/s? If so, list them.
The Haitian Times operates out of Brooklyn. It was founded in 1999 by Pulitzer-prize winner Garry Pierre-Pierre and is concerned with the Haitian diaspora around the world. This was the only publication I found that was both based in New York and seemed organized and legitimate.
List/link the major media houses in the home country.
Radio seems to be the most popular news outlet in Haiti. Major radio stations include, Caraïbes FM, Radio Ginen, Vision 2000, Radio Lumiere, Radio Métropole, and Radio Nationale d-Haïti. Major television outlets include Télé Caraïbes, Télé Ginen, which is the companion station to Radio Ginen, Télé Métropole, and Télévision Nationale d’Haïti. Le Nouvelliste is Haiti’s only daily newspaper and is by far the most popular. Le Matin is the leading weekly paper.
How strong are relationships with the home country? How significant are remittances to the home country’s economy?
Remittances accounted for 38.525% of Haiti’s GDP in 2019. In terms of percentage of home country’s GDP, Haiti is actually the second highest receiver of remittances in the world, behind the Tonga. This suggests very strong relations between Haitian immigrants and their home country. The establishment of many charities and advocacy groups concerned with Haiti specifically also supports this notion.
In the homeland what is the GDP per capita? Where does that rank in the world? What are the major industries?
Haiti’s GDP is 9.659 billion USD, which is 868.34 USD per capita. As of 2018, Haiti ranks 173rd. This is out of 196 countries; therefore, Haiti is one of the world’s poorest nations.
What is the system of government? When did this system come into place? Was there a colonial power? (Or was it the colonial power?)
Currently, Haiti is a semi-presidential republic. This system was established in 1987, but Haiti has a long history of political unrest and structural messiness, even recently. The country was first colonized by the Spanish and then by the French, until the Haitian revolution, which lasted from 1791 to 1804. The country has remained autonomous, except for a period of U.S. occupation lasting from 1915 to 1934. Although, it is apparent the U.S. has continued to intervene with varying effects since then.
Name of the NY consul general. How long has he/she been in the role?
Charles A. Forbin is the consulate general of New York’s Haitian embassy according to one website. This information may be outdated, but I have sent an email to the consulate and will update this post if they respond to me.
Give three potential story ideas. (Doesn’t need to be a fully fleshed-out pitch yet but should be well thought-out.)
1: I would like to do a story about how Haitians view the interference of the U.S. in Haiti. For example, I have come across some controversy concerning Haitians’ feelings towards the Clintons. I would like to report on the country’s attitudes all the way back to the early 1900s if I am able to find people who are educated about the U.S. occupation or had family that lived through it.
2: If I am able to find a good number of Haitian immigrants who came to America both before and after the 2010 earthquake, I would like to report on how the earthquake might have influenced the decisions of those who came afterwards and what it was like for those who were here before to have to deal with such tragic news from afar. The core of the story would simply be, “why did you immigrate to the U.S.?” But I want to go further and center it around the earthquake. Did people flee? Did people in the U.S. actually go back to help? From a Haitian’s perspective, how well did the media cover the disaster?
3: I’m interested in the tense relationship between Haiti and the Dominican Republic. How far back in history does the conflict go? What caused such a divide? Was it simply that they could not coexist on the same island? Does the everyday Haitian have opinions or prejudices towards Dominicans? Do opinions differ by age group or length of stay in the U.S.?