Haitian-American - Haiti Observer Blog

The Haitian American Professionals Coalition (HAPC) has welcomed Professor Diana Bien-Aime as its new executive director. She is a Speech Communications teacher at Miami Dade College and was chosen to head the HAPC due to her knowledge, passion, and leadership skills. HAPC chairman Attorney Richard Champagne said the coalition is very fortunate that it will be led by someone like her. He expressed confidence that she will be able to carry out initiatives that will fulfill HAPC's mission.

Diana Bien-Aime couldn't hide her excitement over joining HAPC. She said she is looking forward to working with individuals who are determined, passionate and committed to creating a better community. She revealed HAPC's plans to encourage member commitment and participation in goal setting. HAPC will focus on economic development and strategic goal planning in order to fulfill its mission to provide policy advocacy, interventions, partnerships and civic engagement to the community.

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This is the day we all have been waiting for. This is election day in the United states and according to every single election poll results, the race is extremely close. We have a 50 percent chance that the next president of the United States could be either Barack Obama or Mitt Romney.

So the question is what is the implication for Haitians and Haiti if the next president of the US is Mitt Romney Vs Barack Obama?

Haitians all over the US overwhelmingly voted for the Democratic candidate Barack Obama. Will we be better off if Obama wins?

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Daniel Bernard Roumain is one of the Haitian-American artists that have rocked the world for their talents and capabilities. He is an all-time recording artist, composer, performer and band leader. He is known for his abilities to easily blend different types of music and comes up with unique and very attractive forms of music.
Among his famous collections and makings is the blend of funk, rock, classical and hip hop music to generate a really interesting and attractive form of music that is very sweet to all those who listen to it. Roumain is able to do all these simply because despite having the talent he also went to school where he perfected and mastered the various ways of doing what he does best.
Daniel Bernard Roumain attended Dillard Center for the Arts in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and attained his first degree in Vanderbilt University's Blair School of Music and furthered for a doctorate which he got at the University of Michigan. He is thus a very educated musician who knows what is best for what he does. There are many who admire his music which as he claims is an afro fusion type of music specially meant for those who love all the types of music like he does.
It is for this reason that he did come up with his types of music and why he opts at all times to come up with unique stuff that will keep his audience interested and thrilled all the way to the last tune. Daniel Bernard Roumain has many diff ranging from being a composer where he has collaborated with various famous names such as Paul D. Miller also best known as DJ Spooky. He is thus a very prominent figure to watch out for as very soon he could be the next big thing in the world of music.

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Alex Désert, birth date of July 18, 1968, is a Haitian-American actor, who has been featured in multitudes of TV, film, and commercial acting roles. He first made an impression on viewers on a CBS series called TV 101, working with Matt Le Blanc of Friends fame. In another CBS project, The Flash, he portrayed forensic lab technician, Julio Mendez. Other TV vehicles followed including The Heights (1992) and Becker (1998-2004), with Ted Danson.

In film, Alex Desert has worked twice with Jon Favreau, first in PCU, then Swingers, and with John Cusak in High Fidelity (2000). He made a Sarah Silverman web advertisement, The Great Schlep, a public service announcement of sorts, in which Jewish, college-age students are asked to travel to Florida and urge their grandparents to vote for Barak Obama in 2008.

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Jamie Hector, birth date of October 7, 1975, is a Haitian-American actor, who began his acting career right out of high school, beginning in community theater. While enrolled in college, he auditioned and won roles on New York Undercover, Third Watch, Law & Order, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and The Beat. He is best known for playing Marlo Stanfield on HBO's much talked-about series The Wire.

As a film actor, Jamie Hector has appeared in Spike Lee's Clockers, He Got Game, Ghost Dog, Prison Song, and Everyday People. In 2003, Hector won acclaim as an actor in the film Five Deep Breaths, an Official Selection at major film festivals (Cannes, Sundance, Tribeca, and IFP). The short film garnered 16 awards, and attracted the attention of David Simon, who gave him the role of Marlo Stanfield in The Wire.

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Haitian-American human rights attorney and Director of Bureau des Avocats Internationaux (BAI), Mario Joseph, provides legal services for those incarcerated for speaking out against the government of Haiti (GOH). He also goes to bat for impoverished Haitians and citizens harmed because of their political beliefs.

Mario Joseph earned his university degree from École Normale Supérieure and studied at Gonaïves Law School. He began his career as human rights counsel for the Peace and Justice Commission of the Catholic Church. In 1996, he became a member of BAI.

Joseph's most significant case was the Raboteau Massacre trial, in which he was lead counsel, representing survivors of the event. The six-week trial ended with 53 convictions and punitive damages of $43 million USD, assessed against the offenders. Joseph did not stop with the Haitian convictions. He assisted the Center of Justice and Accountability to try other instigators involved in the Raboteau Massacre in the U.S. judicial system.

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The world looks at Haiti as country of corruption, abysmal poverty and illiteracy. This is true but it cannot be ignored that the world has also seen some Haitians rising out from their poor condition and shining bright enough to lead others and be inspiration for other Haitians. Reginald Fils Aime is one such name.

Reginald Fils Aime, also known as Reggie Fils-Aime or simply Reggie is a US national with Haitian origin. He works as Nintendo America's President and Chief Operating Officer for North American Division. Prior to this, he worked with the same company as Vice President of marketing and sales. Reggie Fils-Amie was born to Haitian Immigrants who settled in US permanently to avoid the conflicting views on politics of the grandparents of Reggie. Reginald was born in 1961 in New York and throughout his professional career he marked his presence with extraordinary marketing skills.

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The November 2012 presidential election in the United States is one of the most important events in world politics that could change and affect other countries greatly. For the upcoming election in the U.S., Jean Monestime was appointed to Electoral College.

The Electoral College requires the services of thousands of government officials and workers to ensure that the election will be done fair and right in choosing the next most powerful man in the world, which only happens every four years.

For Haitian-American Jean Monestime, working for the upcoming elections is a big obligation, and at the same time a huge privilege. Monestime, who is currently the Commissioner in Miami-Dade County's 2nd district, has been made a member of the Electoral College of the Florida Democratic Party. He is joined by 28 others in representing the state of Florida. The U.S. Electoral College is a set of selected individuals that represent a particular institution or organization in electing a candidate for a certain government office. The members are usually appointed just a few months before the actual elections.

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Miami-Dade College has appointed a new Executive Director of the Haitian-American Professionals Coalition (HAPC), Diana A Bien-Aime. An instructor in the Speech Communications Department at Miami-Dade, she is completing courses for her Ph.D. in Leadership and Communication. Born in New York State, she graduated from University of Florida with a Bachelor of Science in 2001, and Masters in Organizational Communications in 2007, at Barry University.

Bien-Aime uses her degrees to work with organizations as a communications facilitator, and moderate education forum events on television. She is also a poet and motivational speaker. Confident in her new role, she shares her perspective on what will make HAPC an effectively-run organization: "Collegiality and professionalism . . . . along with the longevity of commitment to . . . (the) community's issues."
Her priorities as the new Executive Director are to persuade members to commit to strategies that will spur economic growth and offer mediation, formulating policy resources, civic involvement, and membership alliances.

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Haiti struggles on many fronts to raise its profile on the world stage. Progress is happening, but one area that needs funding to achieve recognition is the development of native-born Haitian athletes. At this year's 2012 Olympic London games, four Haitian-Americans are competing for gold. The fifth Olympian, Haiti's only native-born competitor, is 21 year-old Linouse Desravine, competing in the Judoka Event.

One of the barriers to developing Olympic-level athletes from Haiti, is the 2010 earthquake. Thousands of earthquake refugees found shelter at three of Haiti's running tracks. Another problem is the budget. The U.S. Olympic Committee budget is a whopping $170 million, 300% more than Haiti's, a mere $400,000.

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