Haitian Creole - Haiti Observer Blog

The list of ordinary men, not kings or presidents or any other in an official capacity, who have influenced true and lasting forward movement in their home countries, is a short one. The list of Haitian writers who have created a legacy of literary, social and political worth is shorter still. The efforts of one such ordinary Haitian writer puts him at the pinnacle of both lists and elevates him from an ordinary Haitian writer to a legend of extraordinary significance to Haiti, it's Diaspora and many other countries in the world.

Morisseau-Leroy lived a long life from 1912 to 1998. At the beginning, his upbringing in a prosperous mulatto family saw him well-educated and fluent in French and English. His lucky, unchallenged existence was soon broadened by the addition of a wife, whom he credited as his muse, who famously admired his horsemanship, and would later give him three children.

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Haiti and MIT signed a joint initiative in digital learning in Kreyol. Kreyol is the most spoken language in Haiti and the initiative will promote education of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) disciplines in Kreyol language. Under this project, open education resources that are technology based and developed by MIT will be taken and translated to Kreyol and then provided to the Haitians to assess the effectiveness of the initiative. The work will be accomplished using the help of educators and professors from various Haitian institutions that will include Université Carïbe, State University of Haiti, Université Quisqueya, École Supérieure d'Infotronique d'Haïti, Foundation for Knowledge and Liberty and NATCOM.

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Jean Dominique spent his early career first educating farmers on how to be self-sufficient under the thumb of wealthy land-owners. He then went on to making two notable firsts in the broadcasting world, opening the first film club in Haiti as well as Radio Haiti, the first station to broadcast in Creole. He went on to have multiple run-ins with the Duvalier regiments and was exiled in New York until his return in the mid 80's when he became a member of the Lavalas party which won the 1990 election.

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Language is an important aspect in any nation. It is what unites a country and bridges it with the international community. More importantly, language is what makes every citizen understand each other.

That seems not to be the case in Haiti.

Having a language barrier can be a challenge to any country. Haiti faces language difficulties as there are two main languages that are widely used: the Creole and the French. People and linguists have different opinions on both these languages and how they affect Haiti society.

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Like any other languages, Haitian Creole is not something that you can teach or translate easily. It would take a professional to translate such language efficiently. Just because it is derived from the French language does not necessarily mean that a French person can successfully translate it. Keep in mind that Haitian Creole and French have a lot of differences. Though Haitian Creole draws a huge influence from the French language, it also has touches of Native American, West African, Spanish, Portuguese and Arabic languages. With this, the only one who can accurately translate it is a professional Haitian Creole translator.

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In a move that seems shocking and unpredictable, President Barack Obama has nominated Ambassador Pamela Ann White, a career diplomat to replace the current U.S. Ambassador Kenneth H. Merten. To take effect, the nomination has to be approved by the U.S. Senate. This was announced on Monday, January 23, 2012.

"The Real power player"

Pamela Ann White currently serves as the U.S. Ambassador to Gambia. Prior to that, she worked for United States Agency for International Development (USAID) where she was Mission Director in Liberia, Tanzania, and Mali. From 1999 to 2001, Pamela Ann White served as USAID's Deputy Director for East Africa. She also held a number of overseas positions with USAID, including: Executive Officer in Senegal, Haiti, Egypt and South Africa and Community Liaison Officer in Burkina Faso.

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