North Miami Election - Haiti Observer Blog

At a local Democratic meeting that took place last Monday night, Miami Herald reported that someone who was present, Gwen Margolis belittled three of her opponents by referring to them as "Haitians" and dismissed two others as "some teacher and some lawyer" . Margolis referred to her Haitian-American competitors such as businessman Anis Blémur, former state Rep. Phillip Brutus and state Rep. Daphne Campbell as "Haitians". She later added: "I have unlimited funds, and I'm going to spend every penny, and I'm not going to lose to those three Haitians or some teacher or lawyer."

State Senator Gwen Margolis who is the longest-serving sitting lawmaker in the Florida Senate is running for Miami-Dade district that runs from Miami Beach to Aventura.

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Can a White Man Win in Haitian-Dominated North Miami? Two-time former North Miami mayor (2005 and 2007) Kevin

Burns is doggedly trying to beat out Dr. Smith Joseph in a second runoff race for a third term as the city's mayor. Unfortunately for Burns, he happens to be white, and the black electorate makes up 59% of North Miami (35% Haitian-American) citizens. Last year, 2013, Burns faced black candidate Dr. Smith Joseph and Haitian-American Lucille Tondreau in a mayoral special election. He pushed Joseph out of the race and entered a runoff against Tondreau, who defeated him with 56% of the vote.

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This can't look good for the Haitian community. First female Haitian-American Mayor of North Miami, Marie Lucie Tondreau, was among four people indicted on Mortgage found Monday, May 19, 2014.

U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida on Monday filed criminal charges for activities from December 2005 to May 2008 well before Marie Lucie Tondreau had become the Mayor of North Miami.

Tondreau along side with Karl Oreste, Okechukwu Josiah Odunna and Kelly Augustin were all charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud. If convicted, she is likely to face up to 30 years in prison.

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It is always good to ask questions and this particular questions is being discussed in many Haitian barber shops and parks where Haitians are gathered to play Dominos.

Just a quick history on the situation of North Miami Mayor Lucie Tondreau. Following her election as the new Mayor of North Miami this year, the election was contested by former mayor Kevin Burns, a former mayor himself but not of Haitian descent, on the ground that Lucie Tondreau did not meet residency requirement to run for office.

There is another level to the story. According to some of the supporters of Mayor Lucie Tondreau another former mayoral candidate, Dr. Smith Joseph, who happens to be Haitian-American, is also collaborating with the non Haitian-American Kevin Burns to remove Mayor Lucie Tondreau from office.

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The Haitian Radio landscape of North Miami during an election period is a veritable game of thrones. With a whole third of the North Miami population being of Haitian descent, hopefuls for the city council and the position of mayor take to the ever important airwaves to sway the votes of this influential number.

The importance of Creole radio in North Miami is unquestionable. Even non-Creole speaking candidates and other interested parties keep themselves abreast of what is being broadcast because, quite often, the elections all but play out over the radio waves. The relationship to the Haitian residents of North Miami and their radio stations is not always a healthy one. They hang so trustingly upon the words of the broadcasters that the truth and lies are often accepted unquestioningly. Therefore, any candidate serious for election must keep on top of what is being said about them on radio. They must not only police what others are saying, but be a source of information by having a decisive presence on the most popular stations and talk-shows.

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Miami is home to one of the biggest populations of the Haitian Diaspora, 30% of North Miami's residents. Créole is the primary and perhaps only language they speak. When candidates run for office in North Miami, they depend on Haitian radio to present themselves to listeners.

The Haitian community in North Miami does not have access to media, such as public access TV. If a community newspaper exists, illiteracy among them keeps information undigested. What is left for those voters is Haitian radio.

Haitian radio hosts exercise unbridled influence. What they say--whether true or not--is received by their Créole-speaking audience as God's truth. At its best, Haitian radio keeps listeners abreast of local council developments, at its worse, conversations devolve into race baiting and political name-calling.

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Civic leader and Haitian-American, Lucie Tondreau, has become North Miami's first female mayor. She beat incumbent Kevin Burns with nearly two-thirds of the vote, in an uncontested election.

Seven-year old Lucie and her family escaped Haiti in 1967 during the violent dictatorship of Jean-Claude Duvalier. They relocated to Montréal where Lucie grew up. After traveling in the Caribbean and Africa, Lucie returned to New York and worked as a journalist, becoming deeply involved in the Haitian Diaspora community. She hosted both her own television and radio programs, and wrote on Diaspora issues.

Lucie eventually realized she could be of more service to Haitians arriving in Miami, who needed help assimilating. She re-settled permanently in Miami, and became a champion for voting and human rights issues. She also participated in delivering aid support to survivors when natural disasters occurred in Miami (a hurricane) and Haiti (the earthquake), in 2005 and 2010.

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