VoicesfromHaïti ~ Nou bèl. E Nou La.

When I was a young child, I really did not have clue who my great uncle was. People revere his name and the idea of who he is; yes, they still do. When my family moved back  to Haiti immediately after the fall of Jean-Claude Duvalier, I read Gouverneur de la Rosée (Masters of the Dew) at my grandmother’s house. She had all the books. It was a good place for me to be.

Gouverneur de la Rosée jolted a new reality within me. But I didn’t begin to understand who Jacques Roumain was until I became much older.

Being a Roumain has reinforced my belief that we need to work as a community, band around this subject of culture. We need to move things forward in the Diaspora; we have to move things positively in Haiti. We have to work together. We, Haitians, have to get together and work for Haiti. We need the power of the konbit. I believe that artists have power to bring people together around common issues. Let’s not stop. The road ahead is long.

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Creator (Régine M. Roumain) and creation (Haiti Cultural Exchange “HCX”) are so intertwined, it’s a challenge to discern where one stops and the other begins.

If Haitian culture is the mother, HCX is the fetus, and Régine is undoubtedly the umbilical—the lifeline connecting the two.

Régine M. Roumain is co-founder and director of HCX, the organization that does much more than disseminate Haitian Culture in the New York area.  It moves us forward.

HCX is a one-stop place for Haitian musicians, writers, visual artists, poets, dancers, story-tellers—seasoned and emerging. It is a virtual womb, in a sense—a safe place to develop and grow and give birth to creative ideas.

HCX connects outside organizations to Haitian artists about whom they might not have heard. “They are out there on their own,” Régine says of most artists in the diaspora. “HCX is a central place that can link everyone.”

This mother of two is constantly on the move, facilitating programs that keep Haitian culture from fading. The signature ‘An n’ Pale’ series–a tête-à-tête between artist and audience–is always refreshing. HCX also partners with New York City Public Schools to facilitate learning objectives that help our children’s imagination to flourish.

There’s never a quiet moment in Régine world, but you will never catch her without the torch she carries in Haiti’s name.

Régine’s InnerView with VoicesfromHaiti is coming soon.

Jany Tomba on Being a Model

The first time I was photographed for a magazine was with two other girls: a blonde and a brunette. It was an ad for JC Penney. I did not know how important it was to have a national ad that ran in  Seventeen Magazine—a huge magazine. I had no preconceived idea of what to feel.

It was a new experience. I remember the blinding lights, the preparation for the shoot; the hustle bustle in the studio.

The day before the shoot, I remember going on ‘the go-see’ (the interview), where several girls were also present. I just showed up as myself, unaware of what people were thinking or might be thinking. I think I was comfortable with myself and that came through. That was my first paid job. I thought it was very natural for me to be in front of the camera.

Did I think of myself as being pretty? I didn’t think so until I left Ste. Rose de Lima—a school that was run by nuns. When I attended Centre d’ Etudes Secondaires, an excellent private boy and girl school back inHaiti, I started to smile.

I did not know I would be a model.  As a child I thought I would have been a doctor. When I saw the stylish girls walking around NYC city with their portfolio, it seemed like a nice way of living. Continue Reading. . .

 

VoicesfromHaiti

Honoring the Past.  Celebrating the New Journey.

When I was a little girl, I wore my hair in three braids: two thick ones in the back and a third one on the side of my face. That was my style. That was the way my grandma combed my hair.

Some of the imported nuns insisted that I remove that braid from my face. Their comments made me feel bad.

Even though I attended one of the most the prestigious religious schools, the educators liked to control some of the Haitian girls. They did not like our physical appearance. They attacked the way some of the children spoke French.

If I could go back and talk to little Jany Tomba, I would tell her: You are unique and don’t mind what the nuns say to you about having your third braid hanging in front of your face. I would tell her she is beautiful.

 

Exclusive VFH InnerView (Part 1)

Exclusive VFH InnerView with Jany Tomba (Part 2)

Jany Tomba: Creole Text

Katia D. Ulysse