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(Posted 8:30
a.m., July 18)
Local Haitian community celebrates despite troubles back home
By Fred Sherwin
Orléans Online
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|  CaRiMi
lead singer Michael Benjamin has the crowd waving their hands in the air as the
New York-based band brings the 2nd Annual Haiti en Fête celebration to a close.
Fred Sherwin/Photo
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It's been
a difficult six months for members of the local Haitian community. In the aftermath
of a devastating earthquake that claimed the lives of 225,000 people, the recovery
process has been slow and laborious. Whole
communities still lie in rubble while an estimated 1.5 million are living in makeshift
shanty towns, dependent on international food aid. It's safe to say that not a
single member of the local Haitian community has been left untouched by the earthquake.
Most have relatives or friends who either died in the quake or have been displaced
by it. But
the sense of despair and anxiety that gripped their lives for the first few months
following the earthquake has slowly transformed into hope and resiliency. On Saturday,
Haitians from as far away as Montreal and New York gathered on Petrie Island for
the second annual Haiti en Fête, where for the better of the afternoon and long
into the evening they did their best to put aside their worries about what's going
on back home, and celebrated their heritage and culture through music and food. It
was a tremendous gathering filled with joy and hopefulness. The weather co-operated
for the most part and a long lineup of musicians kept everyone jumping and dancing
until 10 p.m. when the party shifted to a downtown nightclub until the wee hours
of the morning. As
the last revelers were walking to their cars to leave the park, co-organizer Ron
Louis-Jean declared the event a success. "We're
very happy. Everything went pretty smoothly except for the odd hiccup here and
there. The crowd was a little bigger last year, but considering everything we've
been through and the troubles back home, it was a great time," said Louis-Jean.
(This story was made possible thanks to the generous support of our local
business partners.) Return
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