I would like to share a story with you from one of my trips to Haiti in 2016. Its about prejudice, trusting your self, having faith in humanity and healing through music and connection.
I initially went to the Dominican Republic to conduct research for my Masters thesis. I had prepared to do fieldwork in the Northern part of the Island where you find some of the many 'fair-trade' marked banana plantations. My plan was to investigate further what happens on the production side of the food chain within the fair trade system, to see how fair the system really is.
Amidst my arrival, the Dominican government had just issued a new act, to ban all undocumented citizens and deport them from the Island. This was a pure act of discrimination towards Haitians who had lived and worked the fields for generations, and a lot of them didn't even speak Haitian creole. Thousands where taken by force, ripped away from their families and homes and were literally dumped on the Haitian side of the border. I witnessed this violence and was shocked by some Dominicans' ignorant and racist attitudes to the whole situation and towards Haitians in general. Some of my friends in the DR were Haitians. A very polite, hard-working and grateful people. They took the dirty jobs, and worked long days and nights to help provide for their families in Haiti. In gaining the documents needed to be living in the DR they would have to go through a very corrupt, costly procedure, which many could not afford. Seeing that most workers on the 'fair trade' fields were Haitians, I could not follow through with my initially research plan, and changed course to Haiti to experience on-ground the issue I was faced with.
People told me I was crazy for going on my own. I was told that I would most likely get killed by those animals, those savages. I was told I would see so much poverty I wouldn't be able to live a normal life afterwards. They were saying how Haitians had put a curse on themselves for practicing voodoo, hence, the reason why they were hit hard by the earthquake in 2010, and that they had deserved to suffer (from interviews and field-notes).
I crossed the border from Pedernales by foot, with my backpack and a mindset full of fear, not knowing what to expect. It went from green, paradise-looking, beaches and colourful brick buildings to a garbaged filled, dried out river, brown and dusted poor village, I could not see one tree, all within the blink of an eye. I was struck by the sudden change of environment. How could a tiny island be so divided?
I had a contact in the rural village of Anse-au-Pitres: A german girl, who was the project coordinator of Sadhana Forest, an ecovillage with the aim of teaching conservation and reforestation methods to the Haitian people. I was led further into the village by some children who apparently had expected me. I was greeted with warm smiles by welcoming village members. Since most NGOs focus their aid where the money is, such as in big cities and in more populous areas, Anse-au-Pitres did not have much experience with us blah (white people). My fear disappeared immediately. In fact, I had never felt more safe. I was invited into people's homes, introduced to all the neighbours, shared meals, ate, laughed and played with the little ones. Nathalie, the project coordinator had lived in the village for about a year, it was her home, her family, she had learned the local language (Haitian creole), hence, I was treated like family as well.
It suddenly got very dark (as there was no electricity in the village), but Nathalie knew the path by heart, we walked arm in arm, feeling our way back to the ecovillage. That's when I heard a beautiful voice, and music. We were led to a rooftop of a local school, and entered Chaggat's meditation class. He was playing the guitar, and sang "Baba Nam Kevalam" (I later learned that it was a sanskrit mantra, that meant 'love is everywhere and is the essence of life').
I could only see through the light shining from the moon, there were more people standing behind him, some were holding their hands above their heads, some in front of their hearts, all humming to the mantra and moving slowly from side to side. We joined in. I looked up and saw the most beautiful sky, I had never seen so many stars on a black canvass. I sang along from my heart, the words just came out, and I cried.
I knew I was exactly where I was supposed to be, in that very moment. I felt joy, bliss and aliveness like I've never felt before, and I felt so grateful to be part of it. After we sang for what felt like an hour, we sat down in a circle; Chaggat spoke Creole, but Nathalie translated most of it. They prayed for their trees, their land, and to take care of one another in these times of hardship, brothers, sisters. As people left, some touched my hand, and said something I could not understand, but I felt welcomed by their warmth and touch.
These people were villagers, hard-working, ordinary people who went to mediation every evening at 7 pm. I extended my stay in Haiti, and lived in Anse-au-Pitres for three, almost four months. I can tell you for certain, they were wrong! I am so glad I trusted my instinct, and dared to step into the unknown. Im glad I got to experience truth itself. I learned that you can find great healing through music and song in a community. Chaggat became a good friend of me, he spoke english quite well. I also learned that laughter is a language we all share and truly is the best way to connect with people. We all know this, but often take it for granted.
I would often find Chaggat walking about in the village, singing and playing the guitar. It was such a shocking realisation to me, being pampered with racist beliefs from the Dominican side of the island prior to my visit. Yet, you cannot blame them for their lack of knowledge and understanding. We can only experience truth itself if we dare to open our hearts, trust ourselves and trust humanity. We are just people, born into this world in different circumstances. I am grateful to be born in Norway, where opportunities are abundant. I am grateful that I can travel the world and gain new perspectives, and I am grateful to have all my basic needs met. Yet we share the fundamental values and emotions, we just need to open our eyes more and seek connection to ourselves, and others.
Here are some photos from my beautiful, transcending eye-opening trip to Haiti:
(haha, and this last one I just had to show you, my local gym during my stay in Anse-au-Pitres)
Thank you for reading.
Love from Kaitlin