Globalization & the Little Haitian Chair

by Amy Wilentz | Jan 8, 2013

Tomorrow, my second book about Haiti, Farewell, Fred Voodoo, is being published, and I wanted to think about the ways in which old Haiti — the Haiti I first knew years ago — is changing, and what that means.

The first thing I ever bought in Haiti was a little Haitian chair. These were ubiquitous there in the 1980s. I sent my chair home because I had to have one in the States: they were so adorable, especially when new. They had such charm. You could see that they were quickly made, but by experts. They were rough and stubby and endearing.

Ti Sony, Aristide, and the Earthquake

by Amy Wilentz | Jan 6, 2013

Here’s a photo in my possession of Sony Telusma, then a child (boy on right with flowers). On this day, October 15, 1994, Ti Sony, as he was called, was waiting at Haiti’s international airport for ousted president Jean-Bertrand Aristide to be returned to Haiti and the presidency by the Clinton Administration. Note: Sony is looking at the camera.

New Year’s: Soup, Cornmeal, and Bean Sauce

by Amy Wilentz | Jan 2, 2013

Final fixings for a Haitian New Year’s celebration in Los Angeles, as promised. Soup joumon, or pumpkin soup, top left. Sòs pwa, or bean sauce, bottom left. Mayi moule, or corn meal mash, right. 

And a happy time was had by all.

Apye Nou Ye!

by Amy Wilentz | Jan 1, 2013

Butternut squash primed for Soup Joumou, or New Year’s Day pumpkin soup

Apye nou ye is the Haitian Creole expression for Happy New Year! Say it fast and you’ll see that, although literally translated from Creole it seems to mean “We go on foot,” it actually sounds very much like the English words “Happy New Year.” And that’s not surprising, because it supposedly came into fashion as a Haitian New Year’s greeting during the U.S. Occupation of Haiti (1915 – 1934), when marines would greet Haitian passersby with those words.