EXCLUSIVE: 'It's a parody of justice!' Former Haiti Football Federation president who was banned for life from the sport over allegations he sexually abused female players says claims are baseless and that 'corrupt' FIFA is using him as a 'scapegoat'

• The head of the Haiti soccer federation Yves Jean-Bart was banned from the sport for life last month after being accused of sexually abusing female players 
• Jean-Bart, one of the region's longest-serving top soccer official, told DailyMail.com in an exclusive interview that FIFA is 'corrupt'
• He said that FIFA is bent on keeping Haiti soccer 'in its place' because the men's national team is suddenly competitive against world powerhouses
• FIFA banned the 73-year-old, who is nicknamed Dadou, after giving him 10 minutes on Skype to respond to accusations 
• There are rumors he fathered children with his alleged victims - some of whom are reportedly under 18 
• But he says his long-term treatment for prostate cancer has made it physically impossible for him to impregnate anyone 
• He is now appealing the lifetime ban before the Court of Arbitration for Sport

The head of the Haiti soccer federation banned from the sport for life last month after being accused of sexually abusing and even impregnating some of the country's elite female players, said the accusations against him are pulled out of thin air and weren't properly investigated by world-wide soccer authority FIFA.

Yves Jean-Bart, one of the region's longest-serving top soccer official, told DailyMail.com in an exclusive interview that FIFA is 'corrupt' and bent on keeping Haiti soccer 'in its place' because the men's national team is suddenly competitive against world powerhouses. He pointed to the night of July 2019 when the red-and-blue suffered a one-goal loss to Mexico at the last minute of the Gold Cup semi-finals.

FIFA banned the 73-year-old, who is nicknamed Dadou, after giving him 10 minutes on Skype to respond to accusations he used his status to abuse and harass players whose future he was entrusted with, some younger than 18.

Jean-Bart told DailyMail.com that powerful Switzerland-based FIFA found a convenient scapegoat in its attempt to root out corruption in the sport – and he is appealing the lifetime ban before the Court of Arbitration for Sport, also in Switzerland. +12

Yves Jean-Bart, one of the region's longest-serving top soccer official, told DailyMail.com in an exclusive interview that FIFA is 'corrupt'+12

The head of the Haiti soccer federation Jean-Bart was banned from the sport for life last month after being accused of sexually abusing female players+12

A protester holds up a sign that reads in Creole "We are asking for justice," during the hearing of President of the Haitian Football Federation Yves Jean-Bart in May 

'Haiti football is disturbing the establishment,' Jean-Bart said in his native French. 'We have no sponsor, no advertising, no support and no money behind us, yet we beat Costa Rica and we push Mexico and the USA around. How dare we?

'Haiti makes no money for FIFA. Kicking me out and crippling Haitian football was the easy way out, the convenient thing to do. After all, what's Haitian football? It's nothing, right.'

The investigation into sexual abuse made by unnamed sources, purportedly coaches, players, referees and trainers, to The Guardian earlier this year are so preposterous, says Jean-Bart, that he can debunk them with nothing more than basic principles of biology and good old-fashioned common sense – something FIFA refused to do, he said.

Take the rumor he fathered children with young players.

Jean-Bart, who took over the country's soccer apparatus 20 years ago, filed documents with FIFA showing he has been fighting prostate cancer from the time he's been involved with soccer.

His long-term treatment has made it physically impossible for him to impregnate anyone, the 73-year-old Jean-Bart tells DailyMail.com.

According to the American Cancer Society, prostate cancer treatment can include the removal of the organ that makes sperm capable of fertilizing an egg, radiation, chemotherapy and medication. Any of the treatment is likely to cause erectile dysfunction and the inability to conceive, although each patient can be affected differently.

'Trust me when I tell you that part of me no longer works,' Jean-Bart says about his treatment without elaborating. 'I even sent (FIFA) a copy of the biopsy results.'

Jean-Bart is rumored to have gone underground since the ban and possibly crossed the border into the Dominican Republic.+12

He said on a Zoom call with DailyMail.com that FIFA is bent on keeping Haiti soccer 'in its place' because the men's national team is suddenly competitive against world powerhouses+12

'Haiti football is disturbing the establishment,' Jean-Bart said in his native French. 'We have no sponsor, no advertising, no support and no money behind us, yet we beat Costa Rica and we push Mexico and the USA around. How dare we?'

He appeared on Zoom at the agreed-upon time on December 4 from a room with no art on the sand-colored wall or any distinctive feature.

Wearing a sky-blue open-collar shirt and speaking in a firm but understated manner, Jean-Bart didn't look like a man on the run. As a matter of fact, he looked and sounded downright content and relaxed.

That's because the facts, he says, are on his side.

'They say I abused 100 girls and got some of them pregnant,' says the married father of four adult children. 'They alleged I've got children left and right, with such and such player. Where are all those babies? Not a single witness has come forward with a baby.'

The allegations included rumors Jean-Bart may have forced some of his alleged victims to undergo abortions.

Yet, according to published reports, the pregnancy-ending procedure is illegal in the Caribbean nation.

'Sounds like a good story,' Jean-Bart says, 'except that abortions are not legal in Haiti. What are they talking about?'

Since becoming president of the Haitian federation in 2000, Jean-Bart says, he has spent most of his time trying to get young men and women out of poverty through soccer.

'Our federation had the worst reputation when I came on,' Jean-Bart says. 'The sport here was plagued with theft and bribery. There were stories about drug trafficking conducted by players when they traveled to games in other countries.'

Arguably, the quality on the field of Haiti's soccer improved even as the island has been battered by earthquakes, hurricanes, poverty, environmental catastrophes, hunger, violence and political upheaval.

Jean-Bart oversaw the opening in 2002 of a FIFA-sponsored training center for the country's elite players set up in an aging ranch that once belonged to Haiti dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier, the Centre Technique National.

And while the sexual abuse allegedly took place inside the center, it's also been fertile training grounds for the cream of the soccer crop. Today, dozens of male and female players formed there ply their trade in professional leagues in Europe, Asia and elsewhere.

'Journalists are at the center all day long,' Jean-Bart says. 'They eat there. They watch the training. They talk to the players, the coaches, everybody. Yet, not a single time, have any of these journalists reported anything wrong.

'I recently counted 15 of our girls are playing in professional teams in France. I'd say the federation did some good work.'

Since Haiti's only appearance in the World Cup in 1974, soccer has risen to the status of religion on the island, making men like Jean-Bart some of the country's most powerful individuals. Rumors have it he has ties to criminal armed gangs, a charge Jean-Bart denied and called 'patently ridiculous.'

Incidentally, someone shot up an alleged victim's home when she wasn't around, and thugs are said to be engaged currently in a campaign of intimidation against believed to have testified against Jean-Bart.+12

'They say I abused 100 girls and got some of them pregnant,' says the married father of four adult children. 'They alleged I've got children left and right, with such and such player. Where are all those babies? Not a single witness has come forward with a baby'+12

There are rumors he fathered children with his alleged victims - some of whom are reportedly under 18. The national teams of the United States and Haiti have a moment of silence during a game between Haiti and USWNT

'I'm such a powerful, scary guy I don't even have security,' Jean-Bart tells DailyMail.com with a sarcastic smile and head shake. 'My house isn't protected by anyone. I drive my own car around town without a chauffeur. I'm a regular, normal person who cares about the country's youth.'

Soccer officials here control the fate of players who have a chance at the comfortable lifestyle of a pro in an industrialized county.

They also represent their country at international soccer gatherings – something that gives them the ability to network with some of the world's richest people.

Is it any wonder, says Jean-Bart, that the election for soccer federation president could spark negative campaigns against him?

Jean-Bart was cruising to what he thought was an easy victory for his sixth four-year mandate early this year when, he says, rumors portraying him as an out-of-control, sex-crazed despot who used money, food and threats to confiscate passports to entice young girls to have sex with him and others got to the ears of reporters at The Guardian and the New York-based NGO Human Rights Watch earlier this year.

'I'm still asking myself questions about this when I go to bed at night,' Jean-Bart said. 'The federation was in a period of election, and like in every election in Haiti, I couldn't escape made up stories and rumors about things that never happened.'

Jean-Bart said someone associated with a rival group contacted The Guardian in London, which assigned sports reporter Ed Aarons to the story.

Aarons is the newspaper's deputy sports editor who specializes in African soccer. Aarons recently published a book about African players who made their mark on English soccer. 

'This man never came to Haiti to investigate,' Jean-Bart said. 'He knows nothing about the subtleties of this country and why certain stories find their way to Europe. No one in Haiti reported this story. But from abroad, The Guardian did.

'This was a well-organized campaign that spread around the world.'

When asked if Aarons traveled to Haiti and why sources weren't named, a spokeswoman for The Guardian released this statement: 'The Guardian's reporting on Mr. Jean-Bart has been carefully considered and researched. The abuse allegations were made to the Guardian by numerous sources, including alleged victims and their families. We stand by our reporting and the sources who informed it, and we strongly reject any attempt to discredit our story.

'Following our reporting, FIFA's independent Ethics Committee conducted a formal investigation into allegations of systematic sexual abuse of female players. FIFA banned Jean-Bart for life after finding him guilty of sexually harassing and abusing multiple female players, including minors.'

Jean-Bart still won the election but, by then, FIFA was under pressure of Human Rights Watch to investigate and ultimately end his tenure.

Said a spokeswoman for the non-profit: 'Human Rights Watch directly interviewed multiple female athlete survivors, witnesses, coaches and referees who spoke of the abuses they experienced or witnessed. These statements detail alleged abuses by Jean-Bart, and also other senior football officials in the federation he ran.'+12

Jean-Bart says his long-term treatment for prostate cancer has made it physically impossible for him to impregnate anyone, despite rumors he fathered children with his victims +12

In a verdict announced last month the FIFA ethics committee found Jean-Bart guilty, banned him from the sport for life and fined him dollars 1.1 million, following accusations of systematic sexual abuse of female players

A scan of Haiti news organizations, meanwhile, shows the country's media barely covered the allegations against Jean-Bart and did not independently investigate them.

The daily newspaper Haiti en Marche and others, however, memorialized the November 16 decision by the Haiti justice system to not prosecute Jean-Bart criminally in connection with the scandal.

A creole language story Haiti en March mentions that prosecutors underscored the fact no victim was identified by government investigators and that no member of the human rights organizations that complained against Jean-Bart 'shined by their absence' from meetings with prosecutors.

The newspaper noted Jean-Bart's criminal investigations were launched on the request of several women's rights groups, including Solidarite Fanm Ayisyen (SOFA).

No one at SOFA responded to an email requesting comments.

Said Evan Nierman, Jean-Bart's spokesman and CEO of the international crisis management firm Red Banyan: 'The Haitian judicial system properly investigated and cleared (Jean-Bart) of wrongdoing, yet FIFA raced to convict him without evidence.'

According to the Human Rights Watch Spokeswoman Minky Worden, there's a good reason why witnesses are not coming forward in public.

'The lack of justice for victims of gender-based violence in Haiti is a long-standing problem,' Worden said. 'The victims themselves end up being punished.

'But I can promise you a number of female players brought us specific evidence against Mr. Jean-Bart.'

She declined to provide more details as, she said, to not tip off Jean-Bart on the identity of the alleged witnesses.

Meanwhile FIFA, says Jean-Bart, may lack the moral authority to investigate.

The powerful soccer governing body itself, he points out, has been caught in scandal after scandal.+12

Former French national team star Michel Platini has been suspended from any soccer activity until 2023 for accepting suspicious payments totally more than $2 million from FIFA+12

Payments to Michel Platini were made by former FIFA president Sepp Blatter (pictured), who was also forced to resign in 2015 after more than 17 years at the helm. 'This is the kind of organization that pretends to be investigating what's happening in Haiti,' Jean-Bart adds

Reports over the past two decades showed how FIFA officials lined their pockets with rigged bids for World Cup tournaments, including the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, 2018 World Cup in Russia and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, a desert country where the weather has been found to be downright hazardous to the health of top-flight players.

Former FIFA executive committee member Jack Warner remains holed up in his native Trinidad & Tobago under an extradition request from the United States in connection with his organizing the distribution of bribes within FIFA.

Former French national team star Michel Platini has been suspended from any soccer activity until 2023 for accepting suspicious payments totally more than $2 million from FIFA.

The payments were made by former FIFA president Sepp Blatter, who was also forced to resign in 2015 after more than 17 years at the helm.

'This is the kind of organization that pretends to be investigating what's happening in Haiti,' Jean-Bart adds.

FIFA didn't respond to a request for comment.

Meanwhile, the group sent a team of three investigators to Haiti. They allegedly gathered enough evidence to have Jean-Bart banned and fined the equivalent of $1.1 million.

During his hearing before FIFA's Independent Ethics Committee, Jean-Bart described himself as 'unnerved' in the 10 minutes he personally had to defend himself.

'I knew I was going to be found guilty no matter what,' he said. 'I sent FIFA a 2,000-page document in my defense. I do not believe they even read anything from it.'

His lawyers were given 30 minutes to speak.

'Members of the committee said something about zero tolerance,' Jean-Bart said. 'It was a parody of justice.

'You have to wonder if they'd do the same thing with the president of the French or Italian federations.'

This award-winning Dickinson professor is rethinking how Black artists show death

an Studies professor at Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pa., looks at not only how artists show death as part of life, but also how Black people experience that morbidity that surrounds them. She draws on a mix of knowledge from sociology to vodou iconography.

Philogene points to the work of Harvard sociologist Orlando Patterson, who coined the term “social death” to describe how society did not extend humanity to enslaved people. Today, Black people are still fighting for humanity, she said.

She first began her line of research after the catastrophic 2010 earthquake in Haiti.

“Basically, the camera would just pan across these multiple bodies,” Philogene recalled. “And I thought, ‘Wow, like, how incredibly disrespectful,’ but also there was a sense of displacement as if these individuals were not human. And then I started also thinking about [Hurricane] Katrina, the same issue — how these bodies that were dying, dead, or in the process of death, were again seen as just these objects.”

In this state without humanity, Philogene explained, Black people “have no soul, they have no agency, they have no authority, they exist in this liminal vacuum space.”

“We live in that kind of condition. But how do we also find that moment, that condition as empowering?” asked Philogene, who considers George Floyd’s killing a moment of social death. “How can we, even in this moment of death and trauma, think about how we live [and] the possibility of life?”

Philogene won an Andy Warhol Foundation Arts Writer grant last month. Her $50,000 award will support her forthcoming book, The Socially Dead and Improbable Citizen: Theorizing Visual Transformations of Haitian Citizenship.

The book will explore how artists of the Haitian diaspora, like Jean-Michel Basquiat and Myrlande Constant, explore depictions of death and memorial. It will also trace the influence of Haitian traditions on other Black artists, like Kerry James Marshall and Ebony Patterson. The Inquirer spoke to Philogene about her research and how she’s rethinking death and how we see it. This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

Could you speak about how vodou theology and its perspectives on death inform your research?

There are these, what we call “lwa,” the spirits that guide you in life but also guide you through the process of death. And one of the main lwa of Ghede, which is the lwa of death, is Baron Samedi, who is the person who kind of sits at the crossroads.

He’s mischievous. He is funny. He is proud, but he’s also someone who guides you and helps you live in death. So even if your body is no longer, your spirit is still alive. So for vodouists, those who believe and practice vodou and honor Baron Samedi, he allows you to live even if you’re living in misery.

There are other lwas, but he is the main one who allows you to think about how do you live in the space of death and live in a kind of, I don’t want to say celebratory fashion, but in a fashion that renders you human, that gives you humanity.

SABINE GLAUBITZ/PICTURE-ALLIANCE/DPA/AP IMAGESA visitor in front of Jean-Michel Basquiat’s ‘Riding with Death’ in Paris, France on Oct. 4, 2018. To Dickinson professor Jerry Philogene, the painting reminds of the vodou spirit Baron Samedi.

You speak about social death and then also the condition that Black folk with enslaved ancestors around the diaspora are experiencing today. How are you conceptualizing the way that Black artists are looking at this feeling of precarity you described, looking at this feeling of living within death?

In a variety of different ways. So one of the artists I look at, his name is Jean-Ulrick Désert. He is a Haitian artist who lives in Germany. And there’s one piece in particular that I look at. It is this beautiful wall installation that is covered with 750 stars and planets. It’s the stars and how they were aligned exactly at the moment in which the earthquake happened. So, in a conceptual fashion, the piece is evoking this moment of death. But there is something incredibly beautiful about the piece, because it is this rich velvet background. It [has] these small embossed stars that have the image of Josephine Baker stamped onto the image.

This wall installation memorializes these bodies, these bodies that were at one time just left on the ground to bake in the hot sun of Haiti. In this moment of impossible pain and possible death, there is something that rises out of those ruins.

JEAN-ULRICK DESERTConstellations/Sky above Port-au-Prince, Haiti 12 January 2010, 21:53 UTC, (2012).

You’re thinking through what it means to be human in your work. Where are you at with that now?

So I’m still trying to figure that out. But for me, in the book, I am arguing that humanity, our humanity, as Black people is one that we take, is one that we demand. And it’s one that is our right.

Has the pandemic made you think about your work differently? And if so, how so?

In one sense, it’s made me appreciate the fact that we actually see what America really is, it has shown us that deep within the ground, there is all this discontent and hatred.

But what is more exciting for me is the way that Black people, people of color, allies have fought against some of that. We’ve seen the hatred and the discontent, the lies, but we also see the moments of empowerment, of agency, of fighting. for This is, again, what my book is about: How can we make this livable?

N.J. restaurant doesn’t stop at authentic Haitian fare. It also sends love back home.

In 2013, five friends came together to create something new in Midtown Elizabeth, something that reminded them of the place they called home — the small Caribbean country of Haiti.

The result: First Republic Restaurant and Lounge, where Haitian-Americans, and anyone familiar with the distinctly West Indian cuisine, can score authentic meals that taste like some “good home-cooking,” the owners said.

https://youtu.be/OiJkt3UXCyY

On weekends — pre-pandemic — the joint doubled as a small-scale Haitian nightclub, sometimes packed wall-to-wall, as patrons danced to traditional konpa music or American hip-hop. Some evenings, it played host to comedy shows and open mic nights, akin to the atmosphere on an episode of “Def Comedy Jam.”

But First Republic Lounge is as much a deliberate statement as it is a vibe. Haiti is a country with a rich history, full of resilience.

The establishment’s moniker is a direct reference to the Haitian Revolution, lasting from 1791 to 1804. It’s a moment in history which defined its fighting spirit. The former French colony became the first country in the Americas to be founded by formerly enslaved people.

Paintings by Haitian artist Kervin Andre trace the walls of this dimly-lit spot, giving off the feeling of dining in an art gallery. Each composition depicts the story of Haitian independence. Names of Haitian revolutionaries and some of their famous quotes are printed on a wall next to the restaurant’s stage.Keep up with the latest stories on race, diversity and inclusion in New Jersey. Sign up with your email: 

The culture is served on a platter every day, each time someone orders black mushroom rice, creole shrimp or tasso kabrit (fried goat), along with a host of other staples found across the island.

Some dishes have historically symbolic origins, like the popular soup joumou (pumpkin soup). For Haitians around the globe, it’s part of an important New Year’s Day tradition.

“When we were enslaved...we were not allowed to drink it,” co-owner Donald Dulorie told NJ Advance Media. “We’d make it for the master, for them to drink, but we were not allowed to even touch it. After we got our freedom, our independence, the first thing we did is make it for ourselves. That’s the reason (for the New Year’s custom).”

It’s one that resonates with everyone who works at First Republic. Each of the restaurant’s owners, a group of five friends who met at Kean University in Union, hails from Haiti or is of Haitian descent.

“We always want to showcase the culture in a way that people have never seen before...or to inspire the younger generation of Haitian descent (to show) that they, themselves, could own an establishment,” said co-owner Colomb Thomas-Petit.

First Republic Lounge in Elizabeth showcases Haitian culture.

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Three of five owners of First Republic Lounge, Donald Dulorie, Stanley Neron and Colomb Thomas-Petit (left-right)

The restaurant’s mission extends far beyond the walls of its brick-and-mortar edifice, beyond New Jersey state lines and even beyond U.S. borders. The idea for the establishment was born out of a genuine desire to help Haiti rebuild after a 2010 earthquake that devastated the island, and killed nearly 250,000 people.

“One of the things we were wondering was how to really help Haiti. And how to rejuvenate Haiti’s image and culture,” said one founder and owner, Stanley Neron. “We wanted to showcase it and put it on a silver platter.”

The proprietors also formed NJ 4 Haiti, a partnership with United Way of Greater Union County. Through the organization, some of First Republic’s proceeds go toward an annual service trip to the partners’ homeland — flanked by doctors, engineers, mental health specialists and social services professionals, according to its website.

“We’ve been in Haiti now for the past 10 years, working on water purification, working on mobile clinics, supporting education, supporting schools, and orphanages, and making sure that there’s hope,” Neron said.

The trip can be a grounding experience, the owners said.

“It’s a wake up call in terms of the needs that are in demand in Haiti. The things we all take for granted here, people would die to have,” said Thomas-Petit. “When we do go, what we see is how resilient people are in Haiti.”

Opened in 2013, by five friends who met at Kean University, First Republic Lounge brings a taste of Haiti to Elizabeth.

In Elizabeth, First Republic has become a Midtown pillar and a vital cog in the machine for economic development in the Garden State’s fourth most populous city, according to officials.

“It’s more than a restaurant. It’s a place where art meets culture,” said Jennifer Costa, President and CEO of the Greater Elizabeth Chamber of Commerce.

Costa called First Republic Restaurant and Lounge a “cornerstone” in the community. The business has stepped up to help first responders during the coronavirus pandemic and hosted a socially-distanced Juneteenth event earlier this year. First Republic is active on social media promoting events at the location and causes around town.

“It’s all in their programming and their approach. There hasn’t been a time I haven’t picked up the phone...calling them to do a collaborative partnership, or (something) innovative,” Costa said.

“They really are a community leader.”

New $31 Million Court Building Opens In Haiti

Haiti’s President Jovenel Moïse inaugurated the new building of the Superior Court of Accounts and Administrative Litigation (CSC/CA) on Tuesday in Port-au-Prince.

The six-story building is about ​​15,260 square meters, or 164,000 square feet, and cost more than $31 million. The Haitian government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) financed CSC/CA’s new building.

Haiti’s First Lady Martine Moïse, Prime Minister Joseph Jouthe and CSC/CA’s advisers also attended the inauguration ceremony. 

Hundreds march in Haiti after outrage over student's slaying

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Hundreds of protesters – many dressed in school uniforms – marched through the streets of Haiti’s capital Thursday to demand answers after the kidnapping and killing of a young woman that has incensed the nation.

High school senior Evelyne Sincère was found in a trash heap Sunday after relatives said they were unable to pay the large ransom demanded by her captors. Human rights groups contend the incident highlights the nation’s worsening security crisis.

“I am worried,” said Katy Jean-Joseph, 19, who marched while carrying a photo of Sincère. “What happened to Evelyne could have happened to me.”

Haiti has been rocked by street protests demanding President Jovenel Moise’s ouster on allegations that he mismanaged the economy and failed to hold accountable those who siphoned billions in international aid into bank accounts overseas. Now the Caribbean nation is also grappling with growing concern over Moise’s decision to delay legislative elections and instead insist first on a constitutional referendum.

International leaders including the Trump administration and the Organization of American States are pressuring Moise to set a date for a vote.

Meanwhile, the United Nations and rights groups in Haiti are warning about a rising tide of violence by armed gangs whose crimes are largely going unpunished in a country that has struggled to buoy its weak national police force.

The U.N. envoy for Haiti painted a grim picture to the U.N. Security Council last month, saying that the nation is “once again struggling to avert the precipice of instability.” Helen La Lime added that the Haitian National Police would need at least 10,000 well trained and equipped officers to meet international standards.

“Gangs continue to challenge the authority of the state, especially in the more populous neighborhoods of Port-au-Prince,” she said.

Nearly 2,000 protesters gathered Thursday in a neighborhood known as a hotspot for kidnappings and marched to the Ministry of Justice. Many carried photographs of Sincère while chanting phrases like, “If we had a government, Evelyne would not have died.”

The protest ended after police used tear gas to disperse the crowd.

“I want to be able to succeed in my country, without fear, and have a normal life — not wake up in the morning and hear about a crime like what happened to Evelyne on the news,” said Nerley Charles, 21, a protester. “We need justice and an end to impunity.”

Police have not released details about the crime, but a local justice of the peace told the newspaper Le Nouvelliste that she had been beaten to death. A video showing Sincère’s sister wailing as the corpse was discovered sparked outrage on social media. She said kidnappers demanded $100,000, far more than the family could raise.

“I begged for mercy and said I’d bring the money,” Enette Sincère told reporters.

Several high-profile radio hosts announced they were canceling their shows to protest the crime, and politicians have joined in the demand for justice. Moise called on police to “put the bandits out of harm’s way.”

“Normally children bury their parents – only in times of war should a parent bury their child,” Prime Minister Joseph Jouthe wrote on Twitter. “But in Haiti we are not at war.”

The crime comes two months after a prominent lawyer, Monferrier Dorval, was shot to death at his home. La Lime said Dorval’s death “epitomizes for many the weak state of rule of law in the country.”

Civil society groups have recorded 162 kidnappings this year, including 21 in October. Fifty-five of the kidnapping victims were reported to be women.

“Women do become more vulnerable as this continues to deteriorate,” said Ellie Happel, director of the Haiti Project at New York University School of Law’s Global Justice Clinic.

Human rights lawyer Mario Joseph called the current situation a “state of terror” in which police do little to hold those responsible for crimes accountable. He pointed to a video circulating online Thursday purporting to show a former policeman wanted on an arrest warrant turning in Sincère’s boyfriend – but facing no apprehension himself.

Joseph said most recent kidnapping victims have been people known to have enough money to pay a ransom – not students from poor families like Sincère. It is unclear whether gangs may have been involved in the crime.

He added that the security crisis is fueling mounting distrust of authorities, some of whom have been implicated in a big corruption scandal involving funds from an oil assistance program. In areas known for gang activity and kidnappings around the capital, police have repeatedly failed to mount an active response, he said.

“There are nearby police stations and there hasn’t been any police intervention,” he said.

Kanye West Planning To Build A 'City Of The Future' In Haiti

Last month,Kanye West visited Haiti to meet up with its president, Jovenel Moïse. The two then went to visit Tortuga Island and Labadee to see a plant breeding center, according to the Haitian Tourism Board. 

When West initially landed in the airport, he also met up with tennis superstar, Naomi Osaka. This trip came after criticism a week before for being in Jamaica without a mask on. At the time, no one knew why West wanted to see this breeding center but now, there are some answers.

Kanye To Boost Different Sector's Of Haiti's Economy With New City

Kanye West- 'Follow God' music video

West took to Twitter this morning to share his plans of building a "city of the future in Haiti." This is after discussions with the government in the country to help boost different sectors of its economy such as farming and fishing.

"Just to be CLEAR: WE ARE IN ENGAGED WITH HAITI’s GOVERNMENT to make a transformational INVESTMENT to bring JOBS, DEVELOPMENT, HELP SUPPORT LOCAL FARMERS and FISHERMEN and Build a new « CITY OF THE FUTURE » in a very beautiful country.

https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1321137260406865920?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1321137260406865920%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_1&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheblast.com%2F146239%2Fkanye-west-planning-to-build-a-city-of-the-future-in-haiti

Latest Move In Haiti Comes After Building Yeezy Christian Academy

Nick Cannon's 'Cannon's Class' podcast

West also recently build a Yeezy Christian Academy as its goal is to teach the "five founding pillars." The school also displays the message of "everything in the school exudes Christianity. All faculty share the faith and walk the walk. Bring Jesus to the world through our students."

Additional pillars being taught are music, communication, collaboration, and creativity. That came after Ye said on Twitter that he wants to start educating people about Jesus on TikTok through an alternative app called "Jesus Tok."

Kanye West Still Encourages People To Vote For Him As President In 2020 Election

Joel Osteen- Twitter

Meanwhile, West is also sticking to his plans of running for president despite him not having any chances to win the presidency. This is after failing to appear on states' ballots after missing deadlines and or sending invalid signatures. In states such as California where he is on the ballot, he isn't listed as a presidential candidate but instead, is listed as a VP candidate that is running with Roque "Rocky" De La Fuente. Both men didn't even agree to run together.

Kanye Also Made Claims He Wants To Buy Universal Music Group For $33 Billion

Kanye West- Twitter

West said on Twitter last month that he wouldn't release any new music until his contracts at Sony and Universal were up. He also recently appeared on Joe Rogan's podcast where he explained how he wanted to buy his masters from Universal. He is thinking bigger though as he wants to buy the record label for $33 billion.

“I was thinking about buying my masters [but] I realized that was too small of a thought. I’m going to buy Universal. [Universal is] only a $33bn organization. I’m one of the greatest product producers that ever existed. And I’m a child; I’m 43 years old. I was $53m in debt four years ago. Now it’s proven that I’m the new Michael Jordan of products.”

In Pictures: Rubber bullets, tear gas at Haiti protests

Several people left injured after the latest unrest during more than a year of protests in Haiti.

l Moise, coinciding with the anniversary of the death of independence hero Jean Jacques Dessalines. [Jean Marc Herve Abelard/EPA]18 Oct 2020

Haitian police fired rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse anti-government protesters who blocked roads and set fires in the capital, Port-au-Prince, with several people left injured.

Saturday’s unrest was the latest during more than a year of protests calling for the resignation of President Jovenel Moise over corruption charges.

Haiti is currently experiencing a political impasse without a parliament and is now run by decree under Moise.

Many Haitians criticise the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, alleging it has not done enough to provide treatment or offer economic support to those who lost work due to a national lockdown aimed at preventing its spread.

Police have held their own protests this year, demanding better pay and working conditions. In February, police exchanged fire with Haitian soldiers outside the national palace where police were protesting working conditions.

Earlier this year, a scathing United Nations report accused Haitian police of corruption and failing to protect the population.

Hundreds took part in anti-government protests in Port-au-Prince. [Jean Marc Herve Abelard/EPA]

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The country is currently experiencing a political impasse without a parliament and run entirely by decree under Moise. [Dieu Nalio Chery/AP Photo]

The opposition organised the large demonstration against President Moise on the anniversary of the killing of national independence hero Jean-Jacques Dessalines. [Dieu Nalio Chery/AP Photo]

Demonstrators carry a man wounded during the protest in Port-au-Prince. [Andres Martinez Casares/Reuters]

It was the latest unrest during more than a year of protests calling for the resignation of President Moise over corruption charges. [Andres Martinez Casares/Reuters]

Haitian police fired rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse anti-government protesters. [Andres Martinez Casares/Reuters]

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Protesters blocked roads and set fires in the capital. [Andres Martinez Casares/Reuters]

‘Insecure’ Star Natasha Rothwell, Aziza Barnes to Develop HBO Drama Based on Ibi Zoboi Novel ‘Pride’

“Insecure” star Nastasha Rothwell and Aziza Barnes have teamed to develop a series based on the Ibi Zoboi novel “Pride” at HBO, Variety has learned.

“Pride” is described as a Haitian-Dominican coming of age story explores young love, teenage angst, and gentrification through magical realism fated by the gods of Santeria with an Austenian twist.

Rothwell and Barnes both worked on the story for the project, while Barnes will be the writer. Both will serve as executive producers. Leslie Morgenstein and Gina Girolamo of Alloy Entertainment will also executive produce. Alloy Entertainment will produce in association with Warner Bros. Television.

Rothwell has been a series regular, writer, and producer on HBO’s “Insecure” since its first season. She also previously wrote for “Saturday Night Live” during the 2014-2015 season. She is set to appear in the upcoming film “Wonder Woman 1984,” while her past credits include the “Sonic the Hedgehog” film and shows like “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” “American Dad,” “Bob’s Burgers,” and “The Simpsons.”

She is repped by CAA, Edna Cowan Management, Jackoway Austen Tyerman, and Sechel PR.

Barnes is a celebrated playwright whose work has been produced at prestigious theater companies like Steppenwolf Theater, Woolly Mammoth Theater, and MCC Theater. She has participated with residencies such as Sundance, Ojai Plywrights Conference, and Center Theater Group Playwriting Workshop. Her TV credits include “Teenage Bounty Hunters” and “Snowfall.”

She is repped by Grandview and Myman Greenspan

Alloy is currently in production on three series: “You,” “Legacies,” and “Gossip Girl.” HBO Max recently made a direct-to-series order for the upcoming Alloy drama “Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin.”

Alloy is repped by WME.

When Art & Fashion Collide: Coach’s Newest Collection Celebrates Jean-Michel Basquiat

One of the most recognizable American artists, Jean-Michel Basquiat, brought innovation to the art world and beyond, becoming an icon to many, especially creatives of color. Inspired by his lasting legacy, the heritage fashion brand Coach has partnered with the Basquiat estate to release a one-of-a-kind collection timed perfectly for the fall.

First appearing on the runway during A/W 2020, this exclusive capsule includes a wide array of bold bags, Ready to Wear pieces, and accessories featuring the late artist’s iconic artwork and phrases. Basquiat left a significant impact on art, fashion and music, and his influence lives on.

“Basquiat is one of my heroes,”  Coach Creative Director Stuart Vevers said in a statement. ““He embodied the creative, inclusive spirit of New York and was a force for change in his community. I am proud to celebrate his work and values and help bring them to a new generation.”

“I am proud to celebrate his work and values and help bring them to a new generation.” – Coach Creative Director Stuart Vevers

For the official Coach X Basquiat campaign, Coach enlisted ambassador Michael B. Jordan, Megan Thee Stallion and an inclusive cast of rising Black and Brown creatives to honor Basquiat’s legacy. ESSENCE caught up with six of the campaign’s stars to get their take on Basquiat’s impact, Black art and their very first Coach piece.

Brenn Lorenzo

“I was first introduced to Basquiat back in high school. I was taking art history and he was one of the many artists we learned about. His life story and many of the attributes that led to his fame really stuck with me and made me appreciate him even more. One thing that always stuck out to me is that Basquiat always put out what he wanted with no regret and stood by his pieces. Even if some things weren’t received the way he wanted [them] to be, he still was behind [them] and that’s something not everyone can do. The best thing about Black art is that it is powerful. Black art is beautiful, bold and striking. Every piece is a new incredible story waiting to be told.

I love Coach because they’re not afraid to try something new and it’s shown through their many collaborations. My favorite piece is the beat shoulder bag in ivory. It has the crown on it—which was a staple in Basquiat’s work. This was actually my first Coach piece, and I feel incredibly honored to have it be in the Basquiat collaboration. There’s so much history behind the bag and the artist himself, and the fact that he was from New York makes it even more intimate.”

Brenn’s Pick: 

COACH X BASQUIAT BEAT SHOULDER BAG, $550

Jules Lorenzo

“I faintly remember learning of Basquiat when I was in high school. However, it wasn’t until college that I started delving into his work and who he was as a person. In an urban studies class I had, I learned how street art and graffiti made many places that were once considered ‘undesirable and dangerous’ become super popular and interesting. He didn’t confine himself to one particular medium. He expressed himself through graffiti, painting and music. I’m a fan of the idea that it’s good to have an entire toolbox of creative talents instead of just homing in exclusively on one. I believe that you get to broaden your horizons as an artist and learn more.

I love that Coach has never been afraid to try something new with its brand and designs! Whether it’s through playful and colorful collabs or showcasing an artist’s work with a new collection. It’s like a breath of fresh air. I’m always excited to see what Coach has up its sleeves.”

Jules’ Pick: 

COACH X JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT WELLS BACKPACK, $995

Asia Irving

“I was first introduced to Jean-Michel Basquiat and his art a couple of years ago at Art Basel. I’d heard of him briefly before, but this was my first time seeing his work in person. Jean-Michel’s art immediately sparks thought and inspiration. It made me wonder what he was feeling or trying to express about his own experience and life as a Black man through his art…. The best thing about Black art is seeing and experiencing it. It’s an unexplainable proud moment to see and celebrate other Black artists’ stories and journeys through their art. Every work of art differs in perspective, but each perspective is powerful and unique in its own way.

Coach brings back so many nostalgic memories. I got my first Coach piece as a Christmas gift from my grandfather in middle school. It was a baby blue and white small Coach bag, and I was beyond happy that I finally got my first piece.”

Asia’s Pick: 

COACH X JEAN- MICHEL BASQUIAT SQUARE BAG $795

Sarah Feingold

“I was living in Frankfurt at the time, spending the day chilling with one of my good friends. We sat together and watched old footage of Jean-Michel Basquiat’s interviews and documentary clips for hours on a video projector. His story and energy were so mesmerizing to me, and I think that’s why my first ‘encounter’ with him still stands out in my head.

I felt so classy and cute the first time I wore Coach! My mom actually wore this beautiful Coach bifold wallet in beige and cream in the ’90s, and one day, I took it to school as a little purse with a matching beige jacket on. It had some metallic elements involved and the classic Coach logo printed all over. It was so luxurious and pretty. I was always mesmerized by my mom’s style in general, but this specific piece had a special place in my heart. I felt like it brought my outfit full circle. It’s such a little thing, but it gave me such a nice feeling of completion.”

Sarah’s Pick: 

COACH X JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT ROUGE CROSSBODY 20, $450  

Kristen Noel Crawley

“As a creative, I’d always heard Basquiat’s name referenced in relation to art or fashion, and in my twenties I finally got to see his work on exhibition in New York. It felt completely relevant to the visuals and artistry we see now that I can’t help but think he was an artist way ahead of his time. I feel that art made by a Black artist has a richer storytelling aspect to it because of the many trials and tribulations we as a people have had to endure.

I think I got my first Coach bag when I was 12 or 13, and at that time it was THE It Bag to have. I just remember feeling so excited and happy to have a fashion staple to be able to show off at school the next day. It really was the first piece in my closet that I truly cherished.”

Kristen’s Pick: 

COACH X JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT OVERSIZED VARSITY JACKET, $650 

Diana Gordon

“I was introduced to Basquiat in my early twenties. Of course, I had heard of him before but in my early twenties, I was still living in New York City and was dating a painter who was really immersed in that underground New York street art scene. Basquiat was raw and chaotic.

My first Coach piece was a green faux-fur coat I wore in a music video. Coach lent it to me. It was lavish. For a luxury brand, it’s pretty accessible.”

Diana’s Pick: 

COACH X JEAN-MICHEL ROGUE 39 WITH SNAKESKIN DETAIL, $1,300

Guaranteed to be a fan favorite of art and fashion lovers alike, the Coach x Basquiat capsule is available now. Shop the full collection on coach.com before it sells out.01Coach X Jean-Michel Basquiat Oversized Varsity Jacket

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Biden to Florida’s Haitian-American voters: You can make a difference

In an address lasting eight minutes, 46 seconds, Biden emphasized the need to have voters, including Haitian Americans, turn out and stressed issues that unite him and the crowd.

MIAMI — The sounds and culture of Haiti served as a colorful backdrop for former vice president and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s visit to Little Haiti Monday as he courted Haitian-American voters and leaders on the last day to register to vote in Florida.

“It’s all about the spirit, the spirit of this community,” Biden said. “There’s no quit in America. There’s clearly no quit in the Haitian community, there is none. And I promise you there would be no quit on my part as your president making sure that the Haitian community has an even shot and back on its feet.”

During an address lasting eight minutes, 46 seconds, Biden emphasized the need to have voters, including Haitian Americans, turn out and stressed issues that unite him and the crowd.

Biden told the small crowd if the turnout is the same as it was in 2016 when President Donald Trump, whose name he never once mentioned, ran against Democratic rival and former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the Haitian-American community in Florida “by itself” has the potential of determining the outcome of the Nov. 3 presidential race.

“Wouldn’t it be an irony, an irony of all ironies,” Biden said, “if on election eve, it turned out Haitians literally delivered a coup d’etat in this election?”

Biden’s campaign has emphasized that the race in Florida is critical and can be decided by just 1% of the vote.

“You not only have an opportunity. I think you have an obligation to see to it you take care of the folks you care so much about,” Biden said.

In addition to Little Haiti, Biden also stopped in Little Havana to meet with Cuban-Americans before attending an NBC town hall event near downtown Miami.

The Biden campaign has struggled with Haitian-American voters, who have felt neglected as Biden seeks to woo Hispanic voters and after his running mate, Kamala Harris, failed to meet with Haitian-American leaders during a September roundtable discussion with Black leaders at Florida Memorial University.

On Monday, the campaign sought to make up for it. The invited guests, which were intentionally kept small due to the COVID-19 pandemic, consisted of Haitian-American elected officials in Miami-Dade County as well as State Rep. Dotie Joseph, Congresswoman Frederica Wilson, Dr. Larry Pierre and Dr. Jean-Philippe Austin and his wife Magalie. The Austins held a $35,800-a-plate 2011 fundraiser for President Barack Obama during his second presidential bid, and Austin and Pierre have also raised money for the Biden campaign.

Concerned about voter turnout among Haitian-American voters on Nov. 3, the Austins have organized a group independent of the campaign to promote voter engagement and outreach in the Haitian-American community.

Joseph said she hopes the Biden visit will resonate not just with Haitian-American voters, but all voters.

“Our very democracy is on the line,” she said as she alluded to Trump’s Sunday motorcade photo op even as he continues to battle a positive COVID-19 diagnosis. “When we look at what these people want to do and how they want to treat us ... A lot of us have came from countries where you have dictatorships and you have fascism and the things you’re starting to see with this administration; things you would have never imagined, even when you’re dealing with coronavirus; somebody who knows how to protect us and wants to protect us, and the other one just wants to go around exposing people.”

As Biden spoke in the courtyard of the Little Haiti Cultural Center, Haitian-American voters lined up along two city blocks on Northeast Second Avenue and 59th Street hoping to catch a glimpse of him. Even without hearing him, however, some said they were ready to support his presidential bid.

“I’m happy for the visit,” Franklyn Charleston, 60, said amid the waving Biden-Harris posters and traditional Haitian horns playing carnival music, known as rara. “Since this government came into power, life here has just dropped. It was better with Obama and even better with [President Bill] Clinton. This president here has been a trouble-maker and we cannot just let the country go flat.”

Biden said a lot is at stake. The Nov. 3 presidential election, he said, will decide “what kind of nation we’re going to be, who we are, what we stand for. Will we continue to reach out or whether continue to push people away like what’s happened now? Or will we take care of those people, who, through no fault of their own, found themselves among those families, over 205,000 people who have died from COVID without much help at all.”

“This is the most important election,” Biden told the Haitian-American leaders. “The character of the country is literally on the ballot.”

Biden last visited Little Haiti in 2010 when he came to Miami to meet with Haitian community leaders after the January 12 earthquake in Haiti to announce the designation of Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, by President Barack Obama for eligible Haitian nationals because of the disaster, which left more than 300,000 dead. Trump has since tried to terminate the status, which is now the subject of at least a half-dozen federal lawsuits.

Biden opened Monday’s return visit by recalling that 2010 visit, during which a photo of him with Haitian community activist Marleine Bastien was taken. That photo was used during the recent Democratic National Convention.

“This is not the time to lift it,” Biden said of TPS. "This is not the time to end it. "

A devout Roman Catholic, who in 2010 quietly stopped at nearby Notre Dame d’Haiti Catholic Church to pray after meeting with the community, Biden stressed that like Haitians, he too was a man of faith and believed in honoring families.

“Family first,” he said, touching on a cultural heart-string of Haitians. “What we need is faith. We need to have faith....You’ve reached out, you’ve left nobody behind. You made sure that people know they have a home with you. There’s nothing more difficult to deal with, to experience, the loss of family.”

The Little Haiti Cultural Center’s neighboring Caribbean Marketplace was the site of Trump’s 2016 visit, and his promise to the community during his presidential bid to be its “greatest champion” if elected. That meeting was with a select group of Haitians, many of them at the time, frustrated and angry over the involvement of the Clintons in Haiti after the quake.

Biden steered clear of Haitian politics on Monday, and instead appealed to Haitians on what’s happening in America, including the COVID-19 pandemic.

Still, his campaigned emphasized a first by any U.S. presidential candidate: the outlining of specifics of how a Biden-Harris administration would benefit Haitians.

Ahead of Monday’s meeting, the campaign issued a “fact sheet” on the former vice president’s commitment to Haitian Americans, if elected. President Trump, the campaign said, has “abandoned and insulted” Haiti and “has pursued policies that undermine U.S. interests and hurt and disrespect millions of Haitian Americans in the United States.”

The Biden campaign vows to halt deportations for Haitians during his first 100 days, immediately review the Trump administration’s decision to terminate TPS, offer a path to citizenship for TPS holders, and reinstate the Haitian Family Reunification Parole program.

The campaign’s commitments are among a list of priorities that more than 60 Florida-based organizations that service the Haitian-American community are also seeking to get from a Biden-Harris administration in a letter currently making the rounds before being sent off to the campaign.

The letter also requests support for United Nations compensation for cholera victims following the introduction of the deadly disease into Haiti by U.N. peacekeepers 10 years ago this month, and the reinstatement of Haitian eligibility for the H-2A and H-2B temporary worker visas, which Trump also ended.

In Haiti, where there has been frustration over U.S. foreign policy under Trump, the U.S. presidential election is being closely watched in the hopes that a change in administration in the U.S. will also mean a change in U.S. policy toward the country.

Haitian President Jovenel Moïse has been ruling by executive order since Parliament became dysfunctional in January. The Trump administration has taken a hard-line stance against Haitian opposition parties and civil society, expressing concerns over credible elections taking place under Moïse, and has called for elections to be held as soon as it is technically feasible.

Haitians, who have been holding out hope for support by Biden on a transitional Haitian government, may be disappointed to learn that under Biden’s Haiti policy, he, like the current administration, also says he wants elections in Haiti “as soon as possible.”

Several Haitian-American leaders in attendance said they believe the visit will have a positive effect on undecided Haitian-American voters who this time around are not trying to decide whether to vote for a Democrat or Republican like in 2016, but whether to go vote.

“I think whoever in the Haitian community was on the fence, [this] should help them get to the polls,” Miami-Dade County Commissioner Jean Monestime said after the visit. The visit and Biden’s promise to return, Monestime said, “was a step in the right direction.”

North Miami Beach Commissioner Michael Joseph also welcomed the Little Haiti stop. “I believe we can work with this administration; they are looking out for our best interests,” he said.

But Joseph also issued a warning: “Hopefully we don’t fall into the same mistakes as the past.”

Remembering a refugee who founded a center for those forced to flee like him

Bernard Fils-Aimé dedicated his life to helping other Haitians."Being Haitian defines my identity and self-confidence," Fils-Aimé, an activist and entrepreneur, told Florida State Rep. Dotie Joseph in a Q&A on Facebook in May. "We fought for and won our freedom; and our culture has a depth and beauty of which any knowledgeable person could only admire and be in awe."When Fils-Aimé moved to Florida as a refugee in the late 1970s, he co-founded the Haitian Refugee Center in Miami -- and quickly became a leader in the Haitian American community. He offered legal services, and helped others who fled Haiti navigate life in the US.In 1995, after he eventually moved back to his home country, he took his efforts to help his community a step further by launched Haiti's first cellular network Communication Cellulaire d'Haiti or ComCEL, now Violà.

Last month, Fils-Aimé died at age 67 from coronavirus, leaving his friends, family and community mourning the loss of a pillar to the Haitian American community."My dad spent his life trying to improve the world," his son Karl Fils-Aimé told CNN. "He was proud of his community and culture. He saw the best in people."

Remembering his legacy

Fils-Aimé was born on May 24, 1953, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, to Uranie Gabriel, a teacher, and Camile Fils-Aimé. His father, Camile, died around the time of Bernard's birth, according to his son Karl Fils-Aimé.

Fils-Aimé as a young organizer in New York. CNN has obscured portions of this image to protect people's identities.

At the age of 13, he and his mother fled Haiti due to opposing views of President Francois Duvalier, known as "Papa Doc." Duvalier was notorious for punishing anyone who vocally opposed him.

A few years after arriving to New York, Fils-Aimé attended Columbia University where he became an activist. During his first two years there, he participated in many student protests and met his wife, Marise Piverger, while organizing an event.

Fils-Aimé standing with his three children, Karl, Gerard and Erica.

They moved to Miami, Florida in the late 1970s and later married. The couple had three children Karl, Gerard and Erica.While in South Florida, he wanted to focus his work on Haitian refugees and created the Haitian Refugee Center to support migrants that had fled Haiti. He later finished college and earned a Masters degree in education at Florida International University before working at Miami-Dade college in the early 1990s.

Fils-Aimé in his office at Miami-Dade College.

"I participated in developing educational programs designed to give young men and women from disadvantaged backgrounds access to higher education in South Florida as assistant dean of students at Miami-Dade College" said Fils-Aimé to Florida Rep. Dotie Joseph in May.

Karl Fils-Aimé said his father's passion for education was instilled in him at a young age.

"His mother, my grandmother, was a school teacher and so, you know, he was always instilled with some foundational values that really defined what he did for the rest of his life," Karl Fils-Aimé told CNN, "and those values were around the value of education.

"In 1995, Fils-Aimé moved back to Haiti to help launch the country's first cellular network, Communication Cellulaire d'Haiti, or ComCEL, according to Karl Fils-Aimé.

Then, after retiring in 2010, Fils-Aimé focused on philanthropy. He served as chairman of the board of Haitian Education & Leadership Program or HELP, which provide access to higher education to student from disadvantaged areas in Haiti.

"He was an amazing man, he touched a lot of people's lives," Karl Fils-Aimé said.

'He was my best friend'

In July, Fils-Aimé tested positive for Covid-19, after experiencing a cough and fever, his son said.

"At first, he was at home, things were okay," Karl Fils-Aimé said. But a few days later, his father's symptoms became worse.

Fils-Aimé entered the hospital after having trouble breathing. Initially, the hospital treatment seemed to be working and he was stable. The day before he was expected to return home, things took a turn for the worst, his son said.

Bernard Fils-Aimé died at the University of Miami Hospital on August 8. He is survived by his wife of 41 years, Marise, their three children Gerard, Erica and Karl and his five grandchildren.

"He was a huge presence in my life, he was my best friend," Karl Fils-Aimé said.He remembers his father as someone who always had a smile on his face, and tried to make everyone feel important in a special way.

Fils-Aimé smiling with his wife, Marise."He was taken from us too soon," Karl Fils-Aimé said.

Naomi Osaka takes a surprise visit to Haiti, her father's homeland

A big but satisfying surprise for many Haitians.

Three-time major champion Naomi Osaka has arrived in Haiti this Monday, September 21, for a very surprise and discrete visit. Osaka, 22, is accompanied by a few members of her family, according to our sources.

After her arrival in Toussaint Louverture's airport, the tennis player of Japan has landed in Jacmel, hometown of her Haitian father Léonard François. Osaka is also expected to visit the famous Citadelle Laferrière, in Milot (North), official from the Haitian Ministry of Sports said.

The winner of the 2019 Australian Open, is reportedly in Haiti to film a documentary series directed by Netflix and dedicated to her life as a successful athlete.

In February, Netflix had announced the documentary series. But there has been no title and release date announced yet.

"The docuseries will follow the multiple times Grand Slam champion in the high-pressure year running up to the 2020 olympics in Tokyo", Netflix wrote on its website.

father's homeland

WILNER BOSSOU CREATED : 21 SEPTEMBER 2020ENGLISH CORNER

Japan's Naomi Osaka poses with her US Open trophy. Photo: AFP / Matthew StockmanShare to FacebookShare to TwitterShare to LinkedInShare to WhatsAppShare to MessengerShare to EmailShare to TelegramShare to More

A big but satisfying surprise for many Haitians.

Three-time major champion Naomi Osaka has arrived in Haiti this Monday, September 21, for a very surprise and discrete visit. Osaka, 22, is accompanied by a few members of her family, according to our sources.

After her arrival in Toussaint Louverture's airport, the tennis player of Japan has landed in Jacmel, hometown of her Haitian father Léonard François. Osaka is also expected to visit the famous Citadelle Laferrière, in Milot (North), official from the Haitian Ministry of Sports said.

The winner of the 2019 Australian Open, is reportedly in Haiti to film a documentary series directed by Netflix and dedicated to her life as a successful athlete.

In February, Netflix had announced the documentary series. But there has been no title and release date announced yet.

"The docuseries will follow the multiple times Grand Slam champion in the high-pressure year running up to the 2020 olympics in Tokyo", Netflix wrote on its website.

This is the third visit of the world number 3 in Haiti. The last time she came to the caribbean country was in 2018 after defeating Serena Williams in the 2018 US Open finals.

At that time, she was received by the Haitian President Jovenel Moise, who honoured her.

https://youtu.be/QT7Q_JLcoNE

American rapper and billionaire Kanye West lands in Haiti

American rap star Kanye West landed in Cap-Haitien (Haiti) this Friday, September 25, to everyone's surprise.

Another big surprise for Haiti this week. Rapper and billionaire Kanye West, 43, has landed at Cap-Haitien international airport on Friday morning. Le Nouvelliste's Gérard Maxineau shared the news on Facebook, first via a post, then in a live video showing West entering the diplomatic lounge.

The President of the Republic, Jovenel Moïse, should meet the rapper and candidate for the American presidential election, in the country's second city, in the coming hours, according to Maxineau, reached by phone by Loop Haiti's newsroom.

https://www.loophaiti.com/content/american-rapper-and-billionaire-kanye-west-lands-haiti

For now, the journalist can not give us more details about the objective of this meeting or what will be the subjects of debate between the two characters.

But after their meeting, West and Moise should go to Labadee, one of the most known and visited beaches in the Nord department, then to Ile de La Tortue (Northwest), Maxineau told us.

After Naomi Osaka, who has come by surprise Monday for the filming of a Netflix documentary dedicated to her career, Kanye West is the second international star to visit Haiti in less than a week.

Today’s Faces of Sickle Cell Disease

Lawyer, sickle cell patient, COVID-19 survivor

Her story:  Natalie Jean-Baptiste, 42, has lived with sickle cell disease her entire life and has forged a successful career as a bankruptcy lawyer specializing in student loan debt. While recovering in March from hip-replacement surgery—the result of a long-term complication from her sickle cell disease—Jean-Baptiste also experienced a severe pain crisis that required multiple hospitalizations. A short time afterwards, she contracted COVID-19. She could not smell or taste anything. She developed a fever. She struggled to breathe. As her condition grew worse, doctors placed her on a ventilator, where she remained for two weeks.

“I never imagined I would get COVID,” Jean-Baptiste recalls. “I had been sick before with sickle cell, but this is the first time I was afraid I might not make it.” Months after being discharged from the hospital, Jean-Baptiste is now recovering at home with the aid of oxygen, oral steroids, and physical therapy.

Biggest challenge: “Having both COVID and sickle cell disease made me the sickest I’d ever been in my life. It’s a miracle that I made it.” 

How she stays inspired: “The love of my friends and family motivates me and keeps me going. Also, I find joy and purpose in practicing law and providing debt relief to student loan borrowers.”

Her dream: “I would like the sickle cell community, including caregivers and advocates, to consider more holistic and natural ways to help manage symptoms along with traditional drugs. I think they are often overlooked, but it’s important to use diet and lifestyle changes to manage this disease.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Preventionexternal link recently announced that having sickle cell disease increases your risk for developing severe illness from COVID-19.

Steven Baboun, star sur TikTok

Steven Baboun, photographe engagé, explique que ses gags sur TikTok ne sont en fait qu’un prolongement de ses activités artistiques initiales. Avec un filter façon grande gueule (littéralement) comme seul artifice, Steven Baboun incarne tour à tour une « gran fanm » qui tente de planifier que la veille un voyage à Paris tandis que le billet est à « seulement » 2 000 dollars, une hôtesse de l’air antchoutchout d’American Airlines qui annonce l’arrivée imminente de l’appareil dans une zone de turbulences, ou encore un agent de l’immigration haïtienne particulièrement familier…

Son personnage principal, Marie-Claude, est inspiré de plein de personnes que la vie lui a permis de connaître. « C’est parfois une de mes tantes, une professeure du primaire, une amie de ma mère ou ma mère elle-même », confie Steven qu’on a présenté dans les colonnes de Ticket il y a deux ans comme un photographe à l’œil artistique. Il y aussi Chantal, l’amie souffre-douleur de Marie-Claude, un autre personnage plus subtil.

Si l’arrivée de Steven Baboun sur TikTok est récente, soit au mois de juin 2020, son contact avec l’humour remonte à plus loin. Dès 2016, pour amuser ses potes, il leur faisait parvenir en DM sur Snapchat des gags hyper-loufoques. Ces derniers, emballés par leur pertinence, l’encouragent à les ouvrir au grand public. Mais le jeune homme n’avait pas encore senti ce besoin.

...Mais c’était sans compter sur le coronavirus. Tout seul dans son appartement de New York, le confinement va l’affaisser mentalement. « J’ai perdu mon job. Je ne pouvais pas sortir. Je ne pouvais même pas regagner mon pays pour être avec ma famille. J’ai eu mon master en ligne… C’était loin d’être cool », nous révèle-t-il. C’est donc au fort de cette tempête que l’humour s’est pointé à l’horizon comme un rayon de lumière.

TikTok étant la hype de l’heure, il s’y embarque et très vite il se fait connaître. Avec 48 000 followers, ce n’est pas le fan base de Jason Derulo sur la plateforme, mais ce n’est pas rien dans le contexte haïtien. Si Steven ne s’entête pas à monnayer ses publications, des entreprises se dirigent pourtant vers lui pour lui demander de faire connaître leurs activités ou produits via son grand nombre de followers. C’est le cas de Lisa Loto, de la Maison Handal, entre autres.

L’artiste lance un épisode chaque deux jours en général. Au-delà de l’objectif de faire rire, il y a sa volonté de toucher des points qui lui tiennent à cœur comme les crises socio-politiques, la nonchalance de nos hommes politiques. Il est adepte du castigat rirendo mores (corriger les mœurs en riant). « Mon activité sur TikTok n’est pas parallèle à celle que j’ai en tant que photographe, c’en est plutôt un prolongement », précise-t-il.

Des comptes TikTok ou Instagram qu’il affectionne ? « Il y a celui de Zuzu Girl, mais aussi celui de Timoumoun », cite-t-il. Et la possibilité d'un stand-up un jour ? L'artiste répond par l’affirmatif tout en précisant qu’il se gardera de forcer le ton, d’aller trop vite. Pour le moment, sa plus grande satisfaction c’est de lire des commentaires de parents, enfants sur son sit-com. Il y en a qui lui disent qu’ils peuvent passer la journée à regarder l’ensemble des épisodes tandis que d’autres lui témoignent combien ça illumine leur vie… À tous ceux-là et à tous ses abonnés en général, Steven Baboun promet d’autres gags tout en leur demandant de toujours rester branchés à son compte !

Zev, une marque de véhicules électriques fondée par un Haïtien

Un Haïtien fonde la première marque de véhicule électrique rwandaise au Rwanda

Cette année Zazzi Electric Vehicles, établie au Rwanda, devient officiellement une entreprise (LDT), gérante de la marque rwandaise de véhicules électriques ZEV, tirée du siglé de l’entreprise.

Démarré depuis 2017 par l’haïtien résidant en République voisine Wood Wedson Pierre, le projet ZEV est aujourd’hui en phase de production et de lancement au niveau mondial avec 100 véhicules déjà fabriqués, selon le Fondateur.

Si tout se passe bien, les clients pourront se procurer des véhicules ZEV dès la fin de l’année ou le début de 2021. Ils pourront payer une réservation et recevront le véhicule dans leur pays, en particulier en Afrique, dans les Caraïbes et l’Amérique latine. Un showroom sera ouvert dans la capitale Rwandaise, Kigali, annonce Wood Wedson Pierre.

Trois modèles seront disponibles en premier : la ” SUC Electric ” appelée ZEV EC500, le ” Micro Car ” dénommé ZEV M20 et la moto électrique ” ZEV e-moto “. Mais ZEV développera aussi des bus électriques, des tricycles électriques, des vélos à asssistance électrique, entre autres, précise Wood Wedson Pierre.

Zazzi Electric Vehicles Co. offre aussi un service de réparation et vend des stations de recharge électrique à partir du soleil pour les véhicules ZEV, nous informe le Président de Zazzy Electric Vehicles Wood Wedson Pierre.

À l’image de leur slogan ” embrace the future “, le CEO de ZEV envisage un futur rayonnant pour son entreprise. ” Dans les prochaines années, avec le chiffre d’affaires dépassant un billion de dollars américains que nous aurons, ZEV n’aura rien à envier aux autres marques de véhicule électrique. Nos véhicules seront parmi les meilleurs au monde. Nous poursuivons l’objectif d’avoir dans moins de deux ans une usine de production de tous nos modèles existants et de nouveaux à paraître. Ce qui nous permettra d’atteindre 300 mille comme capacité de production “, prévoit le CEO Wood Wedson Pierre.

Par ailleurs, Wood Wedson Pierre promet que son entreprise offrira l’opportunité aux jeunes de suivre sa voie, en fabriquant des véhicules pour eux et même en investissant dans leur entreprise si l’idée est assez convaincante et innovante.

A Haitian Chef Reveals the Secret Ingredient to His Toronto Restaurant’s Success (Even During COVID)

Like most great chefs, Marc-Elie Lissade jumped at the opportunity to fill a global food gap in a major metropolis. After leaving Haiti at age 11, Lissade spent some time living in the United States before setting down roots in Toronto in the hopes of opening his own restaurant. And that’s when, in December 2019, Boukan was born – a Haitian food joint offering French-Creole street fare.

“Street food works in Toronto because it’s open to many styles of cuisine,” he says. “And we don’t already have a lot of Haitian or Creole cuisine here.”

Lissade excels at Haitian comfort foods (think: deep fried and delicious). Boukan is a vibrant space packed with eye-popping colour located on Toronto’s Kingston Road. The walls, dedicated to the work of local artists and signatures left behind by satisfied customers, illustrate the importance of ancestral ties and community.

His passion for food comes from his close bond with his grandma, a bona fide chef in her own right. Growing up, it was she who taught him many of the homemade seasonings and recipes that make Boukan such a hot spot destination for foodies.

It’s hard to deny how Lissade’s attention to history, family meals and community have become the main ingredients to his restaurant’s success (FYI: he also has his own catering company called Black Apron Events and garnered the top award from 2018’s Taste of the Caribbean!).

A Place in History

Given his penchant for connecting with family through food, it comes as no surprise that Lissade turned to his ancestral roots when brainstorming a restaurant name – in particular, a groundbreaking moment in Haitian history.

The Haitian Revolution is widely considered one of the most significant moments in the history of the Atlantic World. It lasted for more than a decade, beginning in August 1791 before concluding in January 1804 with the self-liberated slaves exerting independence over French colonial rule in Saint-Domingue (now Haiti). The event bears the distinction of being the only slave uprising to result in a state led entirely by non-white rulers and former captives.

Prior to the revolution, enslaved Haitians would gather around a campfire (boukan) to shares stories, dance and enjoy food together. It’s that specific aspect – a community coming together – that ultimately inspired Lissade to take a page from his ancestors’ history book for the name of his restaurant. “After 1804, Haitians were [finally] able to celebrate,” he says. “For me, Boukan is our culture and it represents history and a place of celebration.”

Family Ties

If one were to map out Lissade’s career trajectory, from his catering company Black Apron Events to Boukan, it would start with his grandma. At only eight years old, Lissade was a chef in training, assisting his grandma with her catering company – running around grabbing the ingredients and cookware she needed. Even now, any reference to his grandma will take Lissade on a trip down memory lane.

“I remember every Saturday night we’d have fritay [pronounced free-tie, a general term for fried food] and griyo [deep fried pork]. We’d sit down and she’d tell us stories,” he recalls. “We always looked forward to that.” (Griyo also happens to be his favourite recipe to make with his grandma, which Boukan customers can find on the menu).

Every family has its own fiercely guarded kitchen secrets that are passed on through generations. When asked if there’s a specific tip or secret ingredient that his grandma taught him over the years, Lissade gives a reluctant laugh. “Yes. It’s really about the process of [prepping] the food,” he says. “She taught me to cook with three senses: smell, sight and texture. When you’re cooking, you’re always running around tasting different things, so your taste buds change. [Slowing down and paying attention to] those senses is what helped her become a better cook. Now, at 32, I understand why she was cooking that way.”

A Place to Gather

There’s a real sense of community woven into the very fabric of Boukan, from the rotating work by local artists featured on the walls to recipe-sharing with fellow chefs.

“I wanted the place to be open to everybody,” he explains. “We all get stronger through collaboration with others.” And that collaboration takes on many forms.

For starters, Lissade rotates the artwork featured in his restaurant roughly once a month to make room for new pieces and local talent. “I don’t want to go to a restaurant where the same artwork has been on the wall for 15, 20 years,” he says. “Yes, this is a restaurant, but it’s also an art gallery where I open it to all local artists in Toronto. People can purchase it and it is full commission to them. I don’t take money from it because I know how hard it can be – unless you’re a Picasso.”

Even the story behind one of Lissade’s favourite “secret ingredients” has a communal backstory. “I have a close friend who lives in Miami and she’s a Haitian chef,” he says, citing her influence on one of the most popular recipes he’s crafted for the menu. “When I was opening Boukan I thought it’d be a crazy idea to offer a vegan burger. We [Haitians] love meat, but I wanted to be different.”

The result was the wildly popular Burger Boukanye featuring a plant-based patty, pickled onions, vegan Creole mayo and, the secret ingredient, djon djon – a rare black mushroom only found in northern Haiti. “I’m not vegan, but I thought it was so good,” Lissade says of his collaboration with his friend. “The seasoning in it is the one I learned from my grandma, so you can’t find it anywhere else.”

As for the global pandemic that shuttered the vast majority of businesses around the world, there was no way to predict the fallout for a restaurant as young as Boukan. “I was very worried,” he says. “We’re not even a year old, so when COVID happened I didn’t know what to do. We weren’t eligible for help from the government because we’d only been open for a few weeks last year.”

Enter: the very community he’s sought to bring together through food. “Thank God for the support of the Haitian community and our neighbours – they supported us like there’s no tomorrow. If it wasn’t for them, I think we would have been closed by now.”

To learn more about Boukan Owner and Executive Chef Marc-Elie Lissade, tune into the @AmexCanada #ShopSmallStories Twitter episode here. The Twitter Original series was created in partnership with American Express Canada in support of their Shop Small program, a national movement, backed by a Cardmember offer, to encourage Canadians to get behind their local small businesses and help revive communities.

Haiti - Covid-19 : 43 new cases and 4 more deaths in 24 hours

According to the Ministry of Public Health, 43 new cases of Covid-19 would have been confirmed in Haiti in 24 hours (previous +34 in 48 hours) for a total of 8,301 cases throughout the national territory since the first case (March 19, 2020 https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30319-haiti-health-origin-of-the-first-2-cases-of-covid-19-in-haiti.html ).

Deaths: 4 new deaths were reported in 24 hours in the Western Department for a national total of 210 deaths.

Healings: : 5,870 people (+ unchanged in 24 hours), previous (+42 in 48 hours)

Healing rate: 70.71% (-)

Active cases: (less deaths and cures) 2,221 cases (+39 in 48h), the day before (-17 in 48h)

Imported cases: 152 cases since the reopening of airports and +43 since the last report dated July 9 (109) https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-31348-haiti-flash-152-cases-imported-since-the-reopening-of-airports.html (update not available)

Suspicious cases investigated since March 19: 24,220 cases (+158 in 24 hours), previous (+150 in 48 hours)

Cases tested since the start of the pandemic: 24,035 (+356 in 48 hours as of September 1)

People currently hospitalized: (information not available)

People in intensive care currently: (information not available)

People currently treated at home: (information not available)

Cases confirmed by department:
West: 5,687cas (+9 in 24h)
Artibonitis: 487 cases (+2 in 24 hours)
North: 470 cases (+23 in 24h)
Center: 437 cases (+4 in 48h), previous (+4 in 48h)
Southeast: 257 cases (unchanged)
North-East: 237 cases (+5 in 24 hours)
South 226 (unchanged)
Northwest 197 (unchanged)
Grand'Anse 162 (unchanged) previous (+1 in 48h)
Nippes 141 (unchanged)

Location of cases:

West : 5,687 cases (+9)
Delmas : 1,382 cases (+1)
Port-au-Prince : 1,135 cases (+1), previous (+2 in 48h)
Pétion-ville : 852 cases (+2)
Tabarre : 683 cases (unchanged)
Croix-des-Bouquets : 559 (+1), previous (+2 in 48h)
Carrefour : 437 cases (+1)
Petit-Goâve : 148 cases (unchanged)
Cité Soleil : 92 cases (unchanged)
Léogâne : 78 cases (+3)
Cabaret : 72 cases (unchanged)
Kenskoff : 60 cases (unchanged)
Archaie : 46 cases (unchanged)
Gressier 44 cases (unchanged), previous (+1 in 48h)
Anse à Galet : 37 cases (unchanged)
Cornillon : 16 cases (unchanged)
Grand Goâve : 15 cases (unchanged)
Ganthier : 13 cases (unchanged)
Thomazeau : 9 cases (unchanged)
Fonds-Verettes : 6 (unchanged)
Pointe à Raquette : 3 cases (unchanged)

Artibonite : 485 cases (+2)
Saint Marc : 163 cases (unchanged)
Verettes : 116 cases (unchanged)
Gonaïves : 110 cases (unchanged)
Gros Morne : 22 cases (+1)
Marchand Dessalines : 16 cases (unchanged)
Petite Rivière de l’Artibonite : 15 cases (unchanged)
Saint Michel : 11 case (+1)
L’Estère : 10 cases (unchanged)
Desdunes : 6 cases (unchanged)
Marmelade : 6 cases (unchanged)
Ennery : 5 cases (unchanged)
Grande Saline : 3 cases (unchanged)
La Chappelle : 2 cases (unchanged)
Anse Rouge : 2 cases (unchanged)

North : 470 (+23)
Cap Haïtien : 279 cases (+10)
Limbé : 38 cases (+1),
Pignon : 21 case (unchanged)
Milot : 18 cases (+3)
Plaine du Nord : 16 cases (+1)
Grande Rivière du Nord : 16 cases (+2)
Pilate : 15 cases (+2)
Plaisance du Nord : 14 cases (unchanged)
Borgne : 13 cases (+2)
Limonade : 11 case (unchanged)
Port Margot : 11 case (+2)
Quartier Morin : 9 cases (unchanged)
Acul du Nord : 6 cases (unchanged)
Dondon : 3 cases (unchanged)
Bahon : 1 case (unchanged)
Saint Raphaël : 1 case (unchanged)

Center : 437 cases (+4)
Mirebalais : 157 cases (unchanged), previous (+1 in 48h),
Hinche : 154 cases (+3), previous (+2 in 48h)
Boucan Carré : 31 case (unchanged)
Lascaobas : 30 cases (unchanged), previous (+1 in 48h)
Belladère : 20 cases (unchanged)
Thomonde : 14 cases (unchanged)
Saut-d’Eau 7 cases (unchanged)
Savanette : 6 cases (unchanged)
Cerca la Source : 6 cases (unchanged)
Maissade : 5 cases (+1)
Cerca Cavajal : 4 cases (unchanged)
Thomassique : 3 cases (unchanged)

South-East : 257 cases (unchanged)
Jacmel : 192 cases (unchanged)
Côte-de-Fer : 15 cases (unchanged)
Bainet : 13 cases (unchanged)
Anse-à-Pitre : 9 cases (unchanged)
Thiotte : 9 cases (unchanged)
Vallée de Jacmel : 7 cases (unchanged)
Marigot : 6 cases (unchanged)
Belle Anse : 4 cases (unchanged)
Cayes Jacmel : 2 cases (unchanged)

North-East : 237 cases (+5)
Ouanaminthe : 75 cases (+1)
Caracol 41 case (+1)
Fort Liberté : 34 cases (+1)
Trou du Nord : 32 cases (+1)
Mombin Crochu 20 cases (unchanged)
Terrier Rouge : 11 case (+1)
Perches : 5 cases (unchanged)
Mont Organisé : 5 cases (unchanged)
Ste-Suzanne : 4 cases (+2), la veille : (+2)
Carice : 4 cases (unchanged)
Ferrier : 4 cases (unchanged)
Capotille : 2 cases (unchanged)

South : 226 cases (unchanged)
Cayes : 125 cases (unchanged)
Aquin : 26 cases (unchanged)
Saint-Louis du Sud : 12 cases (unchanged)
Les Anglais : 10 cases (unchanged)
Port à Piment : 8 cases (unchanged)
Port-Salut : 8 cases (unchanged)
Torbeck : 7 cases (unchanged)
Chardonnières : 6 cases (unchanged)
Camp-Perrin : 6 cases (unchanged)
Tiburon : 4 cases (unchanged)
Coteaux : 4 cases (unchanged)
Chantal : 2 cases (unchanged)
Île-à Vache : 2 cases (unchanged)
St Jean du Sud : 2 cases (unchanged)
Cavaillon 2 cases (unchanged)
Roche à Bateau : 1 case (unchanged)
Maniche : 1 case (unchanged)

North-West : 197 cases (unchanged)
Port de Paix : 115 cases (unchanged)
Saint-louis du Nord : 25 cases (unchanged)
Bombardopolis : 14 cases (unchanged)
Môle Saint-Nicolas : 12 cases (unchanged)
Jean Rabel : 12 cases (unchanged)
Bassin Bleu : 6 cases (unchanged)
La Tortue : 5 cases (unchanged)
Chansolme : 4 cases (unchanged)
Baie de Henne 2 cases (unchanged)
Anse-à-Foleur : 2 cases (unchanged)

Grand'Anse : 162 cases (unchanged)
Jérémie : 129 cases (unchanged), previous (+1 in 48h)
Anse d’Hainault : 16 (unchanged)
Chambellan : 7 cases (unchanged)
Dame Marie : 3 cases (unchanged)
Pestel : 2 cases (unchanged)
Irois : 2 cases (unchanged)
Bonbon : 1 case (unchanged)
Moron : 1 case (unchanged)
Roseaux : 1 case (unchanged)

Nippes : 141 case (unchanged)
Miragoâne : 66 cases (unchanged)
Fond des Nègres : 20 cases (unchanged)
Baradères : 13 cases (unchanged)
Plaisance du Sud : 10 cases (unchanged)
Anse à Veau 7 cases (unchanged)
Petit Trou de Nippes : 7 cases (unchanged)
Petite Riviere de Nippes : 6 cases (unchanged)
L’Asile : 5 cases (unchanged)
Paillant : 4 cases (unchanged)
Arnaud : 2 cases (unchanged)
Grand Boucan : 1 case (unchanged)

NOTE: "unchanged" means that there is no new data available: it may be no new cases, unreported or incomplete cases or delay in transmission data at the Ministry ...

Distribution of confirmed cases by age group:
0-9 years: 238 (unchanged)
10-19 years: 291 (+1)
20-29 years: 1,651 (+7)
30-39 years: 2,421 (+18)
40-49 years: 1,500 (+7)
50-59 years: 980 (+4)
60-69 years: 734 (+4)
70 years and over: 486 (+2)

Distribution of deaths by age group:
0-9 years: 8 deaths (unchanged)
10-19 years: 3 deaths (unchanged)
20-29 years: 11 deaths (unchanged)
30-39 years: 14 deaths (unchanged)
40-49 years: 24 deaths (unchanged)
50-59 years: 38 deaths (+1)
60-69 years: 44 deaths (+2)
70 years and over: 67 deaths (+1)

41.7% women and 58.3% men (update not available for more than a week)

Deaths: 210 deaths (+4 in 24 hours)

Mortality rate: 2.53% (+)

As Food Deliveries Boom, So Do Ghost Kitchens

Several new companies and models have emerged to help restaurants by making food off-site, and even delivering it.

Since the pandemic began, many restaurants have pivoted to providing takeout and delivery. It’s a move that shows no signs of diminishing, even as they reopen for dining in one form or another. To accommodate this increased demand, they are depending more and more on various types of off-premises kitchens.

“I think it will continue,” said Daniel Boulud, the high-end chef and restaurateur who occasionally delivered special-occasion meals but has now established a new regular delivery service for his restaurants.

Several companies are counting on it. Their inventory is so-called ghost kitchens — off-site meal-preparation facilities that are untethered from physical restaurants. They predate the virus, but are multiplying now, and taking many new forms.

Ghost kitchens allow restaurants to outsource the making of their takeout and delivery meals, without cannibalizing the stoves, walk-ins and prep areas needed to serve seated diners outdoors or in. With national reach, they’re also promising to expand a restaurant’s footprint and brand recognition beyond the immediate neighborhood.

Reef Kitchens is one of these. It was started in June 2019 in Miami, using parking lots and garages. Today it has some 4,500 parking sites across the country where it is installing mobile pods — roughly the size of shipping containers — that it calls kitchen vessels. The same space might house cooks preparing delivery orders from several restaurants, whether the food is Indian, Mexican, Italian or burgers.

Reef has three modular kitchens up and running in New York City. It expects to more than double that by the end of the year, and hopes to get its nationwide total to 300.

When a customer orders online through the website of a Reef Kitchens client or one of the delivery apps like UberEats or Postmates, the information goes to Reef, but the customer never interacts directly with Reef (though the service is adding pickup at some of its locations). The company started before the virus hit, but Carl Segal, the chief operating officer, said that what it is doing feels more urgent now.

For a restaurateur, establishing a second kitchen would be expensive, given the costs of rent, construction, utilities and staffing, but with Reef, the restaurant has no upfront expenses.

“It doesn’t cost them anything,” Mr. Segal said. “We enter into a partnership with them, we keep the revenue and pay them a royalty percentage every month.” (He would not specify the percentage.)

Reef’s cooks prepare the food according to the restaurant’s recipes, but no restaurant personnel are involved, and the restaurant has no control over how the food turns out.

This strategy may not appeal to every chef or restaurant, but there are now several willing to give it a try, including Michael’s Genuine in Miami and Saucy Asian in San Francisco. Teaming up with Reef will allow Jack’s Wife Freda, in New York City, to deliver meals to customers in Brooklyn, something the Manhattan-based restaurant group would be unable to do without a costly third-party delivery system.

The chef Cybille St. Aude, left, with her husband and sous-chef, Omar Tate, preparing a pop-up dinner in a Zevv mobile kitchen in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn.Credit...Emon Hassan for The New York Times

Another relative newcomer to the ghost-kitchen business is Zevv. Max Crespo, its founder, got his start in 2013 with Neapolitan Express, a pizza truck. Now he runs a fleet of mobile kitchens — 10 next-generation food trucks, so far — that he opened in May, working with the chef Daniel Humm, Eleven Madison Park and the nonprofit food distributor Rethink Food, to serve food for workers to pick up at Lenox Hill Hospital and other New York City medical centers.

“We can go where the people are, to be in one place at lunch and somewhere else for dinner,” Mr. Crespo said.

Zevv hopes its mobile kitchens will lower the startup cost for aspiring restaurateurs.Credit...Emon Hassan for The New York Times

His mobile units, each 8 feet by 20 feet, are designed to produce no emissions. Restaurants or chefs pay $30,000 to $50,000 to start, with a six-month contract and a small monthly fee. Mr. Crespo said his price was much less than it would cost a restaurant to create and maintain its own outside kitchen.

Sometimes there is a partnership with a chef. “We can promote a great young chef who doesn’t have a restaurant yet and showcase the talent,” he said.

Food is prepared in his units, usually by the restaurant’s own employees, though Zevv has its own list of chefs who can participate. His units prepare food for pickup on-site; there is no delivery. “People want high-end quality, and it’s hard to achieve with delivery,” he said.

Unlike kitchens for hire, a company with a fistful of its own restaurants can take an entirely different approach, making food off-site for its own restaurants. Sam Nazarian, the founder and chief executive of SBE Entertainment, a major hotel and restaurant management company, has formed a new unit, C3, to add to SBE’s collection of restaurants worldwide, in part by using this model.

A delivery leaving from Hyde Sunset Kitchen and Cocktails, a former Los Angeles nightclub being used as a virtual kitchen by SBE Enterprises.Credit...Rozette Rago for The New York Times

Its umbrella already covers Umami Burger, Sam’s Crispy Chicken and Krispy Rice, all its own brands. So when someone orders from Umami Burger, the food will be prepared in one of the outside kitchens, where there is no Umami Burger storefront.

Mr. Nazarian’s company has signed the chef Dani García, who ran a restaurant in Spain that won three Michelin stars, to help develop more food-service restaurant brands, including Minük, for quick service.

The company’s portfolio also includes restaurants by the chefs Masaharu Morimoto, José Andrés and Katsuya Uechi. Some of those restaurants will be opening, pandemic restrictions permitting, at Citizens, a 48,000-square-foot food hall designed by David Rockwell that is expected to open in the next few weeks as a centerpiece of Manhattan West, the Brookfield Properties development across 10th Avenue from Hudson Yards.

For C3’s virtual kitchens, one of which has already opened on West 57th Street in Manhattan, the company is taking advantage of its partnerships with the hotel chain Accor, and Simon, a company that owns malls and other facilities. With a goal of 200 kitchens by the end of the year, it is finding underused spaces like catering kitchens at some of the hotels.

“This all takes a big investment, but I think we’ve already made all the mistakes,” Mr. Nazarian said. Because of the scale of his operation, he said he is able to negotiate reduced delivery fees with big platforms like Grubhub and DoorDash. The company is also working on the kind of specially made packaging that suits delivered meals.

SBE hopes that the repurposing of unused spaces like Hyde Sunset Kitchen and Cocktails will be a business model it can replicate.Credit...Rozette Rago for The New York Times

“Even before Covid, consumer habits were changing,” he said. “With delivery, they now want high quality.”

Mr. Boulud recently dusted off one of his operations, Daniel Boulud Kitchen, which at one time sold kitchen equipment and other products, and has turned it into the delivery division for his brand, efficiently offering only one menu that changes frequently. The preparation is done in a work space attached to his Daniel restaurant on the Upper East Side, where there is now sidewalk dining.

Mr. Boulud said that with delivery, he has been able to rehire some chefs he laid off at the beginning of the pandemic shutdown. “I’m looking for it to expand on a wider scale,” he said. “I’m happy to have the business.”

For deliveries beyond the New York region, he has just signed on with Goldbelly, a seven-year-old e-commerce company that ships specialties like pies and lobster rolls nationwide from hundreds of restaurants and food companies, usually fresh, and is now selling more elaborate dishes. Mr. Boulud’s lavish bouillabaisse, delivered ready for a final heating, is one of them.

In the past few years, other groups of ghost kitchens for restaurants to rent have been established, including Kitchen United, and CloudKitchens, which was started by Travis Kalanick, a co-founder of Uber.

DoorDash is also getting into the virtual-kitchen game with DoorDash Kitchens. It has a division, Kitchens Without Borders, that supports restaurants owned by immigrants and refugees, giving them discounted rates. And a consulting firm, The Food Corridor, is ready to help restaurants navigate the increasing number of kitchen options.

“Delivery is part of our whole life now,” Mr. Nazarian said. That goes for the restaurant and the consumer as well.

Georgia ministry opens hospital in Haiti

Opening a mission hospital in Haiti while operating out of Northeast Georgia was never going to be easy.
    Doing so as a pandemic spread across the globe, hindering travel and the ability to gather groups together, made it even more difficult than Love Him Love Them Ministries co-founder Linda Gunter could have imagined.
    But with a truckload of faith, selfless giving from dozens of people, businesses and organizations and a shipping container loaded to the brim with medical supplies, Valley of Hope Hospital is set to open Saturday, Aug. 29 in Gallette Chambon, Haiti.
    Gunter admits the daunting task of coordinating the shipment of supplies needed to open the hospital was almost too much to take.
    “We almost gave up,” she said.
    Medical care in an underserved area of a developing island nation during a pandemic was too important, however, so the opening of the hospital was moved to an earlier date than originally planned.
    Travel restrictions were discouraging and raising the money needed to open the hospital and ship supplies was difficult, Gunter said, especially considering the primary fundraiser for Lavonia-based Love Him Love Them, a tour of the Haitian Orphan Choir comprised of youth from the ministry’s orphanages and schools, had to be canceled for 2020.
    She soon learned to lean on her faith and let God handle things, Gunter said.
“I really believe God was saying, ‘You think you know what’s going on? I’ve got this under control,’” she said.
    Much like the ministry itself, which was born out of desperate need following the 2010 earthquake that ravaged Haiti, Valley of Hope’s opening later this month was spurred by tragedy.
    A young woman in labor came to a Love Him Love Them school and church facility in Gallette Chambon on the back of a motorcycle, hoping to find medical care.
    The school did not have the resources she needed.
    The nearest medical care facility was more than an hour away.
    Despite the best efforts of Pastor Maxeau Antoine and others, the woman and her child both died before they could the get the necessary medical attention.
“This was our sign,” Gunter said.
    Completing the mission would not be without its challenges.
    She and her team knew that, but the Lord had called them to provide the people there a better option, she said.
    The Hart and Hall county health departments each had donated items to the ministry previously and still had more to offer.
    Love Him Love Them has a storage facility in Lavonia filled with donated supplies and an organization called Missionary Flights International donated  even more.
    Local doctors from St. Mary’s Hospital and from around the region had provided supplies like a centrifuge and microscopes so the hospital could operate a lab to aid in diagnosing patients.
    The Hart County-based organization, Acts 1:8, also got in on the action and set aside some supplies to its orphanage in Haiti.
    Now they just needed a way to get it all to Haiti.
Lisa Welshman, executive director of Love Him Love Them ministry, said a group of dozens of volunteers from area counties, including Stephens, Franklin and Hart, showed up ready to load the shipping container bought with donations, but its arrival was delayed that day.
    “It was amazing how we got it down there. It was nuts,” Welshman said.
    So the team put everything on pallets and organized it all to be prepared for when the container did actually arrive in a few days.
    Then the driver from the company Unity on a Mission, who was donating his time to transport the container from Franklin County to Miami, got sick.
    A new driver stepped up and a much smaller group of about nine people gathered again at a later date to load the container and see it on its way.
    Thankfully, Welshman said, the truck arrived a couple days later in Miami and successfully made it to Haiti.
    “It took over 100 volunteers, three trips between Lavonia, Gainesville and Hartwell to pick up supplies, coordination of donations being dropped off at all hours at the office and our storage area,” Welshman said.
    “Plus, then truck driver No. 1 gets sick so we have to pray for another driver. That comes through and so he  drives from Lavonia to Fort Pierce, Fla., to pick up five donated pallets of medical supplies then heads to Miami to the dock,” Welshman said.
It was enough to get the hospital going, but Welshman said there is still plenty more needed to make it operate as the ministry plans.
    “We need major stuff now,” she said, adding that the group still needs beds, ventilators and other more substantial medical care items.
    Gunter, who founded the ministry with her husband David, said the hospital opening despite the challenges is a testament to God’s love and power.
    “We were literally in a spiritual battle,” she said about the effort to open Valley of Hope. “The big deal of opening the hospital is for spiritual care.”
Patients will come and receive medical care, but in the end, their spirit will be uplifted as well, Gunter said.
    “Satan wants us to quit, but we have to keep fighting,” she said.
    Gunter said the ministry “literally works off faith,” and relies solely on donations.
    To donate to Love Him Love Them Ministries or to learn more about their missions, go to lovehimlovethem.org<http://lovehimlovethem.org> or call Linda Gunter at 706-599-7525.