CLACX announces 6th annual Haiti Week
Vanderbilt’s 6th annual Haiti Week to begin Feb. 22
Vanderbilt’s Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies (CLACX), Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center (BCC), Caribbean Students Association (CSA), and Center for Second Language Studies (CSLS) will host the 6th annual Vanderbilt Haiti Week Feb. 22-24.
“This week is an opportunity to reflect on the global reach of Haitian history and culture. We want students to know more about studying Haitian Kreyòl at Vanderbilt, and the talks bring fresh light on current events (law and immigration), as well as important new scholarship in Haitian studies (e.g., the period of the American occupation),” said Dr. Celso Castilho, CLACX Director. “Learning more about Haiti and the Haitian diaspora is as crucial as ever to understanding the Americas.”
Haiti Week 2022 is part of Vanderbilt’s Black History Month programming and will feature scholars from Oberlin College and Vanderbilt University, as well as Vanderbilt’s CSA student organization. Events will be a mix of in-person and virtual programming, and are open to the Vanderbilt community and the public.
“About 800,000 of the over 1.7 million Haitians who have migrated in the last two decades live in Latin America (mostly the Dominican Republic, Brazil, and Chile); the other 50% or so are in the US,” said Castilho. “The futures of Latinx, Latin American, and Haitian studies are inextricably linked.”
Organized annually by Vanderbilt CLACX, Haiti Week first began in February 2017. The program has since featured a variety of academic lectures and cultural events, all open to the public. Speakers have included award-winning authors Edwidge Danticat and Ibi Zoboi, scholars from across the country, and Vanderbilt University students, faculty, and staff.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 22
Haiti, Law, and Immigration
12:30 – 1:30 p.m. CST | In-Person
Black Cultural Center Auditorium, Vanderbilt University
Haiti Week 2022 kicks off with this in-person talk by Judith Clerjeune (Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition) on Haitian immigration, moderated by Jesús Ruiz (National Academy of Sciences Ford Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow). As TIRRC’s Campaigns and Advocacy Director, Clerjeune leads the organization’s policy priorities and campaign initiatives, advancing strategic national, statewide, and local campaigns around issues that impact immigrant and refugee communities. Read Clerjeune’s recent article for The Tennessean on Haitian asylum seekers.
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 23
Haiti Fights Back: A Conversation with Yveline Alexis
12:30 – 1:30 p.m. CST | Virtual
REGISTER on ZOOM
Yveline Alexis will discuss her award-winning new book Haiti Fights Back: The Life and Legacy of Charlemagne Péralte. Dr. Alexis is an Associate Professor of Africana Studies and Comparative American Studies at Oberlin College. Her work was recently awarded the Haitian Studies Association Book Prize and was selected the Times Literary Supplement Book of the Year.
Rhythm n’ Bounce
6:30 – 7:30 p.m. CST | In-Person
Black Cultural Center, Vanderbilt University
Join Vanderbilt’s Caribbean Students Association (CSA) for this special celebration of Haitian culture, featuring traditional Haitian dancing and food! View Event Poster
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24
Kreyòl and Kremas
4:00 – 5:00 p.m. CST | In-Person
Center for Second Language Studies, Furman Hall 001, Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt Ph.D. student Danielle Dorvil (Vanderbilt Spanish and Portuguese, Center for Second Language Studies) presents this special introduction to Haitian culture and beginner’s conversation class in Haitian Creole! Dorvil will also lead participants in a mixing demonstration and tasting of the traditional Haitian krema, a sweet beverage often enjoyed at celebrations and holidays in Haiti.
Download the Haiti Week 2022 Poster
Learn more about Haiti Week 2022: https://as.vanderbilt.edu/clacx/haitiweek2022/
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