After years of lobbying by Haitian leaders and activists, the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has finally agreed to launch an official effort to reunify Haitian families displaced by the catastrophic earthquake of Jan. 2010. In a statement sent to the Reporter this morning, the department says that the Haitian Family Reunification Parole (HFRP) Program will begin in spring 2015.
The program will "expedite family reunification for certain eligible Haitian family members of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents of the U.S. and to promote safe, legal and orderly migration from Haiti to the United States."
The program will impact "eligible Haitian beneficiaries" in Haiti who have been pre-approved for family-based visas. They will be allowed entry to the United States "up to approximately two years before their immigrant visa priority dates become current," according to the Homeland Security department.
In announcing the program, Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas emphasized that Haitian migrants should not attempt to come to the Unites States before the program begins.
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Oct 14, 2014
A 60 year-old Haitian man was indicted on Oct. 10 for allegedly "interfering with flight crew members" on a trans-Atlantic flight from Miami to Paris. The Aug. 27 incident caused the flight to be diverted to Boston.
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Aug 6, 2014
The Association Haitian Women of Boston —also known as AFAB— will host their annual Violence Prevention Forum this Saturday, August 9 at the Whittier Street Health Center, 1290 Tremont St. from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
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Jun 17, 2014
Cardinal Chibly Langlois, the first Cardinal named from Haiti, will be the main celebrant at this weekend's annual Mass to celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. The Mass will be held at 2 p.m. Read more
Jun 9, 2014
Regis College Haiti Project Advisory Board gathers this week to meet the second wave of Haitian nursing educators doing their summer semester on the College’s Weston campus. Read more
Jun 6, 2014
Haitian Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe visited Boston yesterday to speak at Haiti Funders Conference at the Boston Foundation. Lamothe, who was appointed prime minister in May 2012, was introduced by Sen. Linda Dorcena Forry (D-Boston), and gave an address entitled “The Priorities of the Government of Haiti and Alignment of Private Philanthropic Efforts for Lasting Impact."
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May 20, 2014
An exhibition featuring artworks that honor Haitian revolutionary Toussaint Louverture is on display at the Mattapan Branch, located at 1350 Blue Hill Avenue, through July 18. On Tuesday, May 27, a reception will be held from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Mattapan Branch to celebrate the exhibition. The reception includes poetry readings, testimonials, and light refreshments.
At the Central Library in Copley Square, located at 700 Boylston Street, the exhibition The Soul of a Man: Toussaint Louverture & the Haitian Slave Revolt opens in the Rare Books Lobby on Tuesday, June 17, and runs through September 30 of this year. The Central Library exhibition tells the compelling story of Toussaint Louverture, a leader of the armed resistance against colonization and slavery and his significant role in the future of a free Haiti.
"Boston Public Library welcomes researchers, visitors, and academics to view the materials that played a critical role in the freedom and development of Haiti," said Susan Glover, Keeper of Special Collections.
A panel discussion and slideshow featuring Toussaint Louverture's historical impact and his influence on the abolitionist movement and popular culture in the United States will be held on Tuesday, June 17 at 6:30 p.m. in Rabb Lecture Hall at the Central Library in Copley Square. Panelists include Boston Public Library Trustee and State Representative Byron Rushing, Dr. Marc Prou of the University of Massachusetts, Professor Patricia Hills of Boston University, and moderators Marie St. Fleur and Dr. Nesly Metayer. Representatives from the Boston City Council, the NAACP, and State Senator Linda Dorcena Forry will join the panel for special remarks.
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May 18, 2014
The annual Haitian Unity Parade begins today at 1p.m. in Mattapan Square on Blue Hill Ave. and follows a route to Talbot Avenue. Watch for road closures between River Street and Talbot between 1-3 p.m. More than 200 local organizations, schools and businesses from all over New England are expected to participate. The parade will be led by Henry Milorin of Medford, Mass, a respected Haitian American US Army Retired as Grand Marshall for this year.
The event will feature lead sponsors Mayor Martin Walsh, State Senator Linda Dorcena Forry, Former State Representative Marie St. Fleur, and host of city and state public officials.
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Mar 20, 2014
Haitian-American elected officials are raising concerns that the United Nations, charged with peacekeeping mandate in Haiti, may try to prevent the nation’s cholera epidemic victims from taking the organization to court.
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Mar 6, 2014
On Sunday, March 23rd, community activists will gather at the Hawthorne Hotel in Salem to celebrate the 22nd annual Salem Award for Human Rights and Social Justice. The award will be presented to Mario Joseph and Brian Concannon, Jr. Read more
Mar 6, 2014
A year ago, she was in the thick of a special election to succeed Jack Hart in the state Senate. Now Linda Dorcena Forry, who eked out a win for the Senate seat, is in the middle of another campaign: Putting together the traditional St. Read more
Dec 24, 2013
Haitian-Americans United, Inc. (H.A.U.) of Boston, Massachusetts and the General Consulate of Haiti in Boston announce the 13th Annual Haitian Independence Day Gala to be held on Saturday, January 4th, 2014 starting 7p.m. at Lombardo's Function Hall in Randolph, Mass.
For the past 12 years, H.A.U. has organized the Independence Day gala to celebrate the triumph and the impact of the 1791 Haitian Slave Revolution, honor Haiti's forefathers and commemorate the anniversary of the proclamation of Haiti's independence on January 1st, 1804. The gala has been held also to increase cultural awareness and community visibility, strengthen Haitian unity on common ground and educate Haitian-American Youth about their heritage.
In addition, this year's gala will be dedicated to honor the First Massachusetts Haitian-American State Senator, our keynote Speaker Linda Dorcena Forry for her steady leadership in the area of business development, education and immigration issues; and Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino for his commitment to the well-being and the progress of Haitian-Americans as well as making Boston a welcoming city for immigrants in general.
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Dec 16, 2013
Thanks to a group of generous Boston-based artists, the Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti (IJDH) will hold an online Haitian art auction beginning January 10, 2014.
The Andrew Square-based IJDH helps individual Haitians enforce their basic rights—in the courts, in police stations, and on the streets—in ways that force the justice system to work better for all Haitians. The featured artists all hail from Haiti and include Boston Haitian artists Charlot Lucien, Colette Brésilla, Renold Laurent, and Fritz Duchiene. The auction also features a self-portrait by up-and-coming artist, Mathieu Jeanbaptiste.
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Aug 22, 2013
East Boston is in the pole position when it comes to reaping jobs and vendor contracts from a proposed resort casino at Suffolk Downs. Read more
Aug 22, 2013
UNITED NATIONS — Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon recommended a 15 percent reduction in the number of U.N. Read more
Jun 21, 2013
On Saturday, the Dorchester Arts Collaborative (DAC) welcomes the public beginning at 11 a.m. to the daylong grand opening of the Erick Jean Center for the Arts. The EJCA is a 1200 sq. Read more
Jun 14, 2013
Sen. Linda Dorcena Forry, introduced by Senate President Therese Murray as "another Dorchester girl," joined the Upper Chamber just after 2 p.m. Thursday after being sworn in by Gov. Deval Patrick.
"There is work we are going to do together," a jubilant Dorcena Forry said in remarks from the Senate rostrum.
Dorcena Forry called for her colleagues to work together and to rise above politics and campaigning, and described Murray, a Plymouth Democrat with Dorchester roots, as "an inspiration to me."
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May 8, 2013
US Marshals are teaming up with Boston Police to find a Dorchester man who has been on the run since he allegedly murdered two sisters in their Harlem Street apartment in Nov. 2011. The United States Marshals Service is offering a reward for tips that will lead to the capture and successful prosecution of 32 year-old Jean Weevens Janvier, a naturalized US citizen who was born in Haiti and who is the only suspect in the killings of Stephanie and Judith Emile.
Janvier was indicted in the double murder by a Suffolk County Grand Jury last April. Prosecutors said that Janvier had been in a previous romantic relationship with Stephanie Emile, 21, who was found shot to death alongside her sister, Judith, 23, in their Harlem Street apartment on Nov. 14, 2011. When police responded, a toddler was found in the apartment with the two deceased sisters.
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May 2, 2013
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State Rep. Linda Dorcena Forry of Dorchester hardly flinched in the mid-evening hours of Tuesday as The Boston Globe and the Associated Press were reporting that state Rep. Nick Collins, her opponent from South Boston, would win the Democratic nomination in the special election to represent the First Suffolk District in the state Senate. Despite those calls by the local media, all the ballots in 77 precincts across South Boston, Dorchester, Mattapan, and parts of Hyde Park had not yet been counted, and when the unofficial results were posted a few hours later, it was Dorcena Forry who was on top, by 378 votes out of 21,730 cast. See a precinct-by-precinct breakdown of the election returns (PDF). Read more Apr 23, 2013
A 30 year-old Mattapan mother is among the victims recovering from a terrible injury sustained in Monday's terror attack on Boylston Street. Read more