Interview with Althea (Vicki) Silvera, Archives and Special Collections department head at Florida International University. She was born in Jamaica on May 24th. She moved to the United States to attend college at the age of 18. Althea believes herself to be heavily influenced by her father and grandfather who were resilient and great story tellers. She majored in history and minored in education. Althea initially had plans to become a teacher, but after college went back to Jamaica and started her first job in the National Archives. She worked there for six years and got offered a position at UCLA. Althea worked for four years in California on NHPRC's Garvey Papers Project. Initially, she taught Caribbean literature at FIU but she then began working as the head of special collections and university archivist at Florida International University. Althea is responsible for the tremendous growth of the Caribbean collection and special collections at FIU. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Althea+%28Vicki%29+Silvera/0_ofsd6zbn/40983571 Interviewer: Lucrèce Louisdhon-Louinis Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:43:15 Outline by Kriti Sood
Thanks to a grant sponsored in part by the Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs, The Florida Council of Arts and Culture and the State of Florida, The University of Miami Special Collections conducted interviews with individual of Caribbean ancestry now living in Florida. Project Director: Beatrice Colastin Skokan, Manuscripts Librarian, University of Miami Libraries.
The Caribbean diaspora oral history collection documents and makes accessible the contributions of people of Caribbean ancestry who share stories of migration to the United States and the challenges inherent in such displacements. The 20 interviewees are from various countries from the Caribbean basin such as Columbia, Cuba, Ecuador, Haiti, Jamaica, Nicaragua, and Puerto Rico.
Carl Juste is a Haitian-Cuban-American photojournalist who grew up in New York and moved to Miami with his family as a child. He is the son of Haitian-American community leader Viter Juste. Carl Juste is a graduate of the University of Miami’s School of Communication. He has traveled all over the world during his journalistic career. He settled in Miami and is a Pulitzer Prize winner working for the Miami Herald. In this interview, he discusses his upbringing with his very influential father, the burgeoning of the Little Haiti community, and his experience with other immigrants and racism. He also talks about his blended cultural identity with parents of Haitian and Cuban ancestry, his work for the Miami Herald, and the places he has travelled to take pictures. Finally, he discusses his book project, “Havana Haiti: Two cultures, One Community,” and the creation of the “Iris PhotoCollective” with other journalist who shared a concern over media depictions of communities of color. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Carl+Juste/0_gi6az8bb/40983571 Interviewer: Béatrice Skokan Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 01:16:06
Dr. Freddie Young is a retired principal and administrator of Miami-Dade County. She is of Bahamian descent. While working for the county, she also became an activist in Miami as well as all over the world. In this interview, Dr. Young talks about her experiences growing up in Coconut Grove, Florida and the sense of community that was prevalent during her childhood. Dr. Young speaks of her interest in education, her work as a principal and explains her reasons for remaining in the teaching profession. She also talks about her mission trips to Ghana and the various awards she has received throughout her life. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Dr.+Freddie+G.+Young/0_8mil8zli/40983571 Interviewer: Lucrèce Louisdhon-Louinis Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:36:38 Outline by Reymond Sanchez
Interview with Edouard Duval Carrié, painter and sculptor. He was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Edouard remained in Haiti until the age of nine. His family then immigrated to Puerto Rico, where he remained for nine years. He graduated from Loyola College in Montreal in 1978. Edouard has degrees in geography and urban planning. After college, Edouard moved back to Haiti for two to three years before he was invited by the French government to come to Paris. He stayed in Paris for about eight years before settling in Miami, with his wife and children. He opened his studio in Little Haiti. Edouard Duval Carrié’s artwork is imbued with Haitan culture. He tries to embody the spirit of Haiti and touches on topics such as politics, Vodou, struggle, and the Duvalier regime. This visual artist is best known for his magical realism. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Edouard+Duval+Carri%C3%A9/0_6i76idth/40983571 Interviewer: Lucrèce Louisdhon-Louinis Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 01:02:18 Outline by Kriti Sood
Interview with Elizabeth Baez, Puerto Rican Artist. Sh was born in Brooklyn, New York, she moved to Puerto Rico at the age of 12 and stayed there with her family for the next 4-5 years. She then moved back to Queens and received an Associate in Arts and Sciences for art and advertising design from New York City Technical College. She subsequently moved to Miami and currently resides there. Elizabeth continues to be an artist and an agent for change in the community. Her art is imbued with scenic and tropic views of Puerto Rico. Elizabeth incorporates storytelling into her pieces. In addition to being an artist, she is also involved in education and teaches art from preschool to 12th grade. Elizabeth is very active in community service as she is curator for silent auctions that benefit non-profit organizations; she is also on the Silver Angels Committee that benefits the Woman’s Cancer Association. She also serves as president of the National Conference of Puerto Rican Women. She has received many awards and recognitions such as the Humanitarian Award for outstanding community service. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Elizabeth+Baez/0_2wmc1y8g/40983571 Interviewer: Julio Estorino Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:29:13 Outline by Kriti Sood
Elizabeth Guérin, daughter of the famous Haitian writer, Mona Guérin, was very young when she launched her career in the arts and broadcasting industry. At the age of eight, she started performing in a weekly comedy for the Haitian TV, Tele Haiti. At the age of 10, she hosted a Sunday Show, written by her mother, on Radio Metropole, in Haiti. At the age of 15, she played 9 characters in “Roye! Les Voila”, the most popular Haitian radio soap opera in Port-au-Prine. The show lasted 18 years. Elizabeth’s academic background is in communication. Besides her Bachelor of Arts in Communication, she is an accomplished visual artist. She had the unique opportunity to study at the “Beaux Arts” program Port-au-Prince,Haiti. She was the youngest artist to enter into the “Centre d’art” of Haiti. Her first exhibit at the age of 14 was a great success. Additionally, Elizabeth spent seven years hosting different shows in Haiti at “Magic Stereo” radio station, then in Planet Kreyòl, where she was the programming director. During that time, Elizabeth also produced and hosted “A Découvert”, the first television talk show in Haiti, with a live audience. Her fans named her “The Haitian Oprah”. Elizabeth also became the Marketing and Programming Director at “Tele Timoun”, a Haitian Television station in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. After a long and thriving career in Haiti, Elizabeth relocated to Miami, where she started a radio show on “Radio Carnival”. She still hosts her show, Bonjour Haiti, on weekdays on “Radio Mega”. Also in Miami, in 2003, Elizabeth’s leadership skills helped launched HTN, the first 24-hour Haitian TV in the U.S. on Comcast. She was the Programming Director and also produced and hosted a TV show. She went on to produce a successful TV Sitcom in Miami titled “Les Frères Dyòlè”, as well as various educative Radio segments for the Diaspora. Since 2011, she has been hosting a community news TV show “What’s up Haitian!” on NBC Cozi TV along with her daughter, Christalie Parisot, and DJ Nickymix. In 2006, with her radio expertise, extensive knowledge of the Haitian market and keen business sense, Elizabeth created Imaginart Media Productions, LLC. Imaginart Media Productions is now a successful Marketing and Production Company based in Miami, providing services to various professionals, organizations and well-known national and international businesses in the United States, as well as the Caribbean. In this interview, she discusses her childhood as an actor as well as the influences of her mother, the writer, Mona Guerin. She also talks about her children and her experiences as a media personality in Miami and Haiti. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Elizabeth+Gu%C3%A9rin/0_bjkgmubp/40983571 Interviewer: Lucrèce Louisdhon-Louinis Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:48:44
Interview with Firelai Baez, artist. She was born in the Dominican Republic in 1981 of Dominican and Haitian parents. She immigrated to Miami at the age of nine. Firelei studied psychology in Miami Dade and received a BFA from Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York. Later, she received a MFA from Hunter College. Firelai’s work has been displayed in several museum exhibits and her work has been reviewed in many social platforms. She is a recipient of both the Jacques and Natasha Gelman Award in painting and the Joan Mitchel Painters and Sculptors Award. Firelai likes to incorporate themes of history and social causes into her work. She uses her matriarchal family influence to focus on the female human body in her art form. She works with papers and acrylics and works with motifs of embracing reality and cycles. Firelai emphasizes the global movement between the Caribbean and the United States. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Firelei+B%C3%A1ez/0_9lqu9qwy/40983571 Interviewer: Julio Estorino Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:37:34 Outline by Kriti Sood
Father Alejandro Lopez is an exiled Cuban priest who has dedicated himself to the service of the poor in Honduras. He founded and directs the San Jose Obrero Foundation, which has built schools, hospitals, factories, and trade institutes tha educate and empower poor families to become self-sufficient. Twice a year, he travels to Miami to collect old clothes and second hand appliances that he takes to Honduras to be repaired by his trade school students, which has turned ino a means of support for his charitable works. At odds many times with both Marxist guerrillas and corrupt military men, he remains deeply concerned with social justice and has never ceased be a "Cubanazo." Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Fr.+Alejandro+L%C3%B3pez/0_g5uily04/40983571 Interviewer: Julio Estorino Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:45:04
Francisco Portillo is a Honduran pro-immigrant activist. He is the founder and president of Organización Hondureña Francisco Morazán. He has led many battles in favor of fair treatment of immigrants in general, and is active in the pro-immigration reform movement in the United States. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Francisco+Portillo/0_lmyxzskk/40983571 Interviewer: Julio Estorino Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:39:55
Federico Uribe is a Colombian artist who now works in Miami. His artwork focuses mainly on taking everyday objects and intertwining or “recycling” them in imaginative ways. In this interview, he discusses his upbringing in Columbia, experiences in various Latin American countries such as Mexico, the process of creation and his life-long passion for art. He also talks about how he still spends an enormous amount of time in his studio and his experiences living all over the world. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Federico+Uribe/0_vdywk54s/40983571 Interviewer: Julio Estorino Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:36:31 Outline by Reymond Sanchez
Interview with Gepsie M. Metellus, the executive director and co-founder of the Haitian Neighborhood Center or Sant La in Miami. She was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti on April 27. She moved to New York when she was 12 years old and attended school there. Gepsie majored in French and Political Science at Queens College. When she was 23, she moved to Miami at the time of the issues of the Haitian boat people, Duvalier regime, and aids crisis. Gepsie did not start her organization immediately but did join the Haitian Refugee Center and other organizations that kept her rooted to Haiti. She worked with Miami Dade public schools for 10 years and went on to work for the Miami Dade County government. She left in 2001, and began to develop an organization to bridge the non-Haitian and Haitian community. She developed Sant La which focuses on education, advocacy of issues, and documentation. Gepsie is on the board of many organizations in the South Florida community and has won numerous awards for her efforts including the Woman of Impact award. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Gepsie+M.+Metellus/0_swmmi028/40983571 Interviewer: Lucrèce Louisdhon-Louinis Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:50:52 Outline by Kriti Sood
Interview with Lucy Canzoneri Golden, co-director of Coral Reef Montessori School. Lucy was born in Colombia, but grew up in Queens. She graduated in 1978 from high school and attended Hunter College in New York where she received her Bachelor of Arts in Theater Arts and Elementary Education. Lucy subsequently acquired a Masters of Science in Montessori Education from Barry University. Lucy taught in Harlem, New York for a two year time period. She then moved to Miami where she taught as a drama and English-as-a-second language teacher in a Title 1 program. She continued to teach in a Title 1 school for six years. Between 1996 and 1998 she founded the Coral Reef Montessori charter school. She is a Buddhist. Her work also includes promoting global citizenship and engagement in social issues. Lucy endeavors to include diversity in her school and incorporate original ideas for the children. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Lucy+Canzoneri-Golden/0_9chmjh49/40983571 Interviewer: Lucrèce Louisdhon-Louinis Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:29:13 Outline by Kriti Sood
Interview with María Rodriguez, Executive Director of Florida Immigrant Coalition (FLIC). María was born in Kansas and brought up in Puerto Rico. María describes her background as bi-cultural; her father was from the Dominican Republic and her mother from the United States. She attended Academia de Ignacio and Academia María Reina for some time. Her family immigrated to the United States, where she studied at Georgetown University. She founded the Florida Immigrant Coalition (FLIC) and is a coalition builder. She works with many issues and problems such as wage theft, racial justice issues, worker movements, poverty work, and public health coverage. She additionally does defense work at local, state, and federal levels. María is a board member for several organizations and programs such as the Florida New Majority, The ACLU of Florida, and the World Foundation Board in New York and the Highlander Center in Tennessee. She has also received prestigious awards such as the Cesar Chavez Community Hero Award from the White House. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Mar%C3%ADa+Rodriguez/0_ldlz7y5b/40983571 Interviewer: Lucrèce Louisdhon-Louinis Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:47:44 Outline by Kriti Sood
Interview with Marlon Hill, international corporate and transactional attorney. He was born in Kingston, Jamaica on May 26, 1971. He grew up in Jamaica and received a Jesuit secondary education. Marlon moved to Miami in the summer of 1985. He attended Miami Southridge high school and always kept an interest in geography, social studies and international affairs. Marlon went on to attend Florida State University where he majored in international business and minored in Spanish. After his undergraduate years, he attended law school and when he started his first law practice, he worked part time at FIU studying international trade analysis and immigration law. Marlon worked with the Adorno and Zeder law offices. He initially specialized in appeals, but later moved to corporate law. As a transactions lawyer, he dealt with many fields including hospitality and even the entertainment industry. Marlon is passionate about mentorship and is involved in many civic professional community organizations. He is a current board member of the Miami Foundation, Miami Parking Authority, Miami Book Fair, and Orange Bowl Committee. He is also involved in the Caribbean Bar Association and continues to be an advisor for the Caribbean Students Association at FSU. He believes in acclimation, assimilation, and integration for civic engagement and uses a radio talk show to help execute this. He is currently a vice chair and partner with the law firm of Hamilton Miller and Birthisel. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Marlon+Hill/0_y9ajrsro/40983571 Interviewer: Julio Estorino Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:33:35 Outline by Kriti Sood
Nixon St-Hubert, known as Nickymix, artist name that he inherited from his fans since the age of 14, started his career as a Disc Jockey in his neighborhood in Delmas, Haiti. He quickly transitioned into the Mass Communication world. During his studies, he got his first job in the Medias as a DJ and Technician at Radio Magik Stereo. His talent and great voice were quickly noticed, which led him to become a Prime Time Music TV Show Host on “Tele Timoun”, one of the most powerful television stations of Haiti. Simultaneously, he was one of Radio Planet Creole’s stars. With his radio show, Nickymix has extensively contributed to the success of Haitian Rap Creole, which was rarely played on Haitian Radios. The show was very successful and became the source of the most popular music among young Haitians. Every afternoon, during his show, his fans lined up in front of the radio station to support their idol. In 2001, Nickymix joined his family in Boston, an event that was heartbreaking to many of his fans in Haiti. However, once again, Nickymix got back on the Radio. Boston being too calm for him, he soon relocated to Miami, and due to his celebrity in Haiti, many doors opened for him in the Haitian community in South Florida, where he became a host for Radio Carnivale, the first Haitian Radio Station in the United States, and a TV host for HTN, also the first Haitian TV Station in the United States. On HTN, Nickymix’s entertainment show “Connection Live” he and his guests have live chats covering a multiplicity of topics that are of interest to the community, every night on Prime time. Nickymix has become one of the most famous Haitian DJs of the Diaspora; he is present at all the major Haitian Music Festivals, and is often sough after by the Haitian communities in New York, Boston, Canada, and the Caribbean. He has also appeared in the cinema world in the well-known Haitian film “Café au Lait” and the TV series “Les Frères Dyòlè”. Meanwhile, Nickymix developed aninterest in the technical part of television production. He learned filming and editing, and created, alongside his longtime colleague Elizabeth Guérin, Imaginart Media Productions, a marketing and production company specialized in the Haitian market. Nickymix has become a specialist in commercial writing, and has produced educational and entertainment shows. Radio Carnivale became Radio Mega and HTN became Tropik Network. Nickymix is still very devoted to his Radio Morning Show “Bonjour Haiti” on Radio Mega WJCC 1700 AM, produces his TV Show “Online”, and hosts “What’s Up Haitian” on Tropik Network. In this interview, he discusses his work as a DJ and producing music for the Haitian community. He also talks about his endeavors later in his life which include filming, editing, and commercial writing. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Nixon+St-Hubert+%28DJ+Nickymix%29/0_9xut4k9e/40983571 Interviewer: Lucrèce Louisdhon-Louinis Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:50:16
Nora Sandigo is a community activist, co-founder of Fraternidad Nicaragüense (1989), and current director of American Fraternity. She promotes pro-amnesty campaigns, lobbies for immigration reform at the U.S. Congress, State Department, and the White House at the federal level, and at different government entities at state and local levels. She was instrumental in the approval of the Nacara Law, which benefited hundreds of thousands of Centroamericans and Cubans in the United States. She is the foster mother and legal representative of about 1,000 Centroamerican children separated from their parents who were deported back to their countries of origin. In 2007, she filed a suit against President George W. Bush representing those children. The recipient of many humanitarian awards, she was one of the People´s "Heroes of People Magazine". Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Nora+Sandigo/0_0bb93dnc/40983571 Interviewer: Julio Estorino Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:55:47
Patricia Sowers is an American of Cuban descent who is now a retired teacher. As an adult, she worked as a social worker with Cuban refugees and for disability services for the city of Coral Gables. In this interview, she discusses her upbringing in the United States, her visits to Cuba as a child, as well as the founding of her non-profit organization Warmamas while her son was serving in the Middle East. In addition, she reflects on how being a part of two cultures helped shaped her while also sharing her interest in artistry, writing stories and poetry in her spare time. Link: https://umiami.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Interview+with+Patricia+Sowers/0_cu2q13rf/40983571 Interviewer: Julio Estorino Recorded by Javier Carrion Length: 00:35:16 Outline by Reymond Sanchez
