{"id":7231,"date":"2022-12-21T05:31:23","date_gmt":"2022-12-21T10:31:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/haiti-observateur.ca\/?p=7231"},"modified":"2022-12-21T05:31:23","modified_gmt":"2022-12-21T10:31:23","slug":"a-call-to-the-haitian-diaspora-as-architects-of-change-in-haiti-by-ralph-roh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/haiti-observateur.ca\/?p=7231","title":{"rendered":"A Call to the Haitian Diaspora as Architects of Change in Haiti by Ralph Roh"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Call to the Haitian Diaspora as Architects of Change in Haiti<\/strong><\/span>
\nA young Haitian gave a riveting speech to a limited audience that I believe Haitians, especially in the far-<\/span>flung Diaspora, must hear. Ralf Roh, 40, believes that change for a new Haiti rests with its daughters and <\/span>sons abroad. Thus, when he was invited to address the Georgia Haitian-American Chamber of Commerce <\/span>which, each year, organizes a gala to raise funds for High School graduates entering College or <\/span>University, he called on all \u201cto get involved\u201d for that change to occur.<\/span><\/p>\n

Thinking that Jovenel Mo\u00efse may have been an instrument for that change, he was very active in the <\/span>candidate\u2019s campaign for the presidency, and worked in his administration for two years, advising the <\/span>president on social issues and communication. He resigned December 2018, due to \u201cincompatibility\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

with the administration. Since then, he told me \u201cI committed the rest of my life to Haiti,\u201d to bring change <\/span>in Haiti in his lifetime.<\/span>
\nHis sincerity and dedication touched me, and I feel many more should listen attentively to that speech of <\/span>August 7, 2021 which, unplanned, was delivered exactly one month, to the day, following the horrible <\/span>assassination of President Mo\u00efse. Thus, the mention in the speech, as he noted, \u201cthe assassination of a <\/span>head of state is enough to shock our conscience into creating a new national order. . . .\u201d I offer you the <\/span>full speech, which I consider to be a convincing call to action.<\/span>
\nRaymond A. Joseph<\/span><\/p>\n

Ralf Roh, at the podium at the Gathering Spot in Atlanta<\/span>
\nDistinguised guests, Distinguished guests,<\/span>
\nMembers of the Chamber, Members of the Chamber,<\/span>
\nand my dear future Leaders,<\/span>
\nGood evening.<\/span><\/p>\n

Every year, the Georgia Haitian-American Chamber of Commerce gathers in a similar room to deliver a <\/span>state of affairs, to express its activism, and to embolden the next generation of leaders such that our <\/span>homeland, Haiti, becomes a developed nation in our lifetime.<\/span><\/p>\n

I stand here tonight, filled with bright optimism, to acknowledge that the work you all have been doing in <\/span>the diaspora, in your communities, on behalf of Haiti is inspiring!<\/span><\/p>\n

When the evidence of your misfortunes seemed vast and stretched over a long period, you have dispelled <\/span>the paralyzing myths and rebuilt a good life abroad, matured into a generation who refused to accept <\/span>drawbacks as your children\u2019s inheritance.<\/span><\/p>\n

You have tackled life ambitiously, set high goals for yourselves and your families. The race relations and <\/span>the culture shock you experienced on foreign shores often made for a difficult integration, but through <\/span>resilience you assimilated anyway in order to break economic barriers; though never being disconnected <\/span>from our cultural identity.<\/span><\/p>\n

You have remained true to our \u201cgriot and pikliz\u201d as much to our ideals of education and pushing your <\/span>children to be better than yourselves.<\/span>
\nYou have always worked hard, daring to want more and always giving back.<\/span><\/p>\n

Your leadership continued to transcend Haiti to impact the diaspora, working to promote the framework <\/span>and policies for our people to empower themselves, to encourage interactions with business associations, <\/span>religious groups and trade unions.<\/span><\/p>\n

The future of Haiti depends on its Diaspora <\/span>Our diaspora network is now endorsed with the widening of visions for Haiti to be rebuilt, to grow and be<\/span>
\nmade greater, as our posterity may keep through many years the ideals that will restore a better country; <\/span>for that generations of our leaders be armed with not only the intelligence but the courage to be bold, <\/span>while avoiding the excesses of idealism and the conveniences of opportunism to forever move Haiti <\/span>forward in moderation, harmony and prosperity.<\/span><\/p>\n

There is no more denying that the meaningful solutions, like delivering vital public services, driving <\/span>economic growth and articulating calls for greater democracy and human development \u2014 all rest with <\/span>us; they lie in tapping the vital resource that we, the diaspora, represent to Haiti.<\/span>
\nThis year, we must stand braver than before, as we all agree to embark with a more ambitious pledge to <\/span>ourselves and to our posterity: the pledge to vindicate the honor of the homeland, as we bound together in <\/span>a permanent union as a diaspora, a union superior to the control of all foreign force or influence, a union <\/span>that can always order the terms of our existence. So, we can rebuild a prosperous Haiti dedicated to the <\/span>mighty proposition that united, we are stronger, a better Haiti that assumes its rightful place among <\/span>nations with a new era of greatness that commands us through centuries of leadership in the world.<\/span><\/p>\n

To the pessimists out there, who proclaim that we are too fragmented as a diaspora to be effective.<\/span>
\nTo those same cynics who are predisposed in keeping us jammed up in the culture of small thinking, in <\/span>business initiatives that function only as informal operations\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

For the perpetual doubters who continue to find a problem in every proposed solution, blocking our <\/span>remittances from funding sustainable sectors of Haiti\u2019s economy\u2026<\/span>
\nToday we\u2019ve got news for them: the diaspora is coming through; we are getting involved. We know our <\/span>worth, we know our place, our time is now.<\/span>
\nThe time has come, for the total inclusion of the diaspora; for us to access the real strength of our <\/span>community.<\/span>
\nOur generations of educated and highly skilled human capital can be harnessed into a major source of <\/span>development financing, a partner for long-term trade and investment.<\/span><\/p>\n

To all out there: Get Involved<\/span>
\nTherefore, let us get involved!<\/span><\/p>\n

The money we send back home only to import rice from Arkansas can be used to address our <\/span>shortcomings in agricultural and economic infrastructures, we can and we should grow our own food.<\/span>
\nLet us get involved!<\/span><\/p>\n

Our engineers can manage developments\/improvements of water, sewer and stormwater systems to <\/span>enable our cities and metropolitan areas to function as centers of commerce, industry, entertainment and <\/span>human habitation.<\/span>
\nLet us get involved!<\/span><\/p>\n

Our many talented physicians, nurses and medical staffers, can transform Haiti into a center of affordable <\/span>health tourism with state-of-the-art information infrastructure that expands beyond the concept of <\/span>treatment to preventative care.<\/span>
\nLet us get involved!<\/span><\/p>\n

Our university professors, PhD holders, can help rebuild a world-class public education system, \u2014 one <\/span>that is advanced, progressive and responsive to the needs of Haiti and the global economy.<\/span>
\nLet us get involved!<\/span><\/p>\n

Our many investment bankers and financial advisors working to advance Wall Street and other foreign <\/span>nations\u2019 economies, can help redesign banking infrastructure to provide all citizens and businesses with <\/span>access to a fully functional national credit system.<\/span>
\nLet us get involved!<\/span><\/p>\n

Our economists in the diaspora, they are enough to help Haiti ensure reasonable macroeconomic stability <\/span>through monetary policies that effectively manage inflation and interest rates.<\/span>
\nLet us get involved!<\/span><\/p>\n

Our young leaders and public servants can rejoin the homeland to ensure tranquility and justice in our <\/span>political process, for that our loud dissents no longer personify the frustrations and reverberations of <\/span>century-old iniquities, but be exercised in subordination to good order.<\/span>
\nLet us get involved!<\/span><\/p>\n

Our network of lawyers, judges, law enforcement retirees can oversee our police reform, strengthen the <\/span>fundamentals of justice and uphold the rule of law, so that our common liberty no longer constitutes our <\/span>demise.<\/span>
\nWe must get involved. We must participate.<\/span><\/p>\n

As we tirelessly work to secure due compensations of a stronger government, a vibrant economy on our <\/span>terms, and a more equitable society befitting of a working democracy, we too, as Haitians, invoke the <\/span>Creator\u2019s endowment of sacrosanct rights to promote the general welfare, sustain the prosperity of <\/span>commerce, protect human health and the environment, dedicating significant and continued investment in <\/span>shared infrastructure, vital resources to develop and empower our human capital for current and future <\/span>needs.<\/span><\/p>\n

Let this be our earnest Creed in our quest to secure endless and unmarred blessings of liberty, to direct <\/span>ourselves and our posterity to a boundless reality.<\/span><\/p>\n

Appeals to future leaders, to members of the Chamber \u2013indeed to all <\/span>And to you dear awardees, future leaders, always stand ready to answer the call of duty. As you transition, <\/span>this month, from high school to college, I urge you to never let the trials ahead subdue your aspirations; <\/span>never allow the discouragements to hold you back; more importantly, do not let intellectual formatting <\/span>ever override your passions \u2014 through your passions you will find your calling.<\/span><\/p>\n

And when you do embrace your mission, your purpose in this life, I encourage you to continuously reflect <\/span>on yourselves \u2014 reexamine your strengths, underline your characters, move beyond comfort zones, to <\/span>make impacts, to transform communities, to shake the world, also to reshape Haiti: out loud or in silence.<\/span>
\nHaiti needs you all!<\/span><\/p>\n

With the academic lights you shall receive, you must slowly remove the distances between men or <\/span>women. That is the leadership responsibilities you are pledging today as a covenant to be leaders in <\/span>communities, in businesses and in governments! Go live for the future of Haiti, steering every moment <\/span>toward a dream bigger than yourselves. Get involved! These are my wishes for you all.<\/span><\/p>\n

To you, dear members of the Chamber of Commerce and all its affiliates, there is an urgency, a moral <\/span>obligation to achieve a competitive economy and to transform Haiti into a new, empowered, emerging <\/span>force, a leader in innovation, environmental sustainability and socioeconomic justice.<\/span>
\nYou can transport the same creative economy here in Atlanta to the corners of Cap-Haitian, the carnivals <\/span>in Jacmel and the stretch of beaches in Aux Cayes.<\/span><\/p>\n

You can create and control your own eco-system through the BEL Initiative just like you want, bridging <\/span>Haiti with global commerce.<\/span>
\nYou can, we can, do all of this and more. Remember, we have a moral obligation to participate. Because <\/span>if we don\u2019t, the wrong ones will.<\/span>
\nWhile Haiti is in the midst of a dark time, know that better days lie ahead. The light and goodness in the <\/span>heart of a single Haitian, the prayers of a long-suffering mother, the loneliness of a widow or an orphan, <\/span>the grief of a young man who cannot find work, the hunger pains of a child who cannot eat, or the <\/span>assassination of a head of state is enough to shock our conscience into creating a new national order, a <\/span>torch of sincerity to pick up the pieces, renew Haiti\u2019s spirit and restore our dignity as a people.<\/span><\/p>\n

Our ancestors fought for a dream, they created a nation, shared a vision for successive generations, each <\/span>of us to continue to answer the call of service to protect and expand the torch of the nation\u2019s promises.<\/span><\/p>\n

As you depart from here tonight, if you retain anything, let it be to get involved. Yes, Get involved in the <\/span>political improvement, economic growth and social development of a brand-new Haiti, one that can no <\/span>longer be impeded by human agendas or threatened by the uncontrollable forces of nature.<\/span><\/p>\n

Let no one dissuade you of the belief that Haiti can change, that Haiti will change in our lifetime, and <\/span>that change will be on our own terms. We are launching this new and contagious wind of hope, to assert <\/span>firm control of the nation&#39;s destiny and to overturn the challenges that have plagued Haiti for decades. <\/span>Thank you very much everybody for your attention.<\/span>
\nGo get involved!<\/span>
\nMay God bless you all and the Republic of Haiti!<\/span><\/p>\n

publication from weekly Haiti-Observateur Vol. LII No.50 of december 21, 2022, P. 14, 15<\/b><\/p>\n

\n

Ha\u00efti-Observateur<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0ISSN: 1043-3783<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Call to the Haitian Diaspora as Architects of Change in Haiti A young Haitian gave a riveting speech to a limited audience that I believe Haitians, especially in the far-flung Diaspora, must hear. Ralf Roh, 40, believes that change… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7227,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,25,53],"tags":[222,606,1323,1495,2690],"class_list":["post-7231","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-anglais","category-haiti","category-usa","tag-architect","tag-chamber","tag-funds","tag-haiti-observateur","tag-ralph-roh"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/haiti-observateur.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7231","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/haiti-observateur.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/haiti-observateur.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/haiti-observateur.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/haiti-observateur.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7231"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/haiti-observateur.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7231\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/haiti-observateur.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/haiti-observateur.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7231"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/haiti-observateur.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7231"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/haiti-observateur.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7231"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}