For those of you who don’t know, the Haitian flag has long been a symbol of pride for Haiti. Haitian Flag Day, which is TODAY, May18th, is all about celebrating the culture and heritage of the Haitian flag. The flag encompasses the country’s coat of arms and the colors red and blue, which were adopted from the French flag. Haiti gained its independence from a colonial rule in 1804, making it the first country in Latin America and the Caribbean to do so. Haiti also is the second republic to defeat a European colonial power in the Americas. And as you can imagine, this was a big step for the country as a whole!

Haitian Flag Day events take place not only in HAITI but in the US too! It is a call to celebrate, no matter where you are. It is all about good food and music; KOMPA, to be exact. I remember being younger and not being able to wait for the food to be done as I watched my aunts and uncles dance the night away drinking BABAKU.

The Haitian flag as it’s known today, first came into use in 1806. The story behind the flag’s red-and-blue backdrop involves Haitian leader, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, a critical visionary in the Haitian Revolution against France. Dessalines removed the white in the French flag to symbolize an end to white european influence. And the blue is said to represent the former African slaves, who were brought to Haiti by the country’s colonial rulers. The red stands for people of mixed ancestry.

Tragedy is no foreigner to the small Caribbean country called Haiti. Countless natural disasters as well as social ills caused from poverty and political instability are very much a part of the country’s fabric. Port-au-Prince was the center of a devastating earthquake in 2010 that killed hundreds of thousands of Haitians. This was a crazy time for me. Daily, as I found out about more and more family members and loved ones whose lives were taken.

Since then, HAITI has been on the rise and is still growing. It has also been deemed a must see destination. I, personally, have not been to Haiti, which sounds crazy I know; being of HAITIAN decent, but makes all the sense when you think about timing. However, my dad is currently opening a bakery in the city that will distribute bread better known as (PAN) to the whole country. I respect his action in bringing sustainablity to the country as well as keeping the heritage alive because their is no bread in the world like Haitian bread!!!! If you have never had it, I would highly suggest you get some friends that can take you or become really good friends with google!!

I wish you the best on your search and HAPPY HAITIAN FLAG DAY.

Signing Off!
Tasha Bouè