HAITIAN BRIDGE ALLIANCE

On November 18, 1803, the Haitian Indigenous Army won the last major battle of the Haitian Revolution, the final part of the Revolution under Jean Jacques Dessalines’s leadership against Napoleon and the mighty French army. Today, Haitian Bridge Alliance honors the forefathers and foremothers of the Battle of Vertières, symbolizing the fight for liberty and dignity and abolishing slavery and ushering freedom for all people. #BatayVètyè #BattleOfVertieres

On Friday November 15th, the Haitian Bridge Alliance hosted a special Haiti Diaspora Celebration in collaboration with the White House Office of Public Engagement to highlight, honor and celebrate the contributions of Haitians in the United States. From Jean Baptiste Point Dusable the founding father of Chicago to Karen Jean-Pierre who is president Biden‘s press secretary. Haitian Bridge Alliance’s Executive Director, Guerline Jozef, captured the room with her speech, reaffirming her commitment to protecting Haitian immigrants. She stated that Haitian blood is, seeped into the ground and very fabric of the United States. Haitians hold positions in this very US capital, lead revolutions for freedom and have played a pivotal role in shaping the United States among other countries. The Haitian diaspora is powerful and Guerline’s words served as a powerful call to action, that now is not the time to stand down. Together we must continue to protect the human rights and dignity of all individuals seeking safety. ????

On Friday November 15th, the Haitian Bridge Alliance hosted this special Haiti Diaspora Celebration at the White House!! We collaborated with the Office of Public Engagement to honor and celebrate the contributions of Haiti and Haitians in the United States. Now more than ever, we need our community to be ready for the road ahead. We must stand united, proud, unapologetic, and unafraid against hate. The road ahead will not be easy but our community is strong because Haiti and our ancestors have ALWAYS been strong. ????????Ayiti Cheri ?Special thank you to Tamara Rodriguez of Island TV for their tremendous support in making this long overdue event a reality

HBA is excited to announce that our Executive Director, Guerline Jozef has been nominated to receive an award at the 2024 Haitian Impact Awards presented by @haitianspotlightla on Tuesday, December 10th, in Los Angeles! Join us in celebrating an unforgettable night of culture, excellence, and Haitian pride. Tickets are available for purchase at www.haitian-spotlight.com – we look forward to seeing you there!

This #VeteransDay we honor the courage, sacrifice, and dedication of all veterans, their familes and loved ones. We must also recognize that some veterans face deportation after completing their service.Today, HBA recognizes our heroes and the need to support all veterans after laying their life on the line — no matter what their immigration status is.

This is not the time to sit back. As we enter a new era, our immigrant communities need us to show up. The Haitian Bridge Alliance is not backing down. To everyone who has been with us, and believes in being on the right side of history — let’s get to work.

The Haitian Bridge Alliance team is here to stay and we are here to give everything we’ve got to protecting the dignity and lives of people seeking safety. The road ahead is heavy but we won’t back down. We need community more than ever. Anpil men chay pa lou. Many hands lighten the load.

The treatment of individuals detained at Torrance County Detention Facility reveals alarming gaps in data, which suggests racial disparities may exist. Using #FOIA, @immcouncil uncovered that ICE kept ethnicity data for only 4% of those detained at Torrance. This incomplete record-keeping raises serious concerns about transparency and accountability. The data further shows that ICE categorized 86% of individuals from 54 distinct nationalities as racially "white," even though many came from non-European countries. Shockingly, non-Europeans marked as "white" endured some of the longest detention times, with Yemenis facing detention periods nearly 700% longer than the average. These disparities were not discernable when looking solely at race. By grouping individuals by continent, the data showed Africans spent the longest time in detention, while Europeans were scarcely detained at Torrance. Our work seeks to expose these hidden patterns and advocate for fairer treatment of all immigrants. Read @immcouncil’s latest investigative report: https://lnkd.in/eG4zzXfa

Haitian Bridge Alliance’s client, Dieff-Son Lebon, told CNN journalist Omar Jimenez about some of the hostility growing in Springfield and he can feel the tension when just walking down the street. This is a result of the hateful rhetoric Trump and Vance had said in September and continued to say in October. Since filing criminal chargers against them, the Haitian Bridge Alliance has seen hateful actions towards Haitian individuals in Springfield as well as our staff. These hateful and dehumanizing narratives have long term consequences and the HBA team is determined to not late hate win.

What will be President Biden’s legacy on immigration? The number of people in detention centers more than doubled during his administration, despite his promise to shut down private detention facilities. With less than 4 months left in his term, President Biden can still take action and shut down private detention centers. #BidenLegacy