HAITI: Performing in the camps

We also presented an entertaining and uplifting show for the camp communities.  It's called The Flying Head!  Based on an Native American folk tale, it's a show about a village that is terrorized by a horrible monster and one woman who stands up and rallies the community together to defeat it.  The "monster" is made out of blue tarp and plastic bags and looks quite silly.  The whole show is silly, but with an underlying message of hope and resilience in the face of diversity as long as you take personal responsibility to find a solution and come together as a community. 

My favorite performance, I have to say, was at a little school in Jacmel, where the students jumped up and down screaming with excitement at our antics!  It was amazing! This happened whenever we did any of our acrobatic tricks and they went wild when Morlon launched into his sprightly slapstick silliness.  It was such a surprise visit (arranged very suddenly and last minute), and I have a feeling they had never seen anything like it before in their lives!

We performed and did workshops with the kids in about five different camps in the Port-au-Prince area:  Camp Matissant, Camp Bobin and Bristout, Camp Jean-Marie Vincent; and also Camp Pinchinat in Jacmel.

One of the first camps we visited was Camp Pinchinat.   Although in most camps I have seen people live in fairly small tents or just tarps hung over some sticks, in this camp there were large green military tents but each tent apparently houses up to five families!  Crammed together in this space, there is no privacy whatsoever.  There have been a lot of problems and a lot of tension in the camp.

We walk through the camp,  and a woman sitting outside of her tent spots us and shouts out from twenty feet away, "I am hungry, give me money!"  A strong sense of dependency and entitlement has set in.  You are a foreigner, you are rich, give me.  A foreigner in the camp is associated with material aid.  Certainly no one expects a foreigner to come into the camp just to play!

As we walk down the path, I see a little girl come running towards us with outstretched arms, full of excitement.  She runs straight up to me and throws her arms around me!  Then she continues on with us, holding my hand.  So many of the children climb up in our arms, clinging to us and not wanting to let go.  There is such an apparent need for love and attention.

  

More notes on our camp experiences to follow....

HAITI: To be continued!

We're already fast at work to make it possible to return and continue our work with FAVILEK.  To work on their new show about women's experiences in the aftermath of the earthquake.

I joke with them that I'll call up Obama and drum up some support, he'll make it happen.  We'll perform at the White House together!  At this there's laughter and excitement and applause, and suddenly they all launch into an Obama song:  "Obama, Obama, si ca fait la pluie ou bon temps!"  Basically, "Obama, in good or bad times!"  Meaning Obama is there for us and will take care of things.  If only!

Seriously, we wish to continue working together and we at Bond Street Theatre will work hard to find the support to bring FAVILEK to the United States to present their show here, and all over the world.  Bond Street did it with the Exile Theatre from Afghanistan, we can do it with the women of FAVILEK, too.

We are really excited about the prospect of our continued collaboration.

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We feel so much stronger now!

Working with the women of FAVILEK has been amazing.  On the first day of workshop, Sylvie, an older woman, comes up to me when she arrives and gives me a big kiss on each cheek.  Such joy and spirit and love!  There is a sense of great enthusiasm and excitement for our work together.

In the midst of all the playfulness, it's easy to forget that these women are not young spring chickens, and that they have endured a lifetime of intense hardship.  Little by little, tidbits of their traumatic past come to the fore.  Suddenly, Suzette excuses herself from an exercise because her knees hurt.  But it's not because she is getting old or out of shape.  No, she happens to have bullets lodged in her knee from being shot during the coup back in the 90's!  She proceeds to pull down her pants and show me the deep scars on her hip from her other bullet wounds.  Many of the women have scars, I notice.  Maricia injured her arm in the earthquake, and now there's a big chunk missing in her bicep.  She hesitates to do certain exercises, but we suggest adjustments and she sees she can still participate -- and then she goes for it with gusto! 

Maricia triumphs on top

We start the workshops off with warm-up games for fun and play and energy.  We do trust exercises such as leading a blind partner, running blindly into another's arms with all your might, and letting yourself fall trusting that the group is there to catch you.  Not only are these 15 artist members of FAVILEK learning to strengthen their core ensemble as a theater group, but they have committed to share this training with other women and girls in their own sessions.  So we try to include creative exercises that are useful for psychosocial support, to build self-esteem, confidence and empowerment, as well as for theatrical work.  We explore physical and emotional expression through mime and movement play and we do simple acrobatics, too.

But mostly, we work a lot on focus and cohesion as an ensemble.  We have everyone walk around within a designated space focusing on being aware of themselves, the space and each other.  We then work on choreographic movement and on moving together as a chorus.  First, the women are scattered and unfocused and all over the place.  There is no purpose to their movement or engagement.  But then a beautiful transformation takes place as they start to develop a shared sensitivity with the ability to create powerful images together.  Christina described it this way:  "imagine the transformation of 15 individuals walking around like psych wards patients in nonsensical circles within a square on the floor to 15 empowered, strong women who command the space and move as one."  Well, it's an apt description in a way.  And the women felt the difference.  

At the end of our three and a half days of workshops, we sit down together in a circle to talk about the experience.  How do you feel now, what did you gain, what did you enjoy?  They exclaim: "We feel so much stronger now!"  Individually, and as an ensemble.  Now we feel like we can do anything.  Merina, who's quite the spitfire, tells us how here in Haiti things can get dangerous, there are demonstrations and shootings, and now we are strong to run and to fight!  Wow.

Grandma Sylvie, the eldest, walks up to me and puts her arms around my hips and lifts me up.  And she can easily!  As if to demonstrate her newfound strength.  And then she cradles me like a baby and sings to me.  She then goes to Josh to lift him (and Josh is a big guy), and she probably would have done it, but Josh preempts her action and swings her up in his arms instead.  And after that they dance.

"Voulez-vous danser? Oui, danser!" I discovered last time I was in Haiti how much people like to sing and dance, and Favilek is no different.  So I introduce this little dancing game I learned from the gals in Grande Goave.  And we had a blast with that.  "Alors, fais comme ca!"

Then the women teach me and Christina a song from their last show, which was really beautiful, and sad.  But at least it ends on an upbeat note with "la vie est belle" or "life is beautiful."

x

Get up, Stand Up! Take action!

"Why do you do theater?," I ask  Bazelais, the leader of FAVILEK.  She tells me: "Pour nous faire passer notre sensations de ce que nous avons subi."  That is, to have an outlet for our feelings of what we have endured.

In our first meeting together, the women speak to us about their experiences and about their expectations and dreams for the future and for our work together.   

"What we have experienced is very difficult.  We want to show others in other countries.  We want to go there in person and present our experience to them [not by video, not by disconnected reports, but live in the flesh, human to human] -- ourselves, our bodies, our faces, our emotions.  People cry when they see our performance."

They want people to know, to feel, and to take action and help change the situation.

FAVILEK has tried to reach out to the authorities, national and international, through regular avenues of communication to bring attention to the situation of women in Haiti, but to not avail.  There is a great disconnect between the talking heads of the government and the UN, and the people.  A lot of lofty talk and little action.  Who is really listening to what the Haitian people have to say? And especially Haitian women.  They do not feel their voices are heard.  And this is why FAVILEK is doing theater.  As a way to have a voice, to express themselves, to reach out and be heard. 

And so at the end of the 1990’s, they created a theater piece to speak out about their suffering as victims of political sexual violence called “Ochan pou tout fanm yo bliye” or “Tribute to all forgotten women, which they toured all over Haiti. 

Now the women of FAVILEK want to create a new theater piece about the earthquake and its aftermath. 

FAVILEK would like us to help them come to the United States and present their show. We would love to!  And we can do it!  But first we are here in Haiti and let’s see what we can do together here to start off.  We propose to do workshops in which we will share tools and techniques, different theatrical exercises that can empower their work.  Does this interest you?  Yes!  We will share what we know, and you can share with us your experience.  You can teach us your songs.  At this there is great excitement and clapping.  This is what we propose, but what is important is that you tell us what you need, what you would like from us, we are here for you, to help facilitate your work. 

So it is agreed we will begin with workshops and then continue on to work on their new show. 

 Our collaboration with FAVILEK is faciliated by Bureaux des Avocats Internationaux.  BAI is the Haiti-based affiliate of the Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti, which fights for the human rights of Haiti’s poor.  BAI is working to empower womens’ organizations such as FAVILEK to advocate for victims’ rights, to help report cases and pursue justice.  For more information, go to: http://ijdh.org/about/bai. 

KOFAVIV is another women’s group helping victims, with whom we are hoping to collaborate.  KOFAVIV stands for Komisyon Fanm Viktim Pou Viktim: Women’s Commission of Victims for Victims.  Both FAVILEK and KOFAVIV were started by women who were victims of rape and assault in the political unrest that followed the 1991 coup.  These women are determined to make a change and are fighting tirelessly. 

The two organizations reach out to the women in the camps and help them get medical assistance, offer counseling for psychological support, help victims report their cases to the authorities and fight to get the perpetrators prosecuted.

When we first connected with FAVILEK, we expressed interest in going into the camps directly to work with the women there.  But as Annie Gell, our partner at BAI, tells us: "With the current volatile situation and general resource-poor conditions in the camps, KOFAVIV and FAVILEK will not be able to commit to accompanying your group into camps at this time.  FAVILEK in particular has expressed concern that bringing a troupe into certain camps would put FAVILEK members at risk because they will then be seen as having access to resources, making them greater targets for violence or theft."

Most support meetings take place outside of the camps because of the sensitive nature of the work and the risk of retaliation.

We are doing our workshops in the courtyard of Heartland Alliance, an NGO providing resources and support to several local grassroots groups, such as FAVILEK.

The heart of the matter

Our main focus in Haiti is to work with a woman's group to contribute to their efforts to combat the alarming rise of gender-based violence, i.e., rape and assault against women. 

Sexual violence has long been a serious issue in Haiti.  Rape was not officially criminalized until 2005 (yes, you read that right, 2005!).  Before that it was apparently only a crime if you were a virgin.  Rape and sexual assault have a long history of being used as a weapon of terror during political repression in Haiti.  To get a further idea, take a look at these two reports:  Rape in Haiti: A Weapon of Terror

In Haiti's chaos, unpunished rape was norm

Assaults have increased at an alarming rate in the chaos following the earthquake, especially in the tent camps where thousands of people are crammed together in increasingly volatile conditions.  Gangs of armed men roam the camps.  Most of the rapes occur at night when girls have to walk through the camp in the dark to go to the toilet.  The makeshift shelters themselves are vulnerable -- a tent or a tarp slung over some sticks does not prevent an attacker from entering.

Few victims report their assault because they fear it will further endanger them and their families, as there is little likelihood of their attacker getting caught and they risk retaliation.  

Girls as young as three or four have been raped, and (incomprehensibly) even younger. The perpetrators do not discriminate.  A 58-year old woman tried to intervene and was herself then raped by several men who pistol-whipped her and fired their guns in the air, warning anyone against trying to stop them or against reporting to the authorities.

These men act with impunity.  Because they can. 

But who rapes a three-year old?  Who are these men?!

Does humanity completely evaporate in circumstances of severe crisis? 

Where are the good men?  Clearly, the majority of Haitian men do not engage in these horrid actions.  But enough of them seem to that it appears to have become epidemic. 

It is our goal to reach out to the male population as well to explore positive outlets to express frustration.  Some thugs are just rotten eggs, and the problem is that the prisons collapsed in the earthquake and thousands of convicts escaped and are now infiltrating the camps.  But many young men are simply discouraged and lost and have potential to be good young leaders – let’s reach them before the gangs get to them! 

What is ultimately needed in order for the situation to improve for women in Haiti is a change of attitude.  There is a deep-seated culture of blaming and shaming the victim when it comes to sexual assault in Haiti.  This is of course not exclusive to Haiti, unfortunately it's the tendency all over the world (including the United States, where I thought we had moved way beyond this mentality, but judging by the recent case of a gang-rape of an 11-year old in Texas and the community's subsequent response, I was clearly mistaken). 

In my research leading up to our project, I've come across so many stories of young girls in Haiti who have been raped and subsequently told by the doctor or by the police that it was their own fault, because they wore a short skirt or had a big behind or in some other way must have 'invited' the assault.  Girls have resorted to wearing several pairs of jeans under their skirts to make it more difficult for any attackers.  Sometimes a girl who reports her rape will be victimized again by the police, because, well, if she just got raped, then she's a slut. It's horrific. No wonder no woman dares turn to the authorities.  

Many of these women who have survived sexual assault are at risk of being victimized multiple times, and it runs across generations -- grandmothers, mothers and daughters.  You have no sense of safety, because you know it might happen again.  And there's nothing that can be done.  There's no police, there's no authority, there's nowhere to go.

Exacerbating the situation is the fact that aid organizations have stopped food aid to the camps.  They don't want to create dependency and undermine the revival of the local market. Haiti needs to find its way back to a thriving community of commerce and self-sufficiency.  Yes, this is true, this is a problem, but the fact is the people in the camps still need the help and desperately so.  You can't just cut them off cold turkey!

The result is that many girls and women have been forced to trade sex for food in order to survive.   In fact, I've heard stories of aid workers demanding sex in return for the help they are giving out!

Sources of further reading, if what I have said here hasn't outraged you enough:

Our Bodies Are Still Trembling

Rape on the Rise in Haiti's Camps

Rape in Haiti: Women, Girls Detail Violent Attacks in Aftermath of Earthquake

Aftershocks: Welcome to Haiti's Reconstruction Hell

Amnesty International: Haiti-Sexual Violence Increasing


I recommend this video: Amnesty Int'l: Women Speak Out Against Rape

But not all is lost. There are groups of women who have banded together to fight for justice and take positive steps to effect change.  One such group is FAVILEK, which stands for Women Victims Get Up Stand Up!

And the way they want to fight is through the forum of theater!  To get up, stand up on the stage and speak out for the world to hear.

Port-au-Prince

So we arrive in Port-au-Prince and we actually don't even know where we're gonna stay!  We were supposed to lodge with someone in a private house on Delma 75 but there was a bit of a snafu with the arrangements.  Luckily, we eventually found a nice and simple little hotel right near where our partner BAI is located -- the Bureaux des Avocats Internationaux, which is facilitating our partnership with the women's groups.  Convenient.   

And as it turns out the space where we end up holding our workshops -- the Heartland Alliance -- is not too far away either.  So we decide to just stay at the hotel for the whole time.  It’s not cheap, but it could be worse.  We get a deal from the hotel manager, Reggie, our new friend.  And it’s very central on avenue Lalue.  In fact, we can even walk to our workshop space, which we do a couple of times. But usually we take a cheap and local taxi ride.  

Port-au-Prince is not as dangerous to us as I had come to expect from news reports and other accounts.  We had thought we had to hire a driver and a car in order to get around, which is really expensive (most everything is quite expensive actually in Haiti, especially transportation and accommodation due to price gouging of short supply and high demand... and the presence of lots of rich foreign aid workers).  We end up not hiring a driver and just relying on walking or taxi.  I always prefer to travel locally anyway if possible.

We have an easier time because we have trusty Morlon with us, our Haitian team member!  I met Morlon last September when I was in Grande Goave with Clowns Without Borders.  He was one of our trainers in the workshop we did, and he was so great that I immediately thought of him as we prepared this project -- why not have him join us!  So he's performing in our show with us and co-teaching workshops.  And, of course, translating.

With Morlon leading the way we can safely walk around most anywhere, although not everywhere.  And of course he negotiates with the taxi driver for us, since our Kreyol is not so good.   I speak French, which most Haitians do as well, but not all.

In the beginning, especially the couple of days before Morlon joined us, I did most of the communicating for the group.  So I would order dinner for Josh and Christina.  What's funny with this is that everyone assumes Josh is Haitian (because he's black) and so the waiter was really perturbed by the fact that he didn’t order for himself.  He looked askance, passed Josh and threw out a comment at him, which we could only assume to mean, "Why are you letting this woman speak for you?  What's up with that?!"  Once he understood that we are all three Americans, and only I spoke French, all was well with the world again.  But constantly people would speak to Josh in Kreyol and they were really confused by the fact that he claimed to not be Haitian, not even a little bit.  Because he's black, so obviously he must be of Haitian descent.  Obama is!  (Apparently, a lot of Haitians think this!)

Then Morlon joined us and the wait staff was really confused.  They thought we had dragged him in off the street out of mercy to offer him a meal.  No, we don't know if they thought that, but they insisted in any case that we pay his meal, whereas breakfast was to be included with the room for all of us.  He's staying with us, he's one of us, we insisted!  It took a little while to sort that out.  We have a sneaking suspicion this hotel is a hook-up hotel, since we mostly see couples.  So probably everyone thinks Christina and I are there with our Haitian lovers!

But soon they realize otherwise, after we start rehearsing on the roof and showing off our clown antics!  I'm not sure what they think of us now.

Saturday, a couple of days after arrival, we walked through the neighborhood and further on to find a market where we could buy a bucket.  We walked all over without a problem, past vast tent camps in the downtown Champ de Mars area, and past the presidential building that lay in ruins.  I bought some sugarcane, and a pair of flip-flops from a woman selling her goods on street. A couple of kids tagged along behind us for a while. I wish I had goofed with them more, usually I do, but here I was acting incognito (that is, not like a clown, it's not like I could hide that I stood out like a sore thumb, being a white foreigner!).  When we got further downtown, Morlon did say we had to be careful, because robbers and other bad guys congegrate in this area, so it’s a bit more volatile.   

On the way back we find ourselves in the midst of a demonstration.  But it was a good demonstration in a mostly celebratory spirit – manifesting for human rights and dignity.  Everyone waving Haitian flags, chanting, and carrying placards saying “Respect Our Children." A loudspeaker truck played music and then the national anthem, followed by soldiers and police.  The maids of the hotel gathered on top of the roof looking on and dancing to the music.  This was all very interesting to witness!  I only wish this spirit of solidarity and support for human rights and for children was more apparent in the everyday life of Haiti.  From all I hear, it's not the norm for many women and children in the camps and elsewhere. (Consider the long-time practice of "restaveks" -- child servants.)

Another night there were pre-carnival festivities. A gigantic truck was being set up with loudspeakers to play music that the crowd then follows while dancing down the street.  We didn’t even know when we planned the timing of this trip that it would coincide with carnival, which we’ll have a chance to experience, very exciting!  We wanted to go out and find another restaurant down the street as opposed to eating at the hotel restaurant.  But all the street lights were out, and it was dark, and it really wasn't a good idea to be walking around out there at that point. Which revealed itself to be true, because when we stepped out for a moment, I was confronted by a very aggressive and hostile man. I didn't understand what he was saying, but politely greeted him with a "bon soir" which apparently aggravated him further.  “Bon soir!?” He spat back with contempt and outrage.  I don’t know what he was going on about but it wasn’t friendly and the situation was escalating.  Morlon quickly emerged from the crowd and said let’s go back inside.

Morlon then made sure to inform us that this man was not a real Haitian man: he was perhaps born in Haiti, but he was not Haitian, because Haitians are very friendly and generous people.

Goat -- and rice and beans!!!!!!!                                                                                   Sweets!

An overview of Haiti and Port-au-Prince post-earthquake

Looking out through the window of the airplane, I see the barren hills of Haiti and understand now what is meant when people speak of the severe deforestation of the country, which has led to so many problems.  I remember last time I arrived -- everything I had been told had led me to expect a totally barren country with no tropical vegetation -- and I was pleasantly surprised to see plenty of banana trees and other green plant life, where I was out in the countryside.

However, I realize this does not reflect the full reality.  Compared to the lush tropical jungle on the Dominican side, Haiti is a desert.  Last time I came to Haiti, I missed out on a window seat and so I saw nothing of the country as we flew in (although I did get a little glimpse of it as we departed).  Now I see it.  And later as we drive through the mountains, it becomes all the more apparent. The barrenness of the natural environment reflects something essential about the state of the Haitian nation.  

As you can see below, the landscape is dotted with blue tarps and tents, showing how so many have lost their homes.  People are either living in tents on the street next to the rubble of their destroyed homes, or crammed into one of the 1,300 camps that now exist in the Port-au-Prince area.

With this project centered in Port-au-Prince, where we spent most of our time during our three weeks, I got to witness on a much larger scale the extent of the earthquake's catastrophic impact.  For my prior project, we had driven straight through the city and into the countryside to get to Grande Goave, and I didn’t really get a full sense of the destruction or how widespread it was.  I remember thinking, well, hmm, it doesn't look quite as bad as I expected.  But, of course, the devastation is in fact massive.
Everywhere there are cracked or semi-collapsed or completely destroyed buildings, interspersed with functioning structures.  Our hotel is flanked on both sides by crumbled buildings.

The presidential palace and what remains of the cathedral.




Everywhere there are piles of rubble that people climb over and the cars drive around.  Life goes on, business has resumed, while the city remains in ruins.  Downtown Port-au-Prince, the center of commerce, is completely decimated with large blocks of nothing where before banks and other commercial buildings stood.  In downtown Manhattan, we’ve got the gaping hole of the World Trade Center.  Imagine many such flattened areas, and multitudes of crumbling structures.  Downtown Port-au-Prince reminds me of pictures I’ve seen of war zones.  Business has returned, not quite 'as usual,' but bustling enough, with vendors lining the streets and crowding in under semi-collapsed stories that might fall in any moment.  I guess people are desperate enough to make a buck that they are willing to take the risk. 

Not much debris has been cleared, indeed not much of anything seems to have been done to improve the situation even now over a year after the earthquake.  Close to a million people still live in tent camps.  And they will probably continue to do so for years.  Look at how long it's taken here in the U.S. for the World Trade Center to begin to be rebuilt; and, apparently, there are still people living in temporary shelters post-Katrina!  I predict it will take ten years for Port-au-Prince to recover from the devastation of the earthquake.  If not more.  Given the shaky political situation in Haiti with at present a more or less non-functioning government, there is no firm foundation in place for effective action to be taken.   Thousands of international aid organizations have descended upon Port-au-Prince.  But there seems to be no coordination between them and help does not appear to be reaching the people who need it most. Where's all the money and where's all the help?  It's trickling down to the people but mostly held up by a formidable dam of bureaucracy.

All that remains is the cross

Haiti's political and social situation is so complex, I can't possibly fully explain it here.  Decades of political unrest, extreme poverty, natural disasters.  And now cholera.  People are frustrated and desperate, stuck in the camps with no clear way out.  No one has any work (unemployment hovers at 70 or 80%!  Compare that to the U.S. today where it's around 8.9% and that is considered a crisis).  There is growing frustration and resentment toward the international community.  The fact that UN workers supposedly brought in the cholera has definitely not helped.  From what I understand, some are frustrated at what they feel is an occupation of their country by outside forces.  To many it looks like foreigners are once again just meddling in Haiti's affairs, as they have throughout its history.  They resent all the foreign aid workers driving around in shiny SUV's making what appears to be only a marginal difference and yet making a lot of money.  Still, most Haitians are frustrated by what they feel is a lack of sufficient intervention, desperately wanting and needing and depending on international aid and attention. 

 

 We can't take it anymore

In an October 2010 report, Refugees International criticized the aid agencies' dysfunctional efforts: "The people of Haiti are still living in a state of emergency, with a humanitarian response that appears paralysed. Gang leaders or land owners are intimidating the displaced. Sexual, domestic, and gang violence in and around the camps is rising. . . . Action is urgently needed to protect the basic human rights of people displaced by the earthquake.  Living in squalid, overcrowded and spontaneous camps for a prolonged period has led to aggravated levels of violence and appalling standards of living." (http://www.refugeesinternational.org/policy/field-report/haiti-still-trapped-emergency-phase)

Against this backdrop, we arrive in Haiti with the objective to lift people’s spirits through an entertaining and inspiring performance and through creative workshops focusing on the healing nature of self-expression.  It may seem the last thing people need, but in fact what we hope to contribute is crucial.  We aim to help them recapture a sense of self, a sense of dignity and a sense of community -- that is, a sense of humanity! 

Now don't despair from this depressing outline, I have beautiful things to report from Haiti!

 

And look, lo and behold, in the downtown area stands a beautiful new market place!  Something has been accomplished, something new built!