NYCHA’s Haitian American Association Hosts Haitian Flag Day Celebration

On May 16, NYCHA’s Haitian American Association (HAA) hosted a festive gathering of HAA members and supporters in the Ceremonial Room of NYCHA’s 90 Church Street offices to celebrate Haitian Flag Day 2024.

The event marked a national holiday celebrated annually not just in Haiti itself but also in the many expatriate communities that have grown up across the USA, Canada, and France over recent decades. The holiday officially takes place on May 18 to commemorate the victorious Haitian Revolution of 1803, Haiti’s establishment as an independent nation, and the flag that nation adopted to proclaim its equal and important place on the world stage.

For the May 16th event, NYCHA’s HAA members and supporters came together to share traditional Haitian cuisine, reaffirm their love for and dedication to Haiti, and watch a new documentary film entitled Ayiti Pap Peri (Haiti Will Not Perish) by award-winning filmmaker Cassandre Thrasybule.

“We celebrate Haiti Flag Day to lift peoples’ spirits and remind them that there are really good things happening in Haiti, even today,” said Sybille Louis, NYCHA’s Vice President of Performance Tracking and Analytics and HAA President. “We want to tell our own story, and screening Ayiti Pap Peri was about sharing that story, the true story of Haiti.”

HAA Vice President Magdalie Adolphe said that observing Haitian Flag Day offers the community “both a way of celebrating our independence and also a way for us to talk about our history – both where we came from and where we want to go.”

“On the ground [in Haiti], there are people doing really fantastic work, in the non-profit world, in the agricultural world, and more,” HAA President Louis said. “And in the huge Haitian diaspora today, so many great people are doing amazing work all around the world. The contributions that Haitian Americans are making right here in the United States are truly amazing. So many of us wish we could dedicate our talents, our brain power, to serving Haiti directly. But because of the political situation there, at least for now, it’s not possible. So we dedicate ourselves to service right where we are – including here at NYCHA.”

For more information about NYCHA’s Haitian American Association or to become a member, reach out to Sybille.Louis@nycha.nyc.gov or call (212) 306-6059.