On January 12th, 2010, a 7.0 earthquake devastated Port-au-Prince, Leogane and other parts of Hai... more On January 12th, 2010, a 7.0 earthquake devastated Port-au-Prince, Leogane and other parts of Haiti. This natural disaster claimed more than 230,000 lives and left more than 1 million Haitians homeless. As Americans watched horrifying images of devastation, death and destruction, Haitian Americans in Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, Florida, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island, New York and Chicago, Illinois tried to contact their loved ones. Many people around the world wondered whether or not Haiti, a country with a long, turbulent history was cursed, as the Reverend Pat Robertson stated on his show called the 700 Club; doomed to permanent poverty, governmental inefficiency and misery. But other Haitian Americans returned to their homeland determined to contribute to earthquake relief and begin the long process of rebuilding and reshaping Haiti; a Haiti with a sustainable future. Many of those same Haitian Americans are glad that they are American citizens and can use th...
The Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Anthropology
Statelessness affects an estimated 15 million people worldwide (Kosinski 2009, 377). Without citi... more Statelessness affects an estimated 15 million people worldwide (Kosinski 2009, 377). Without citizenship in the countries of their birth, stateless people lack access to basic political and social rights, such as the right to vote, marry, travel, and own property; in some cases, stateless people are also denied access to employment, educational services, and health care (UNCHR 2021). In this article, we look at the growing global problem of statelessness through the lens of anti‐Haitianism and ethnographic analysis of people of Haitian descent in the Dominican Republic, Anse‐à‐Pitres, Haïti, and New Providence, Bahamas. [The Bahamas, Dominican Republic, Haiti, the Caribbean, anti‐Haitianism, statelessness]
This essay uses ethnographic research conducted among Haitian Protestants in the Bahamas in 2005 ... more This essay uses ethnographic research conducted among Haitian Protestants in the Bahamas in 2005 and 2012 plus internet resources to document the belief among Haitian Protestants (Haitians who practice Protestant forms of Christianity) that Haiti supposedly made a pact with the Devil (Satan) as the result of Bwa Kayiman, a Vodou ceremony that launched the Haitian Revolution (1791–1803). Vodou is the syncretized religion indigenous to Haiti. I argue that this interpretation of Bwa Kayiman is an extension of the negative effects of the globalization of American Fundamentalist Christianity in Haiti and, by extension, peoples of African descent and the Global South
The Second Generation of African American Pioneers in Anthropology, 2018
Osborne developed an interest in the burgeoning anthropological subdiscipline of medical anthropo... more Osborne developed an interest in the burgeoning anthropological subdiscipline of medical anthropology and conducted his dissertation research in Nigeria, focusing on traditional African health care systems and their relationship to Western biomedical systems. Osborne studied in the Nigerian village of Ibara Orile and explored how Yoruba villages serve as therapeutic communities for the mentally ill. His research interests brought him back to Nigeria several times, and during one of these visits his Yoruba research consultants made him Chief Adila of Ibara, associating his visits with preserving peace during times of violent unrest.
This essay uses ethnographic research conducted among Haitian Protestants in the Bahamas in 2005 ... more This essay uses ethnographic research conducted among Haitian Protestants in the Bahamas in 2005 and 2012 plus internet resources to document the belief among Haitian Protestants (Haitians who practice Protestant forms of Christianity) that Haiti supposedly made a pact with the Devil (Satan) as the result of Bwa Kayiman, a Vodou ceremony that launched the Haitian Revolution (1791–1803). Vodou is the syncretized religion indigenous to Haiti. I argue that this interpretation of Bwa Kayiman is an extension of the negative effects of the globalization of American Fundamentalist Christianity in Haiti and, by extension, peoples of African descent and the Global South.
Abstract Purpose Many African Americans cheered the election of President Obama in 2008 with the ... more Abstract Purpose Many African Americans cheered the election of President Obama in 2008 with the hope he would cause an easing of the pain of economic and political barriers to collective black progress in America. This chapter assesses the role of President Obama in addressing these issues. Approach The Presidential Bully Pulpit is presented as a framework for addressing racial inequities. Properly used it can bring keen attention to issues a president deems important for consideration by the American public. Socio-historical texts and secondary data are used. Findings Data are presented to show how racial discrimination continues to affect African Americans during the age of Obama. These include housing discrimination, employment discrimination, and racial profiling. This chapter shows Mr. Obama has not used the office of the presidency as a bully pulpit for addressing these racial inequities. Rather he has tended to use the bully pulpit to chastise blacks, especially black males. Also discussed are some promising developments challenging racism that have emerged from his administration, primarily from the Department of Justice, and how President Obama could use the bully pulpit more productively. Originality This chapter presents a contradiction in the actions of President Obama. While he seldom uses the bully pulpit to push his own legislative agendas or to push toward solutions to relieve racial inequities in society, he does use the bully pulpit to criticize black males.
On January 12th, 2010, a 7.0 earthquake devastated Port-au-Prince, Leogane and other parts of Hai... more On January 12th, 2010, a 7.0 earthquake devastated Port-au-Prince, Leogane and other parts of Haiti. This natural disaster claimed more than 230,000 lives and left more than 1 million Haitians homeless. As Americans watched horrifying images of devastation, death and destruction, Haitian Americans in Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, Florida, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island, New York and Chicago, Illinois tried to contact their loved ones. Many people around the world wondered whether or not Haiti, a country with a long, turbulent history was cursed, as the Reverend Pat Robertson stated on his show called the 700 Club; doomed to permanent poverty, governmental inefficiency and misery. But other Haitian Americans returned to their homeland determined to contribute to earthquake relief and begin the long process of rebuilding and reshaping Haiti; a Haiti with a sustainable future. Many of those same Haitian Americans are glad that they are American citizens and can use th...
The Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Anthropology
Statelessness affects an estimated 15 million people worldwide (Kosinski 2009, 377). Without citi... more Statelessness affects an estimated 15 million people worldwide (Kosinski 2009, 377). Without citizenship in the countries of their birth, stateless people lack access to basic political and social rights, such as the right to vote, marry, travel, and own property; in some cases, stateless people are also denied access to employment, educational services, and health care (UNCHR 2021). In this article, we look at the growing global problem of statelessness through the lens of anti‐Haitianism and ethnographic analysis of people of Haitian descent in the Dominican Republic, Anse‐à‐Pitres, Haïti, and New Providence, Bahamas. [The Bahamas, Dominican Republic, Haiti, the Caribbean, anti‐Haitianism, statelessness]
This essay uses ethnographic research conducted among Haitian Protestants in the Bahamas in 2005 ... more This essay uses ethnographic research conducted among Haitian Protestants in the Bahamas in 2005 and 2012 plus internet resources to document the belief among Haitian Protestants (Haitians who practice Protestant forms of Christianity) that Haiti supposedly made a pact with the Devil (Satan) as the result of Bwa Kayiman, a Vodou ceremony that launched the Haitian Revolution (1791–1803). Vodou is the syncretized religion indigenous to Haiti. I argue that this interpretation of Bwa Kayiman is an extension of the negative effects of the globalization of American Fundamentalist Christianity in Haiti and, by extension, peoples of African descent and the Global South
The Second Generation of African American Pioneers in Anthropology, 2018
Osborne developed an interest in the burgeoning anthropological subdiscipline of medical anthropo... more Osborne developed an interest in the burgeoning anthropological subdiscipline of medical anthropology and conducted his dissertation research in Nigeria, focusing on traditional African health care systems and their relationship to Western biomedical systems. Osborne studied in the Nigerian village of Ibara Orile and explored how Yoruba villages serve as therapeutic communities for the mentally ill. His research interests brought him back to Nigeria several times, and during one of these visits his Yoruba research consultants made him Chief Adila of Ibara, associating his visits with preserving peace during times of violent unrest.
This essay uses ethnographic research conducted among Haitian Protestants in the Bahamas in 2005 ... more This essay uses ethnographic research conducted among Haitian Protestants in the Bahamas in 2005 and 2012 plus internet resources to document the belief among Haitian Protestants (Haitians who practice Protestant forms of Christianity) that Haiti supposedly made a pact with the Devil (Satan) as the result of Bwa Kayiman, a Vodou ceremony that launched the Haitian Revolution (1791–1803). Vodou is the syncretized religion indigenous to Haiti. I argue that this interpretation of Bwa Kayiman is an extension of the negative effects of the globalization of American Fundamentalist Christianity in Haiti and, by extension, peoples of African descent and the Global South.
Abstract Purpose Many African Americans cheered the election of President Obama in 2008 with the ... more Abstract Purpose Many African Americans cheered the election of President Obama in 2008 with the hope he would cause an easing of the pain of economic and political barriers to collective black progress in America. This chapter assesses the role of President Obama in addressing these issues. Approach The Presidential Bully Pulpit is presented as a framework for addressing racial inequities. Properly used it can bring keen attention to issues a president deems important for consideration by the American public. Socio-historical texts and secondary data are used. Findings Data are presented to show how racial discrimination continues to affect African Americans during the age of Obama. These include housing discrimination, employment discrimination, and racial profiling. This chapter shows Mr. Obama has not used the office of the presidency as a bully pulpit for addressing these racial inequities. Rather he has tended to use the bully pulpit to chastise blacks, especially black males. Also discussed are some promising developments challenging racism that have emerged from his administration, primarily from the Department of Justice, and how President Obama could use the bully pulpit more productively. Originality This chapter presents a contradiction in the actions of President Obama. While he seldom uses the bully pulpit to push his own legislative agendas or to push toward solutions to relieve racial inequities in society, he does use the bully pulpit to criticize black males.
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Papers by Bertin Louis