Invincible: Haiti Pushes Forward (English)
Metadata
- Invincible: Haiti Pushes Forward (English)
- February 14, 2022
- On August 14, 2021, Haiti experienced its worst earthquake in more than a decade. VOA journalists there rushed to the scene. The devastation they discovered propelled their determination to help their countrymen and women, and formed the basis for this documentary. VOA looks back on the resilience of Haitians and Haitian-Americans in the immediate aftermath of the August 2021 earthquake to tell the story of "Invincible: Haiti Pushes Forward." (Also available in Haitian Creole / kreyòl ayisyen as "Envensib: Ann Avan Ayiti.")
- Content Type Documentary
- Language English
- World Region North America
- Transcript/Script ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: Doc: Invincible--Haiti Pushes Forward HEADLINE: August 2021 earthquake reveals resilience of Haitian people. TEASER: Six months on, VOA looks back on the resilience of Haitians and Haitian-Americans in the immediate aftermath of the August 2021 earthquake. PUBLISHED AT: 2/14/22 BYLINE: Amish Srivastava, Sandra Lemaire, Gary Butterworth CONTRIBUTOR: see credits DATELINE: Les Cayes and Cite Soleil, Haiti, and Brooklyn and Atlanta, USA VIDEOGRAPHER: see credits VIDEO EDITOR: Amish Srivastava SCRIPT EDITORS: VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA, AFP, AP, Reuters PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB x__ TV x__ RADIO __ TRT: 25:00 (TBC), three breaks built in VID APPROVED BY: TYPE: TVPKG EDITOR NOTES: VO: It's a quiet Saturday morning in southern Haiti. While some people are out shopping or working, others are in the kitchen cooking, and kids are playing outside. SOT Dr. Michelet Boris I was actually in the hospital dormitory. VO: Routine life in the city of Les Cayes. But ten kilometers underground, pressure is building. Soon, Haitians realize that this isn’t an ordinary Saturday. Dr. Michelet Boris I ran out into the hospital yard naked Jean Tony Thank God I didn’t die. Valentine Civil When we saw it happening – the earthquake – my home crumbled around me. The house where I was staying completely crumbled. Mom at hospital in pink (Crying) My child is suffering, and I can’t find help. Nadege I don’t have anything left. Nothing at all. VO Haiti has been shaken before. Here, the drive to rebuild is matched only by the desire to help. Maybelle, When I think of Haiti – despite all of its problems I believe there are possibilities. 12:16 Handy Hudson Cherry That is why we are asking those who want to help us to take a good look and see what they can do. If they don’t, tomorrow will be worse. Narration: We are following Carel Padre and his team from Port-au-Prince to Nippes, one of the places hardest hit by the earthquake that rocked Haiti on August 14th. Bite / Voice of Carel Padre – "Some people may have forgotten about the earthquake, but we are still working." Narration : Carel Pedre is a Haitian journalist and media personality. Some Haitians see him as a philanthropist, and today, he’s an aid worker. We will check in with Carel later to see how his project is going. For now, let’s see who else is helping…and who still needs help. SOT Dr. Michelet Boris 23AG c0068 :13 “my name is Dr. Michelet Boris. I am a doctor, a general physician and I work in the emergency room.” 1:05 “when I realized I didn’t have any clothes on, I had to go back inside with just a towel around me, and I put some clothes on without taking a shower. And in less than 20 minutes, the injured started arriving. And I can tell you that in the first 30 minutes, most people who were coming to the hospital were children. There were at least 26 children who died on the spot. 1:35 “Even though no media had arrived, we received 6 children who died here, and their anxious parents came to the hospital for confirmation that their children were deceased. They couldn’t believe it. It was really tough. Narration – At Hopital Immamaculee Conception in Les Cayes, it was just the beginning C081 MOTHER AT HOSPITAL – CTD :08 On Saturday morning, my home was damaged – a cement block fell on my child’s foot and broke it in two places. I took him to the hospital right away to get treated. He was in the operation room twice for surgery. Narration : As we move through the hospital, we try to stay out of the way. We can’t help but notice all of the leg and foot injuries. C081 MOTHER AT HOSPITAL – CTD But after the second operation I noticed the foot getting worse, and when I talked to them, (the doctors) they told me they would have to amputate. I couldn’t let that happen. He is 13. He’s young – I didn’t want them to amputate his foot. So I came to look for an ambulance to take him to get better treatment. I would like for the foot to be healed because he’s just a child. He is suffering a lot. VO: These patients all hope to make it out of the hospital…. …but some people wish they could get in for treatment. Maudelaine is mother of two. For her, Dr. Boris just wasn’t an option. Maudelaine, SOT: 26 On the day of the earthquake the children had to be removed from the rubble of the house. Thank God they didn’t die. But my older child was so seriously injured I had to take him to a witch doctor because I couldn’t afford to take him to the hospital. :36 Narration – Even if Maudelaine could have afforded treatment, when the injured started pouring in, the hospitals couldn’t keep up. SOT Dr. Michelet Boris C0068 :45 “ I can say that between August 14 and August 23 we have seen about 1,600 to 1,700 patients. C0069 - .02: They had broken legs, head injuries, waist issues, stomach issues – some had internal injuries others had open wounds. We didn’t have gloves, we didn’t have supplies. And the gloves we were using are the gloves beauticians use to put perms in people’s hair – that’s what we were using. I had a box of gloves in my car trunk, so I went and got it to use 2:00 “After two or three hours- reinforcement came, additional personnel arrived. We had to break into the pharmacy depot to get the medicine we needed to administer to patients. Narration : As we ride through Les Cayes, it becomes obvious that medical emergencies are only a fraction of the problems that arise after an earthquake in a country that isn’t equipped for a natural disaster of this magnitude. C0006 - :08 Charles Alman. (voice) “The biggest problem we have here is that we don’t have a place to sleep. 1:07 “We have a few friends – people we’ve known for a long time who we talk to and may God touch their hearts because it’s thanks to them that we are surviving here. Some of those friends bring us water, some bring food, others bring plastic coverings. C0006 - :08 Charles Alman. Continued That’s why we are still here. To be honest, the government has not done anything for us. 1:42 Narration (VO over drone footage as we toss to break): As the days go by, Haiti’s needs are still very real. BREAK #1 (of 3) Narration: The August 14, 2021, earthquake rocked a country already in upheaval. Haiti is one of the world’s poorest countries. Since the president was assassinated a month before the earthquake, things have only gotten more uncertain. But the Haitian government is present, and other countries have pitched in with what appear to be big relief operations Narration ; But supplies aren’t finding their way to everyone who needs them. SOT Valentine Civil – C0017 - 01 This is all they gave us to sleep. . :15 :55 I lost little things that were in the house. My bed, my dishes my television – I lost them all. 1:10 1.46 - We really need a place to sleep. Because when you’ve been out all day, you need a place to rest. As long as we have a place to sleep, a few dollars that we can do business with, we’ll be able to survive. We’ll be able to keep living. We just need a place to sleep.” Narration – A place to sleep. A makeshift home… in a makeshift garbage dump. Maudelaine is good at making do. She has to be. SOT MAUDELAINE We can’t afford to buy plastic sheets. They don’t give us plastic sheets. They sell them instead. Or they give them to stores. SOT Charles Almen :04 The assistance arrives, at the police station they separate some of it amongst themselves. They beat people with batons they hit them in the face, on the nose and then they don’t give us the assistance. They sell it instead to stores. Oil everything else they don’t give it to us they sell it. They keep it for themselves. :23 Narration: Police deny these allegations. They say, they are there to help. SOT Joliecoeur Allande Serge - Division chief and assistant director of the police for the southern department of Haiti. – :48 If a policeman had done that, they would be in jail now. There is not one official in the department who would tolerate a policeman who did such a thing. 1:00 Narration: Allen Serge does not forget to remind us that police officers are quake victims, too. Sometimes people think officials are withholding aid, when really, they’re legitimate recipients. SOT Joliecoeur Allande Serge: 3:34 What I could add is that the director general of the (national police) sent assistance to the police officers. They give us roofing, 3x4 (wood planks) ok? They sent us generators each police station received a generator. And each service in the department got an extra generator to allow the police to provide better services to the people. So there is no question of policemen entering and stealing humanitarian assistance. That does not happen. 4:12 VO: Whether police are helping, or hurting, or making no difference, it doesn’t change the fact that, for now, Maudelaine lives here. SOT Maudelaine C0012 - .05 - When people come here to dump trash we ask them to stop – but they say until the mayor’s office asks them to stop they will continue. At one point, I stood out there to keep them from dumping the trash, but they said we are interfering with the trash truck. When the children are out here – flies cover them – we have nowhere to go. They are asking us to leave this space but we have nowhere to go. C0010 :30 Last night it rained, and the children were soaking wet. C0011 - We have no clothes to change into because we were not able to salvage anything – so we don’t have anything to wear. :48 Narration : Useful items are making their way to Jean-Tony and Maudeline…but it’s not exactly aid. You know the saying, “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure”? Here, it’s taken literally. C0013 - Jean Tony and Maudeline :06 When trucks come here to dump things, we find plastic sheets we can use to make shelter. That’s what we cover our tents with. WOMAN CHIMES IN – When they come to dump trash. It’s by searching through the trash that we found carpet and other things we can use to make a shelter. COO12 - When it rains this (she hold the tent in her hand) gets soaked with water. As soon as it starts raining water floods the inside so I have to cover the child with a piece of carpet so he doesn’t get wet. Narration: Almost 200 kilometers away, Cite Soleil isn’t Les Cayes. It didn’t get hit as hard by this earthquake…but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t know tough times. This is still one of the roughest parts of Haiti. Our cameraman wouldn’t come here without security. Narration: But people still come here to pitch in. This hospital was built three decades ago as a small charity project, and Kareen Ulyese shows us around. Her dad started this hospital. She lives near Atlanta, in the U.S. state of Georgia, but she grew up in here in Cite Soleil. Right out back is what’s left of her childhood home. SOT Kareen: 6:36 My early years were spent living behind the hospital (in Cite Soleil) Fontaine – so that’s why it’s so dear to me. My earliest memories – I always tell people – that’s where I learned to walk, that’s where I was breastfed, that’s where I learned to speak – I remember how my mother used to teach me to read in the dark – she lit a candle – she would braid my hair – right there behind the hospital. Narration : Nowadays, Kareen bounces between her home in the U.S. and her homeland in the Caribbean. When she heard about the earthquake, she knew she needed to get on a plane…because she knew she could help. SOT Kareen 1:20 So regardless of how bad it was – we knew that we had equipment, medicine and staff that we could send to help. So even if we didn’t know how bad it was – we could use what we had to start and that’s how we did it. On August 14, we opened up the warehouse and we went and got medicine, food – we had food that Food for the Poor had given us – we used that to make kits – and on August 15 morning we headed out. We had no idea what was out there but we knew they needed help and this time we wanted Cite Soleil to help. 1:58 Narration : The Haitian diaspora is trying to help by organizing across the United States. 0027L00 SOT MAYBELLE :24 I’m a Haitian American who was born in Brooklyn, Brooklyn New York – a Haitian neighborhood and my mother and father are Haitian. :33 Maybelle continued… 4:09 the first thing that comes to my mind, and the diaspora’s mind in my conversations with multiple civilian, faith-based sectors who are working to resolve the crisis is – what can we do better? What lessons did we learn in 2010 that can be applied, that we can implement in 2021? 4:41 Narration : Maybelle works for the US government and also volunteers for the Red Cross. She believes Haiti’s problems are each Haitian’s responsibility, wherever they may live. Maybelle - 0003ED00 7:54 We can’t solve it alone, but I think the solution should be Haitian-led. Haitian led solutions. 8:05 :59 Well first of all, the diaspora is always there. When everyone else is gone, the diaspora remains. When they tell us there’s insecurity in Haiti, things aren’t good, they still travel there. They are always giving, they send money, billions of dollars, billions – I think it’s something like 3 billion dollars a year. So the diaspora is always there, morning, noon and night. They are always there to support the Haitian people, they are there to help – they do that in various sectors. 1:37 2:11 There are people when they think about the diaspora they think money – but it’s not just money. There are regional associations, hometown associations – wherever Haitians have emigrated to you’ll find an association of some sort that is supporting the people back home. That’s not something I’ve seen with other nations. That is something special Haitians have. 2:37 Narration (Toss to break as VO over Carel working) : While Maybelle and Kareen bring back their experiences and resources, locals like Carel Pedre reach door to door with the help. After all, it’s the locals who know who needs what. BREAK 2 of 3 SOT C231 QATAR AIRWAYS T-SHIRT :25 The day of the earthquake I was not here. I was traveling. Someone told me what happened and two weeks later I came home and cried when I saw what the situation was. I had no idea it was this bad when I was in the US. :42 Narration : It’s not until you’re here that you REALLY feel it. Handy Hudson Cherry: (bite) - .40 We are human beings first even if we have to live in these old tents now. We are facing a miserable situation. That is why we are asking the officials to try to understand how Haitians are living right now. Come and see for yourself because if you don’t we will die. Narration : Carel Pedre DOES go out into the community to see for himself. Like the diaspora community members we met earlier, he knows the reality on the ground. And he wants to make it better. SOT Carel Pedre – My position is useful to society, when I look at Haiti, I see we are really vulnerable, such as natural disasters, and political problems. This brings us to a precarious economic situation. This causes many people living in the provinces to live in an extremely difficult situation, so every time we are hit by a natural disaster, as they say in English, it is a 'wake up call' for us, to put together to help each other. This is exactly the mission I give myself, if I live in the country, I must be useful .. and every time I see myself as useful to my Haitian brothers and sisters in sharing what I have like a piece of bread, like mobilizing to get donations to help a problem I will always do it. Narration: Carel’s idea of help is simple – share whatever you have. It doesn’t only have to be money – Carel Pedre – . I rang after the earthquake there was someone who owned a gas pump who offered to give to every single person who was coming to the south of the country. So he could offer people food, and money by the fact that it is his gas that he offers to his people. So, he helps as much as he can. There are people who have sewing workshops that make sheets to send to people who are victims of earthworks…… there are many young people who come out of Port au Prince who come to do kits with us. They don’t give a duri bag, they don’t give a crate of oil, they don’t give anything But they give their time, they give their passion, they give their talent. An artist who is playing to mobilize money, this is very interesting. That's all I wanted to say, the resources to help it in you. That means you are helping as much as you can. Narration : And sometimes, helping is contagious. SOT Jean Daniel Doncin – Local youth - When Carel posted on his twitter account will help people victim of the earthquake, I addressed him with the commune of Baradère, he answered me I positively put and come to support him, We are very happy especially present in the community because the commune is abandoned by the state. After the catastrophe, finally this is an aid we appreciate a lot and we applaud the gestures that Carel makes with the commune of Baradè. (VO) Back in Oh-KAYE, as it is known locally, this football field quickly became a refuge for people with nowhere else to go. (SOT) Nadine : C229 – WOMAN IN BROWN DRESS Since Aug 14 -- we’ve been out here for a month and a half, we’re sleeping out in the open, we don’t have proper bathrooms, trash is piling up They keep telling us they need this field, they need this field, there’s a championship coming up soon but when we leave here where will we go2:21 (VO) But here, the instinct to help trickles down…even to those who don’t have much. C228 GUY IN LA SOURCE T-SHIRT - Saint Mille, a young delegate for the shelter :36 As far as assistance goes, we have not gotten any. The only help we’ve received is people who put combine what they have gotten and share it with us. So if someone gifts them with something they give it to us. But as far as the government goes, they have not been here. :50 Narration/toss to break: Whether it’s victims helping victims, big international aid projects, or Carel, Maybelle, and Kareen’s grassroots efforts, all are filling a void…. …But is it enough? Break 3 of 3 SOT Sylvert Villaud, Coordinator, Civil Protection 2:18 No there’s not enough, there’s not enough. (aid) that’s why we are calling on the international community because we don’t have enough. Narration: Haiti’s spirit to rebuild from the 2021 earthquake isn’t in doubt. But is spirit enough in a country that has already been through so much? SOT Sylvert Villaud, Coordinator, Civil Protection 4.34 - This department was already in big trouble before this earthquake. There was a cascade of disasters that put us in a fragile economic and social state. Narration: A cascade of disasters that, Kareen feels, Haiti needs to anticipate as it moves forward. SOT Kareen Ulysse 13:34 “ So one thing Haiti can do to prepare is support the hospitals now. Before the disaster happens before the earthquake strikes. Preparations should have been made before the earthquake. We shouldn’t have to wait for the earthquake to realize oh! The hospital I’ve been supporting in Port-Salut doesn’t have bandages. Well, we already knew they didn’t have bandages. Narration: Media personality Carel Pedre echos Kareen’s call to anticipate. SOT: Carel Pedre Every year during the hurricane season, we will always have floods, we will always have landslides, we will always have earthquakes, and we will have other types of natural disasters. We must be ready for all this, if we know we have great failures we must build earthquake-proof houses, even if we have houses that are broken and dead but we must be able to give a quick rethink to the problem. So you can build a beautiful house, a big house, since the base of the house is not solid, in a minute it will collapse. This means that you cannot afford economic development without addressing these issues. Narration: To some degree, that planning for the future has already begun….with local officials taking stock of where things are to make sure they don’t get worse. Marie Michelle Sylvain Rameau, president of the municipal council of Les Cayes : Remember, we are situated in a Hurricane zone – so one of these days it could rain – so we need to know which homes are safe to go back to and which are not. So evaluation of buildings and of homes started yesterday. The evaluation of public building, churches, schools has already been done – it is ongoing and not yet completed but the evaluation of buildings and homes has just begun. It’s important for people to know where they can live, which homes are destroyed – it’s possible the home is still standing but the foundation is cracked so they can’t live there. 4:48 Narration : Kareen welcomes government action, but she seems skeptical of its success. Kareen(bite) 17:15 “ It should be the government – that’s how it is in all countries that function well. It should be a government who uses logic -but the Haitian government doesn’t use logic it goes on emotion instead. And we know the government will not do it. So the job – until we have a capable government – because we hear them say they want to do this – but until we have a government that speaks these words and is capable of following through the citizens have to do it. 17:48 VO: There is certainly a lot to do…..but if we’ve seen one thing, it’s the determination in the eyes of ordinary ---and extraordinary—Haitians. Montage w music: video portraits Narration: Back in New York, Maybelle is optimistic that Haitians will find inspiration in past victories and rise above the current challenge. Maybelle: 10:17 I have hope for Haiti. When I was a child, you know my grandmother raised me, my mother’s mother. Thank God she lived to be 104 years old, and I am grateful. When she would talk about Haiti…. She was born in 1909. So the Haiti she knew, the Haiti I learned to love is the Haiti my grandmother told me stories about. So, when she was in her 20s – it was 1929 – she talked about a Haiti that was a land of opportunity a place where there were delicious food – there were cities that took care of the children. The people had pride. You know, she talked about having Dessalines’ blood in our veins she talked about resilience! Credits: Narration, English Narasyon, Kreyòl Ayisyen Jean Michel Mathurin Jacquelin Belizaire Director Amish Srivastsava Co-Producer Sandra D. Lemaire Producer Gary Butterworth Writers Amish Srivastava Gary Butterworth Videography Devante Blackwell Rafael Hernandez Handy Tibert Eduardo Vinchez Yvon Vilius Audio Engineer Thomas Leahy Colorist Zeeshan Tahir Graphics Juliann Langere Translation NLSC Sandra D. Lemaire Jean Lyonel Desmarattes Special Thanks To John Lippman Clara Dominguez Natalia Ardanza Voice of America (VOA) is a network of the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), and independent entity of the U.S. government. While some of the content in this production is in the public domain, some items are third party content and protected by copyright. Transmission or reproduction of protected items beyond what is allowed by fair use or other exemptions requires written permission of the copyright holder. You should determine for yourself whether an item, or portion of an item, is protected by copyright or in the public domain. 2022 Voice of America Chyron list Dr. Michelet Boris Medical Doctor Carel Pedre Media Personality Maudelaine Earthquake victim Charles Alman Earthquake victim Valentine Civil Earthquake victim Joliecoeur Allande Serge Assistant director of police, Southern Dept. Jean-Tony Earthquake victim Kareen Ulyese Centre Hospitalier de Fontaine, Cité Soleil Maybelle Jadotte Clairville Haitian-American Handy Hudson Chery Earthquake victim Jean Daniel Doncin Follows Carel Pedre on Social Media Sylvert Villaud Coordinator, Civil Protection Marie Michelle Sylvain Rameau President, Municipal Council of Les Cayes
- NewsML Media Topics Weather, Society, Environment, Disaster, Accident and Emergency Incident, Arts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
- Topic Tags Haiti, earthquake,
- Season Number 1
- Network VOA
- Location (dateline) Haiti, Atlanta, New York
- Expiration Date April 4, 2222 18:24 EST
- Episode Number 1
- English Title Invincible: Haiti Pushes Forward
- Embargo Date February 14, 2022 13:28 EST
- Description English On August 14, 2021, Haiti experienced its worst earthquake in more than a decade. VOA journalists there rushed to the scene. The devastation they discovered propelled their determination to help their countrymen and women, and formed the basis for this documentary. VOA looks back on the resilience of Haitians and Haitian-Americans in the immediate aftermath of the August 2021 earthquake to tell the story of "Invincible: Haiti Pushes Forward." (Also available in Haitian Creole / kreyòl ayisyen as "Envensib: Ann Avan Ayiti.")
- Country HTI
- Byline Srivastava, Lemaire, Butterworth
- Brand / Language Service Voice of America