Edited by Azizi Powell
This post documents some of the chants and signage that have been used in recent protests in the United States ople of the Dominican Republics' deportation policies. Those policies are directed against people of Haitian descent who have been born in that nation, and against other people of Haitian descent in the Dominican Republic.
The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, folkloric, and motivational purposes.
All content remains with their owners.
Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. Thanks also to all those who are featured in these videos and who have published these videos on YouTube.
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BACKGROUND ARTICLE
From http://prospect.org/article/black-lives-matter-responding-dominican-deportation-crisis
"Black Lives Matter: Responding to the Dominican Deportation Crisis
Nathalie Baptiste , June 25, 2015
"Protests erupt worldwide as more than 200,000 people of Haitian descent may soon be deported from the Dominican Republic.
Misma isla, misma raza is Spanish for “same island, same people”* and it’s one of the rallying cries of the hundreds who gathered in Washington, D.C., on June 22 to protest the citizenship crisis happening right now in the Dominican Republic. Haitians, and those descended from Haitians, are being denationalized while the threat of deportations looms. In September 2013, a Dominican high court ruled that anyone born after 1929 to undocumented parents were not citizens. With the government’s June 17 registration deadline now passed, an estimated 200,000 people are threatened with deportations and statelessness—and most of them are black.
The crisis happening in the Dominican Republic affects two kinds of people. Black Dominicans born to Haitians or with Haitian grandparents and Haitian migrants who came to the Dominican Republic to work in the sugar cane industry or the booming tourism industry.
The crowd that had gathered in Washington’s Dupont Circle came with a multitude of signs. Some read “Black Lives Matter” and others “Human Rights Knows No Borders”.*" Organized by the Association of Haitian Professionals, marchers included the old, the young, Dominicans, Haitians, and even local politicians.
Deni Taveras is a Democrat who represents District 2 in Prince George’s County Council, a Maryland suburb of Washington, D.C. Councilwoman Taveras is the child of Dominican immigrants but showed no hesitation in calling out the Dominican government. “At the end of the day, these people are Dominicans. When you grow up and this is all you know, this is your country,” Taveras says….
But even with protests popping up in cities across the country and world, the plight of the Dominicans and Haitian-Dominicans remains largely ignored.
Conflict between Haiti and the Dominican Republic goes back a long time. Even though the two nations share the island of Hispanola and a long and complicated history, the relationship between Haiti and the Dominican Republic can be described tense at best and deadly at worst. The Haitian annexation of the Dominican Republic lasted from 1822 to 1844. And in 1937, under Dominican President Rafael Trujillo, antihaitianismo—Spanish for anti-Haitianism—essentially became institutionalized when he ordered the massacre of 20,000 Haitians living near the border.
Today, antihaitianismo still casts a cloud over migrants living in the Dominican Republic. Like Mexican immigrants in the United States and Arab immigrants in France, Haitians are often blamed for the social ills of the Dominican Republic.
When the Dominican government announced the new ruling, the backlash from the international community was enough to get the government scrambling for a PR fix. Those who could prove that they were registered with the government or had Dominican birth certificates would not be at risk for deportation. The fix, however, wasn’t enough...
While Dominican President Danilo Medina remains adamant that international legal standards have no bearing in his country, the deportations are clearly in violation of international human rights law. Article 15 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights clearly states that everyone has a right to a nationality. Human rights groups have called on the Dominican government to rethink the new law that would render so many people stateless...
The fates of 200,000 people remain in the balance. A crisis of this magnitude should be making headlines across the globe.
-snip-
Signage in photograph that was shown with this article: "Not 1 more racist deportation from DR."*
*I added italics to highlight that signage.
****
VIDEOS OF DOMINICAN REPUBLICS' DEPORTATION POLICIES
Editor's note: The chants and signage are given in italics to highlight them.
Example #1:NY Dominicans Protest Haitian Deportations in the Dominican Republic
.
radicallatina, Published on Jun 15, 2015
*Transcript below*
In a powerful show of solidarity, on June 15th, 2015 Dominicans protested at the Dominican consulate in New York City yesterday to say no to deportations of Dominicans of Haitian descent. Deportations in the Dominican Republic of people of Haitian descent (or perceived Haitian descent) regardless of where they were born are set to begin this week in the Dominican Republic. The community of Dominicans in the diaspora in New York, where the largest population of Dominicans outside of the mainland reside, planned this protest as part of a larger coalition to fight the deportations and anti-Haitian racism that plagues Dominicans and other Caribbean countries as a result of historical and systemic oppression. #BastaYa #BlackLivesMatter #DominicanRepublic #DominicanosPorHaiti #WeAreAllDominican #YoTambienSoyHaiti #Ayiti
Transcript:
Chant:
¡Basta ya! ¡Basta ya! [Stop it! Stop it!]
¡Basta ya! ¡Basta ya!
¡Basta ya! ¡Basta ya!
Person one: Right now, precisely, we’re actually in front of the Dominican Consulate. I’m here, standing in solidarity with Dominicans of Haitian descent who are set to be deported in the hundreds of thousands. There is a government in the world that’s denationalizing a people and there isn’t a single international body that’s doing something about it.
Person two: It is a response by the Dominican government supposedly to regulate the immigration status of people in the Dominican Republic but what we understand is that in this process there are many Dominicans of Haitian descent who have been born in the country who are Dominicans who should be recognized as Dominicans that are also being potentially deported with this law as well.
Chant:
"Stop the racist terror! Stop the racist terror!
Stop the deportations!"
Person three: "So far I’ve seen a lot of support from Haitians, Dominicans , Americans and Americans of other Caribbean descent. I’m half Haitian and my father’s actually a leader of the Black Lives Matter in the Dominican Republic movement and I feel like it’s my duty to be here to help support worker in trouble who are being deported and oppressed."
Person four: "Creo que hay muchos de nosotros que no entienden la historia capitalista e imperialista de nuestra isla."
Person five: "A veces la lógica del estado dominicano y de la elite dominicana, más allá de los beneficios inmediatos que sacan a partir de la explotación del trabajador y trabajadora no tiene sentido a partir de ahí, de esa premisa."
Chant:
"Haitians Dominicans Black and White! Workers of the World Unite!"
Person three: "The more protests we have like this all around the world, and the more people we get involved and the more people we educate about this, the better it is for the Haitian people and Haitian-Dominicans."
Person six: "I feel that to actually make change we have to lobby and do things other than protest to find ways to reach those people who try to ignore us, like the people walking away from here. I feel like this is a good way to start, but I think the next step would be a way to actually engage the masses."
Chant:
"...De Los Trabajadores!"
Person two: "Dominicans born either here in the United States or who have migrated here to the United States, we should be aware of how this resonates with our own community. We should understand that they are as Dominicans as anyone who’s living in the United States and claims a Dominican nationality."
Person four: "Our cultures are different but similar in so many ways. We are- we are brothers and sisters in one island- both colonized people and we have liberated ourselves from that but a lot of people haven’t done that mentally. And we need to build that solidarity together in like places where joy is spread, where there’s music, where there’s dance. You know, we gotta do that."
****
Example #2: Haitians Americans say no to Dominican Republic
Haitians Lives Matter Published on Jul 16, 2015
Haitians Lives Matter in Dominican Republic
-snip-
Chants: Haitian lives matter. Dominican lives matter.
Signage: We condemn apartheid in the Dominican Republic.
****
Examples #3: Protesters rally against Dominican Republic's treatment of Haitian-Dominicans
Miami Herald, Published on Jun 25, 2015
Demonstrators chant "All Dominicans!" as they march from the Dominican consulate to the Haitian consulate in Miami to protest the stripping of citizenship and threatened deportation of Dominicans of Haitian descent from the Dominican Republic. Video by David J. Neal/Miami Herald Staff
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Example #4: Protest against deportation of Haitians and Dominicans with Haitian descent
VideoPam.com Published on Jun 25, 2015
-snip-
Speaker: The US needs to speak up about racism in the Dominican Republic. You can't say that you are against racism in Charleston and not speak up about racism in Santo Domingo.
-snip-
Charleston, South Carolina was the United States city where a White gunman killed nine Black people in a church (June 2015). That gunman's social media documented his allegiance to racist beliefs and symbology, including the Confederate battle flag. Protests eventually resulted in the removal of that battle flag from the South Carolina state government grounds.
Santo Domingo is the Capital of the Dominican Republic.
****
RELATED LINK TO AN ARTICLE ABOUT DR DEPORTATION
http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/10/politics/state-department-dominican-republic-haiti-crisis/
Ex-Peace Corps volunteers unite for U.S. action on Dominican immigration policies
By Mariano Castillo, CNN, Updated 10:28 AM ET, Mon August 10, 2015
****
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Visitor comments are welcome.
Showing posts with label Dominican Republic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dominican Republic. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 11, 2015
Thursday, April 23, 2015
Eduardo Brito - "Siboney" (example, information, & lyrics)
Edited by Azizi Powell
This pancocojams
post showcases a 1931 sound file of this song by Dominican Republic vocalist Eduardo Britos. Information about "Siboney" and information about Eduardo Britos are included in this post along with the song's Spanish lyrics with English explanations.
The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic reasons.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to Ernesto Lecuona and Eduardo Britos for their musical legacy. Thanks also the publisher of this example on YouTube and all those who are quoted in this post.
****
INFORMATION ABOUT THE SONG "SIBONEY"
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siboney_(song)
"Siboney" (Canto Siboney) is a 1929 classic Cuban song by Ernesto Lecuona. The music is in cut time, originally written in C major.[1] The lyrics were reportedly written by Lecuona while away from Cuba and is about the homesickness he is experiencing (Siboney is also a town in Cuba, and can also refer to Cuba in general).[2]
Siboney became a hit in 1931 when performed by the Dominican baritone Eduardo Brito. Other artists followed suit, including Caterina Valente, Xiomara Alfaro, Dizzy Gillespie, Nana Mouskouri and Percy Faith. Siboney was used by Nino Rota in the score for Fellini's nostalgic memoir of the 1930s, "Amarcord."[3] It was recorded by Connie Francis in 1960, and later included in the film, "2046".[4]
An English version of the song was performed by Bing Crosby in 1945. In 1942, Gloria Jean sang the English version in the musical Get Hep to Love.
The song inspired the Mexican-Cuban film Siboney, directed by Juan Orol and starring María Antonieta Pons. The film was released in 1938 as a part of the called Rumberas film saga of the Mexican Cinema."
****
INFORMATION ABOUT EDUARDO BRITO
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eduardo_Brito
"Eduardo Brito (January 22, 1906 – January 5, 1946) was a Dominican Baritone singer. He was world renowned for his voice and took to the stage in many countries performing operas and zarzuelas. The main hall of the Dominican National Theater is named after Brito.
Brito was born Eleuterio Brito in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.[1] He came from a poor family and during his childhood he worked as a shoe-shiner and a candyman.[1] As a young adult, his musical gifts became apparent and Brito in 1926 became acquainted with Julio Alberto Hernández, who helped mold Brito into the great baritone singer that he is remembered as....
-snip-
That Wikipedia page lists Eduardo Brito's musical genres as "Opera, Zarzuela, Merengue, Waltz, Bolero".
****
SHOWCASE EXAMPLE: Eduardo Brito -- Siboney (VintageMusic.es)
This pancocojams
post showcases a 1931 sound file of this song by Dominican Republic vocalist Eduardo Britos. Information about "Siboney" and information about Eduardo Britos are included in this post along with the song's Spanish lyrics with English explanations.
The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic reasons.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to Ernesto Lecuona and Eduardo Britos for their musical legacy. Thanks also the publisher of this example on YouTube and all those who are quoted in this post.
****
INFORMATION ABOUT THE SONG "SIBONEY"
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siboney_(song)
"Siboney" (Canto Siboney) is a 1929 classic Cuban song by Ernesto Lecuona. The music is in cut time, originally written in C major.[1] The lyrics were reportedly written by Lecuona while away from Cuba and is about the homesickness he is experiencing (Siboney is also a town in Cuba, and can also refer to Cuba in general).[2]
Siboney became a hit in 1931 when performed by the Dominican baritone Eduardo Brito. Other artists followed suit, including Caterina Valente, Xiomara Alfaro, Dizzy Gillespie, Nana Mouskouri and Percy Faith. Siboney was used by Nino Rota in the score for Fellini's nostalgic memoir of the 1930s, "Amarcord."[3] It was recorded by Connie Francis in 1960, and later included in the film, "2046".[4]
An English version of the song was performed by Bing Crosby in 1945. In 1942, Gloria Jean sang the English version in the musical Get Hep to Love.
The song inspired the Mexican-Cuban film Siboney, directed by Juan Orol and starring María Antonieta Pons. The film was released in 1938 as a part of the called Rumberas film saga of the Mexican Cinema."
****
INFORMATION ABOUT EDUARDO BRITO
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eduardo_Brito
"Eduardo Brito (January 22, 1906 – January 5, 1946) was a Dominican Baritone singer. He was world renowned for his voice and took to the stage in many countries performing operas and zarzuelas. The main hall of the Dominican National Theater is named after Brito.
Brito was born Eleuterio Brito in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.[1] He came from a poor family and during his childhood he worked as a shoe-shiner and a candyman.[1] As a young adult, his musical gifts became apparent and Brito in 1926 became acquainted with Julio Alberto Hernández, who helped mold Brito into the great baritone singer that he is remembered as....
-snip-
That Wikipedia page lists Eduardo Brito's musical genres as "Opera, Zarzuela, Merengue, Waltz, Bolero".
****
SHOWCASE EXAMPLE: Eduardo Brito -- Siboney (VintageMusic.es)
VintageMusic FM, Nov. 12, 2012
-snip-
Here's the summary of the sound file that was originally embedded in this post, but is no longer available (as of Oct. 26, 2021)
EDUARDO BRITO - SIBONEY (1936) L R E
laradioestacion, Published on Sep 27, 2013
(LA RADIO ESTACION) ELEUTERIO BRITO (EDUARDO BRITO) FUE UN CANTANTE DE OPERA Y BARITONO DE ZARZUELA, NACIO EN PUERTO PLATA, R.D. EL DIA 21 DE ENERO DEL 1906 Y MURIO EN SAN CRISTOBAL EL 03 DE NOVIEMBRE DEL 1946.. ESTE TEMA ** SIBONEY **.. FUE UNO DE SUS GRANDES EXITOS.. DISFRUTEN ESTA HERMOSA PIEZA AMIG@S!!
Google Translate:
(THE RADIO STATION) ELEUTERIO BRITO (EDUARDO BRITO) WAS AN OPERA SINGER AND BARITONE ZARZUELA, BORN IN PUERTO PLATA, RD DAY 21 JANUARY 1906 AND DIED IN SAN CRISTOBAL THE 03 NOVEMBER 1946 .. THIS ITEM ** ** .. SIBONEY WAS ONE OF ITS GREAT HITS .. ENJOY THIS BEAUTIFUL PIECE S FRIEND !!
-snip-
Here's an interesting comment from that sound file's discussion thread:
vianro, 2014
"Una de las voces mas bellas que hemos tenidos en todos los tiempos, de quien se dice que no firmó películas por ser negro, ya que en ese entonce el racismo tenia mucho poder, pero con todo y eso, viajó a muchos países he incluso le cantó a la reina de España si mas no recuerdo...."
-snip-
Google translate from Spanish to English (with my conversion of some of those translations to Standard English:
"[This is] "One of the most beautiful voices that we have had in all times. It's said that he wasn't signed to sing in any films because he was Black. At that time racism was very powerful, but in spite of that he traveled to many countries and, I believe he also she sang for the Queen of Spain if I remember correctly .... more"
-snip-
"More" doesn't refer to there being another part of that comment.
****
SPANISH LYRICS - SIBONEY (English translation with explanations)
From http://learningbysingingspanish.blogspot.com/2008/04/siboney-by-unknown-artists-cuba.html [reformatted for this post]
Siboney, yo te quiero, yo me muero por tu amor.
Siboney, al arrullo de la palma pienso en ti.
Ven a mi, que te quiero y de todo tesoro eres tú para mi.
Siboney, al arrullo de la palma pienso en ti
Siboney de mi sueño, si no oyes la queja de mi voz
Siboney, si no vienes me morir de amor
Siboney de mis sueños, te espero con ansias en mi caney
Siboney, si no vienes me morire de amor
Oye el eco de mi canto de cristal
(2x)
No te pierdas por entre el rudo Manigual
****
English translation (with explanations)
Siboney, I love you, I die for your love (I'm dying for your love)
Siboney, to the sound of the palm tree, I think of you
Come to me, that I love you, and from everything, a treasure you are to me
Siboney, to sound of the palm tree I think of you
Siboney of my dream, if you don't hear the complaint of my voice
Siboney if you don't come, I'll die of love
Siboney of my dreams, I await for you with anxiousness in my caney
Siboney if you don't come I'll die of love
Hear the echo of my singing of glass
(2x)
Don't get lost in the rough Manigual
"(*) Siboney is a name, I guess... I had never heard that name except in this song. I dont even know whether this is a male or female name... (note: a reader has told me that the name comes from a branch of the Cubacanan indians in the Caribbean. Thanks Pepe!)
(1) Arrullar means to lull asleep. Arruyo is the sound made to make babys asleep. Poetically, it can be used for any pleasant, repetitive sound, like the waves in the sea, the leaves in the tree, the flow of a river...
(2) Caney is a type of hut
(3) I guess it means my delicate singing
(4) Manigual is a jungle"
-snip-
*The Wikipedia article given above notes that Siboney is a town in Cuba and in this song may refer to the entire nation of Cuba.
"Caney" appears to usually be translated in this song as "hut". It seems to me that the word "house" could also a correct English translation for the word "caney".
-snip-
My guess is that "hear the echo of my singing of glass" means "my crystal clear singing" (What I am saying is crystal clear- it can't be confused as anything else.)
Also, my guess is that 'Don't get lost in the rough Manigual" means "Don't get lost [sidetracked] by the jungle of life; Don't let other things stop you from coming back to me.
****
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Visitor comments are welcome.
Sunday, October 20, 2013
The Racial Crisis In The Dominican Republic & Rita Dove's Poem "Parsley"
Edited by Azizi Powell
This post showcases the poem "Parsley" by Rita Dove.
The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, and asthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Hat tip to Denise Oliver Velez for her Daily Kos post http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/10/20/1246815/-If-you-are-black-get-out-The-crisis-of-statelessness-in-the-Dominican-Republic. Prior to reading that post, I was unaware of the 1937 massacre that occurred in the Dominican Republic. Nor was I aware of the racist "legal" travestry that is now occurring in that nation. And prior to reading that Daily Kos post, I was also unaware of Rita Dove's poem about that massacre which was included in the publication Museum Museum (Pittsburgh: Carnegie Mellon University Press, 1983).
A brief excerpt of Denise Oliver Velez's post is found below.
****
SHOWCASE VIDEO: Rita Dove's poem "Parsley" with explanation
Carlos Barrera, Published on Jul 4, 2012
Rita Dove reads and explainsher poem "Parsley" about the 1937 Haitian Massacre in the Domincan Republic. This appeared on NPR in 2005.
Click http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCiinhPzxXc for a video of Rita Dove reading this poem in 1987.
Also, click http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/172128 for the words to Rita Dove's poem "Parsley".
****
INFORMATION ABOUT THE PARSLEY MASSACRE
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parsley_Massacre
"The Parsley Massacre; also referred to as El Corte (the cutting) by Dominicans[1] and as Kouto-a (the knife) by Haitians; was a government-sponsored genocide in October 1937, at the direct order of Dominican President Rafael Trujillo who ordered the execution of the Haitian population living in the borderlands with Haiti. The violence resulted in the killing of 20,000[2][3] ethnic Haitian civilians during approximately five days.
Origin of the name
The popular name for the massacre came from the shibboleth that the dictatorial Trujillo had his soldiers apply to determine whether or not those living on the border were native Afro-Dominicans or immigrant Haitians. Dominican soldiers would hold up a sprig of parsley to someone and ask what it was. How the person pronounced the Spanish word for parsley (perejil) determined their fate. French and Haitian Creole pronounce the r as a uvular approximant—thus, their speakers can have difficulty pronouncing the alveolar tap or trill of Spanish.[4] The Dominican soldiers realized that most Haitians had difficulty pronouncing perejil, so if the person could pronounce perejil with a trill, they considered person Dominican and let them live. However, they considered people who pronounced perejil without the trill Haitian, and executed them...
Though this term was used frequently in the English-speaking media during the Commemoration of 75 years after the events (October 2012), most scholars recognize that this is a misnomer, as research by Lauren Derby shows that this explanation is based more on myth than on personal accounts.[citation needed]
Events
...The massacre killed an estimated 20,000 people[2][3] living in the Dominican border—clearly at Trujillo direct order. For approximately five days, from 2 October 1937 to 8 October 1937, Dominican troops killed Haitians with guns, machetes, clubs, and knives. Some died while trying to flee to Haiti across the Artibonite River, which has often been the site of bloody conflict between the two nations.[6] Of the tens of thousands of ethnic Haitians who died, a majority were born in the Dominican Republic and belonged to well-established Haitian communities in the borderlands, thus making them Dominican citizens.[7]...
****
INFORMATION ABOUT RITA DOVE
From http://people.virginia.edu/~rfd4b/
"Rita Dove served as Poet Laureate of the United States and Consultant to the Library of Congress from 1993 to 1995 and as Poet Laureate of the Commonwealth of Virginia from 2004 to 2006. She has received numerous literary and academic honors, among them the 1987 Pulitzer Prize in Poetry (video) and, more recently, the 2003 Emily Couric Leadership Award, the 2001 Duke Ellington Lifetime Achievement Award, the 1997 Sara Lee Frontrunner Award, the 1997 Barnes & Noble Writers for Writers Award, the 1996 Heinz Award in the Arts and Humanities and the 1996 National Humanities Medal (video) from President Clinton...
Ms. Dove was born in Akron, Ohio in 1952... Her latest poetry collection, Sonata Mulattica, was released by W.W. Norton & Co. in 2009, and in 2011 she published The Penguin Anthology of 20th-Century American Poetry."
****
EXCERPT FROM THE DAILY KOS ARTICLE ABOUT THE CURRENT SITUATION IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
From http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/10/20/1246815/-If-you-are-black-get-out-The-crisis-of-statelessness-in-the-Dominican-Republic.
"If you are black, get out: The crisis of statelessness in the Dominican Republic"
"The decision by the high court in the Dominican Republic to declare anywhere from 250,000 to 400,000 Dominicans who may have Haitian ancestry "not citizens" with a start date of birth of 1929 is simply appalling...
Many readers here have ancestors—parents, grandparents and perhaps even great-grandparents who immigrated to the United States after 1929. They became citizens, and their children and grandchildren born here are now part of the tapestry of the U.S. Imagine what would happen if the U.S. Congress passed a law rescinding that citizenship currently based on jus soli, and demanded that all of you "go back to where you came from."
This is just what is happening in our neighboring country of the Dominican Republic, where Dominicans who have some Haitian ancestry are now being forced into statelessness by the modification of jus soli, which is retroactive.
People without a country.
Stateless....
There are petitions you can sign. Here's another one.
You can voice your opinion to the president of the Dominican Republic, Danilo Medina.
info@presidencia.gob.do
You can also follow some of the organizations fighting against the ruling on Twitter: @CentroBono, @reconoci_do, @mudhalegal, @MOSCTHA, @CEDAIL, @CNDHrd, @haitisg "
****
I'm a granddaughter of Caribbean immigrants. And I am appalled that this is happening to anyone, anywhere, at this time, or at anytime.
Please past this information on and please sign one or both of these petitions.
Thank you.
This post showcases the poem "Parsley" by Rita Dove.
The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, and asthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Hat tip to Denise Oliver Velez for her Daily Kos post http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/10/20/1246815/-If-you-are-black-get-out-The-crisis-of-statelessness-in-the-Dominican-Republic. Prior to reading that post, I was unaware of the 1937 massacre that occurred in the Dominican Republic. Nor was I aware of the racist "legal" travestry that is now occurring in that nation. And prior to reading that Daily Kos post, I was also unaware of Rita Dove's poem about that massacre which was included in the publication Museum Museum (Pittsburgh: Carnegie Mellon University Press, 1983).
A brief excerpt of Denise Oliver Velez's post is found below.
****
SHOWCASE VIDEO: Rita Dove's poem "Parsley" with explanation
Carlos Barrera, Published on Jul 4, 2012
Rita Dove reads and explainsher poem "Parsley" about the 1937 Haitian Massacre in the Domincan Republic. This appeared on NPR in 2005.
Click http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCiinhPzxXc for a video of Rita Dove reading this poem in 1987.
Also, click http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/172128 for the words to Rita Dove's poem "Parsley".
****
INFORMATION ABOUT THE PARSLEY MASSACRE
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parsley_Massacre
"The Parsley Massacre; also referred to as El Corte (the cutting) by Dominicans[1] and as Kouto-a (the knife) by Haitians; was a government-sponsored genocide in October 1937, at the direct order of Dominican President Rafael Trujillo who ordered the execution of the Haitian population living in the borderlands with Haiti. The violence resulted in the killing of 20,000[2][3] ethnic Haitian civilians during approximately five days.
Origin of the name
The popular name for the massacre came from the shibboleth that the dictatorial Trujillo had his soldiers apply to determine whether or not those living on the border were native Afro-Dominicans or immigrant Haitians. Dominican soldiers would hold up a sprig of parsley to someone and ask what it was. How the person pronounced the Spanish word for parsley (perejil) determined their fate. French and Haitian Creole pronounce the r as a uvular approximant—thus, their speakers can have difficulty pronouncing the alveolar tap or trill of Spanish.[4] The Dominican soldiers realized that most Haitians had difficulty pronouncing perejil, so if the person could pronounce perejil with a trill, they considered person Dominican and let them live. However, they considered people who pronounced perejil without the trill Haitian, and executed them...
Though this term was used frequently in the English-speaking media during the Commemoration of 75 years after the events (October 2012), most scholars recognize that this is a misnomer, as research by Lauren Derby shows that this explanation is based more on myth than on personal accounts.[citation needed]
Events
...The massacre killed an estimated 20,000 people[2][3] living in the Dominican border—clearly at Trujillo direct order. For approximately five days, from 2 October 1937 to 8 October 1937, Dominican troops killed Haitians with guns, machetes, clubs, and knives. Some died while trying to flee to Haiti across the Artibonite River, which has often been the site of bloody conflict between the two nations.[6] Of the tens of thousands of ethnic Haitians who died, a majority were born in the Dominican Republic and belonged to well-established Haitian communities in the borderlands, thus making them Dominican citizens.[7]...
****
INFORMATION ABOUT RITA DOVE
From http://people.virginia.edu/~rfd4b/
"Rita Dove served as Poet Laureate of the United States and Consultant to the Library of Congress from 1993 to 1995 and as Poet Laureate of the Commonwealth of Virginia from 2004 to 2006. She has received numerous literary and academic honors, among them the 1987 Pulitzer Prize in Poetry (video) and, more recently, the 2003 Emily Couric Leadership Award, the 2001 Duke Ellington Lifetime Achievement Award, the 1997 Sara Lee Frontrunner Award, the 1997 Barnes & Noble Writers for Writers Award, the 1996 Heinz Award in the Arts and Humanities and the 1996 National Humanities Medal (video) from President Clinton...
Ms. Dove was born in Akron, Ohio in 1952... Her latest poetry collection, Sonata Mulattica, was released by W.W. Norton & Co. in 2009, and in 2011 she published The Penguin Anthology of 20th-Century American Poetry."
****
EXCERPT FROM THE DAILY KOS ARTICLE ABOUT THE CURRENT SITUATION IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
From http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/10/20/1246815/-If-you-are-black-get-out-The-crisis-of-statelessness-in-the-Dominican-Republic.
"If you are black, get out: The crisis of statelessness in the Dominican Republic"
"The decision by the high court in the Dominican Republic to declare anywhere from 250,000 to 400,000 Dominicans who may have Haitian ancestry "not citizens" with a start date of birth of 1929 is simply appalling...
Many readers here have ancestors—parents, grandparents and perhaps even great-grandparents who immigrated to the United States after 1929. They became citizens, and their children and grandchildren born here are now part of the tapestry of the U.S. Imagine what would happen if the U.S. Congress passed a law rescinding that citizenship currently based on jus soli, and demanded that all of you "go back to where you came from."
This is just what is happening in our neighboring country of the Dominican Republic, where Dominicans who have some Haitian ancestry are now being forced into statelessness by the modification of jus soli, which is retroactive.
People without a country.
Stateless....
There are petitions you can sign. Here's another one.
You can voice your opinion to the president of the Dominican Republic, Danilo Medina.
info@presidencia.gob.do
You can also follow some of the organizations fighting against the ruling on Twitter: @CentroBono, @reconoci_do, @mudhalegal, @MOSCTHA, @CEDAIL, @CNDHrd, @haitisg "
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I'm a granddaughter of Caribbean immigrants. And I am appalled that this is happening to anyone, anywhere, at this time, or at anytime.
Please past this information on and please sign one or both of these petitions.
Thank you.
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