Haiti, hiding from the world

THE HAITIAN INTERNET NEWSLETTER
"We Become What We Think About Most Of The Time"
http://www.HaitianInternet.com
by: Woodring Saint Preux
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October 18th, 2005
Yap Pale, Nap travay!

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About Change

"People can cry much easier than they can change."

- James Baldwin -
1924-1987, American Author

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First I want to quote a friend of mine from Spring Valley.
We call him Pecos!

Pecos once told me:

"Depi 1804 ayisyen ap fè ganmèl, jiskaprezan, si yo pa
kore-l avek yon wòsh li pap chita dwat."

Translation: "Since 1804 Haitians have been designing
"Ganmel" (a water container made of wood) after all these
years they still need to use rocks to keep is still"

My friend, while it's true that some of us want to change,
the rest of us just want to wake up everyday knowing that
our little world is perfect... everything is exactly the way
it was before we went to sleep.

When Haiti became independent, the world did not want us.

The world has changed since then, now it is us who don't
want the world.

There is only one problem with that…

It is impossible to talk about Haiti without including the
world in it.

I am not an expert, I form my opinion based on my
experiences and the people I come in contact with.

Let me introduce you to a couple of them.

Have you ever been to this site?

http://www.BelFim.com
The Haiti Internet Movie Database

I get lots of compliments for this site. The actor, the
producers, they simply love it.

The purpose of belfim.com is to promote Haitian Movies,
Haitian Actors in the Haitian movie industry, and Haitian
actors in Hollywood.

Here is my dilemma!

I cannot mention Haitian actors in Hollywood without
mentioning the movies they play in.

Does that make sense?

How can I tell you who Gregory Bastien is without mentioning
that he played in Bad Boys II with Will Smith, Martin
Laurence, and Gabrielle Union?

How can I tell you who Jimmy Jean-Louis is without
mentioning Jennifer Lopez, Matt Damon, Bruce Willis, and
Jean Claude Van Damme?

How can I tell you who Garcelle Beauvais is without
mentioning Jamie Fox, Will Smith, Chris Rock, and Cedrick
the Entertainer?

It's not very easy... As a matter of fact it is impossible!

The problem is...

Although some Haitians want to know about Gregory Bastien,
Jimmy Jean Louis, and Garcelle Beauvais, they DO NOT want me
to mention Will Smith, Jennifer Lopez, and Chris Rock.

How is that possible?

Yes Will Smith, Jennifer Lopez, and Chris Rock are not
Haitian but they are now part of a Haitian resume.

How can I tell you about Haiti without mentioning
Christopher Columbus, Nicholas de Ovando, and Napoleon
Bonaparte?

They are not Haitian but they are now part of Haitian
History.

My friends, it is impossible to talk about anything Haitian
without mentioning a few foreigners.

You can't talk about Haitian politics without saying Georges
Bush, both of them, the UN, and the MINUSTAH!

You can't talk about Haitian soccer without saying
mentioning Brazil, Argentina, and FIFA.

You cannot talk about Manno Sanon without saying Dino Zoff!

Zip… Pim… Bow… Manno Sanon… Toup Pou Yo!

By the way,

Haitian actor Jimmy Jean Louis played the role of Haitian
Soccer Player Joe Gatjaens in the movie "The Game of Their
Lives" starring Gerard Butler, Wes Bentley, Directed by
David Anspaugh.

OOPS... I did it again!

Wouldn't you love to know that Oprah Winfrey was in a movie
with Haitian diva Yanick Etienne and Haitian writer Edwidge
Danticat?

I was talking to Haitian Motivational Speaker Rene Godefroy,
and he calls it "Creating a Buzz".

"If you want to be successful," he told me, "you have to
associate yourself with the most successful people in your
field."

Never in the conversation did he say "But they have to be
Haitian or you can't mention their name".

He sees the glass as half full!

Someone emailed me about www.belfim.com and told me that "By
mentioning Will Smith in your website you are
'Overshadowing' the Haitian actor."

She sees the glass as half empty!

Jimmy Jean Louis tells me... "It's nice to mention that I am
Haitian on www.belfim.com but if you don't mention my entire
filmography on our site as well you will make it look like I
achieved nothing."

You know something, Fabienne Colas told me the same thing
almost two years ago.

Now I understand!

The other comment people make about my websites is...

"Why is it not in FRENCH..."

Duh! I don't speak French!

Woodring Saint Preux

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