The Association of Haitian Women [4] and various health organizations in the Boston area will host an International Women's Day event on March 8, 2008, in Dorchester.

Carline Desiré, executive director of the association, spoke to New England Ethnic News about the event as well as common health and family concerns of Haitian women in Boston.

Domestic violence, access to health care, communication with medical staff, and disconnect with one's "mainstream" children are some of their top concerns, Desiré said.

Desiré (pronounced de-zeer-ay) spoke to New England Ethnic News by phone on Feb. 29, 2008.

Following is the edited and condensed interview.

What is happening at the International Women's Day event?

We will be commemorating International Women's Day with lots of activities. This year, the focus is on women's health. There's a lot of issues going on, especially with the new (Massachusetts) law on mandatory health care (insurance).

We find that a lot of Haitian women are not necessarily seeking health care. Others may have health care (insurance), but they mention lack of cultural competence in the health care that they receive.

Some women mention that it's really difficult to talk about personal things through interpreters. Even when they do have interpretation, it's not always the best way to address their health care (needs).

What health-related activities will you have at your International Women's Day event?

Dr. Michel David will speak on the status of women's health today, with a focus on Haitian women.

She is an assistant professor of medicine and the outreach director at the Center for Excellence in Women's Health at Boston Medical Center.

She's also the co-director of the Haitian Health Institute at Boston Medical Center.

We'll have different workshops. One of them - "What a Woman Needs to Know to Protect Herself" - will (give) general information about what women need to do to take care of themselves.

Janine Midy, a nurse at Boston Medical Center, will facilitate that workshop.

The second workshop is "The Effects of Violence, Immigration and Poverty on Mental Health." A licensed social worker, Olivia Apollon, will facilitate that workshop with another licensed social worker, Marie Andre Pierre-Victor.

The last workshop is "Nutrition and Fitness." It will be conducted by someone from Healthworks Foundation.

We will a have a special performance by a singer, Derline Fevrius, a woman who teaches a literacy class at the Association of Haitian Women.

You said earlier that Haitian women have concerns about the health care they receive. What are some of these health concerns?

We have (talked to) women who have health insurance, but they've raised issues about how the health care is delivered, especially regarding personal (gynecologic-related) issues like the woman's body, personal private parts, the reproductive organs.

We also have a group of people who say they've never been to the doctor. One woman mentioned she was pregnant but never went to the doctor until the end.

Some people say they've never gone to the doctor because they don't want want to become a burden on the people who are taking care of them.

The people who said they'd never been to the doctor because they don't want to become a burden, were they mainly elderly?

It could be anyone. The people who shared this information with us were women (who weren't elderly), including one young woman.

What other problems do Haitian women in Greater Boston face?

Well, that's a good question! There's a host of problems that they face.

Notice that the second workshop (at our International Women's Day event) has to do with violence, immigration and poverty. The title reflects some of the problems that we see surfacing.

We met with a group of women in June 2007. They talked about domestic violence, youth and women-specific (issues).

In regard to women-specific problems, they mentioned domestic violence.

They mentioned health and education and immigration. Those were the top ones that they mentioned.

For the community at large, they mentioned youth as a MAJOR problem. They approached it from different angles, but the two that were very much alive were the continued disconnect between some of the older people and the younger folks - losing (youth) to mainstream culture.

Also, some of these youth are getting into trouble. In the Dorchester area (of Boston), not too far from the office of the Association of Haitian Women, there's a street where there were three deaths last year (of youth whom people in the Haitian community knew).

Some of the women feel that we're losing our children. And who's going to take the leadership of the community if the youth are getting into so much trouble today?

What kind of trouble were the youth getting into, that concerned the women in your focus group?

It's a combination of different things. It's them getting into illicit activities and getting involved in drugs and gangs, et cetera.

That is very fearful for the women. We feel we have a responsibility not only when it comes to our children, but to young people (in general) because women have been the primary care (giver) for children.

They mentioned another aspect of youth problems, which is teen pregnancy.

Where in the Boston area are there big populations of Haitians?

In Boston, definitely Mattapan and Dorchester, particularly South Dorchester, and Hyde Park. Recently, you see more Haitians in Roslindale also.

In the Boston area, you have pockets of Haitians all over. Cambridge has a big Haitian community.

As people look for cheaper housing, they tend to go to the (suburbs of Boston in the) south, such as Randolph and Brockton. There are some, but not as many, in Stoughton.

You see some who went up north (of Boston), to Lynn.

What are some of the services of the Association of Haitian Women?

We establish that space where women find the strength and tools necessary to make meaningful changes in their lives and in their families' lives. It's about: how do we help women to strengthen themselves?

How do we do this? We work on violence issues, especially domestic violence – because violence isn't only a physical blow, it's a mental blow. We (help) them to regain their self-esteem, their leadership capacities, to take charge and be active citizens.

(We also help) the women to arm themselves to help their children (in turn), to start passing these conceptions on to them and to end certain (negative) cycles (in families).

Through the domestic violence program, we do a lot of work on immigration, safety planning, et cetera.

We collaborate with a lot of different groups, which include domestic violence shelters, immigration attorneys, lobbying work at various levels in regard to immigration, and violence prevention.

We do different things. We're very small. We're always looking for volunteers. We've been very dependent on volunteers to come in and help us with the work.

What kind of adult education does the association offer?

Primarily ESL and literacy. In the (ESL and literacy) class, we try to look at women's rights issues.

We also do economic literacy - solely for women - when funding permits. This is extremely important for the women.

What is the association's round table on domestic violence?

We run a round table on domestic violence every first Wednesday of the month.

We have an active (attendance) of 15 to 20 people from the shelters; the health centers, especially Codman Square Health Center (in Dorchester); DSS (Department of Social Services); the Boston Police Department, especially Area B-3; and other Haitian community-based organizations.

The round table is primarily for providers. We've also had people who are survivors of domestic violence who have been able to participate.

Do volunteers for the Association of Haitian Women need to speak or understand Haitian Creole?

You know what, we would love anyone who could devote a week, a day, a couple of hours. You don't have to speak Haitian Creole.

People who want to volunteer can go to our Web site or stop by our office (at 334 Fuller Street in Dorchester) or come to our March 8 event. We'll have volunteer applications (at the event).

People can call us (617-287-0096). We always have something that they can do.

What are the women like in your dream world for Haitian women?

Educated. Well informed. Having economic means. And also, having that luxury to have arts and culture and all of the wonderful things in their lives.

The Association of Haitian Women (617-287-0096, www.afab-kafanm.org [5]) is located at 334 Fuller Street in Dorchester, Boston.

Source: EthnicNewz.org

Copyright 2008 New England Ethnic News, EthnicNewz.org. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the expressed permission by the news source. Contact Newz for more information.

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