(Photo Courtesy: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Wilbur Wright is the only community college in the United States that works closely with the State Department on a program called the Diplomacy Lab, a program launched in 2013 to engage students in research regarding foreign policy issues. This semester, along with two other colleges, Wright was tasked with researching the Haitian diaspora in the United States and learning more about the communities and organizations here in the country. The ultimate goal of the State Department is to engage with the wider Haitian community and hear their voices on the many issues facing Haiti and the community.
Leading the effort and project, Merry Mayer, a professor of Political Science, said that “Students working on this project were tasked with compiling a comprehensive spreadsheet of Haitian organizations throughout the U.S. The U.S. Dept. of State is hoping some of these groups could be partners in the State Dept.'s efforts to help Haiti.”
I spoke with one of the students working on this project, and I wanted to hear about the research they did and their experience. Javier Vasquez, a sophomore who had previously worked with Professor Mayer on a similar Diplomacy Lab in 2021, decided to take on this opportunity. “Originally I had to find a one credit course and I had remembered in my first semester being told that Independent Studies counted for that credit and what better way to end my time here at Wright than to take one last Diplomacy Lab course with Professor Mayer” Vasquez said about the project. “Initially, we had to figure out what areas of the United States we were doing. Different people had chosen big cities like Chicago, New York City, and Philadelphia. However, I thought I would give the Haitian community in Houston the recognition they deserve. I chose to do my research in Texas because it was a smaller population and I felt like their voice should be heard and represented in this project.” Vasquez later explained how much more difficult it is to compile a list of Haitian organizations in the greater Houston area. “Afterwards, I decided to branch out to other parts of Texas as well as the neighboring state of Louisiana. In doing so, I was able to find several organizations whose missions range from community within religious groups all the way to aiding children in crisis in Haiti.”
After completing this project, Vasquez felt accomplished and able to provide a platform and a voice for the Haitian community in Texas. “I was able to find the groups and it’ll allow the State Department to know which groups to work with moving forward in dealing with issues surrounding Haiti and coming up with solutions.”
(Photo Courtesy: Victor Moriyama/The New York Times)
Haiti is no stranger to crises, both political and geographical. The most recent crisis being in 2021 when their then-president Jovenel Moïse was assassinated that was followed by a civil unrest and a take-over by the G9 gang and other anti government protesters the year after. The voice of the Haitian diaspora is more important now than ever.
Professor Mayer also stated that current participants in the Diplomacy Lab could have the possibility of presenting their project in person to the State Department in Washington DC if all goes well with their request for funding for the trip.
For students studying Political Science, understanding political disparities and conflicts is a necessary skill. Any students who are interested in taking the Diplomacy Lab for the Fall 2023 semester, both ANTHRO 202 E5 & HJ5 Cultural Anthropology are offering the Diplomacy Lab about Native Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islander Experience. If you have any questions about the course or project, contact Professor Matias at jmatias27@ccc.edu or if you have any questions about the Diplomacy Lab, contact Merry Mayer at mmayer2@ccc.edu
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