I was born in Hinche, Haiti. I moved to the US when I was 13 years old with my dad back in 2018. I worked hard in high school to learn English and successfully made it to Georgetown University. My mom and my dad have a basic understanding of English and do not speak it. Like in many immigrant families, I am the interpreter of the family. I have a younger brother that is 15 years old and a younger sister that is turning 10 years old. My younger siblings have a basic understanding of Haitian Creole and cannot articulate and relay information to my parents in Haitian Creole because English is their first language. Being the older brother, having been raised in Haiti for most of my life; I offer the best I can of both worlds. I can speak French, Haitian Creole, and most importantly English. From helping my parents handle documents, calling my siblings' schools, helping them with homework, and also doing regular house chores while I am on breaks from college, I have been a pillar for my family to stand on, and I am proud of such undertaking. I am currently majoring in Black Studies at Georgetown University. My focus is on public policy and how it can be used as a tool to address societal issues in third-world countries such as Haiti. As a proud Haitian myself, I recognize the struggles that many Haitian immigrant families face with the hope of bringing their children a better life here in the US. I also acknowledge the struggles my fellow Haitian brothers face in Haiti with political uproar at an all-time high since we gained our independence back in 1804. The country has been in shambles for a long time and it pains me to see it happen. I miss my home from the food, the neighborhoods, the people, the music. At my core, it always felt like something was not quite right when I watched Haitian news. Before coming to the US, I went to school at College Sacred Heart of Papay (College Sacre Coeur de Papay) in Hinche, Haiti. Going to school consisted of taking the bus to the town of Papay, which is outside the city of Hinche. We would always pass by rivers, by plantations, and land left uncultivated. I wondered why so many Haitians went home hungry or did not have access to food when we have so much land, and fertile mountains but nobody is working them. The first thing that got former president Jovenel in office was his plantations of bananas, or at least appeared to have done so. I dream of one day buying as much land as possible and working them to feed the country. We have more than enough resources as a country to depend on ourselves than use foreign, borrowed money. I believe Haiti can thrive on agriculture and as the Haitian proverb says "Sak vid pa kanpe". We won't progress with an empty stomach.

I was born in Hinche, Haiti. I moved to the US when I was 13 years old with my dad back in 2018. I worked hard in high school to learn English and successfully made it to Georgetown University. My mom and my dad have a basic understanding of English and do not speak it. Like in many immigrant families, I am the interpreter of the family. I have a younger brother that is 15 years old and a younger sister that is turning 10 years old. My younger siblings have a basic understanding of Haitian Creole and cannot articulate and relay information to my parents in Haitian Creole because English is their first language. Being the older brother, having been raised in Haiti for most of my life; I offer the best I can of both worlds. I can speak French, Haitian Creole, and most importantly English. From helping my parents handle documents, calling my siblings' schools, helping them with homework, and also doing regular house chores while I am on breaks from college, I have been a pillar for my family to stand on, and I am proud of such undertaking. I am currently majoring in Black Studies at Georgetown University. My focus is on public policy and how it can be used as a tool to address societal issues in third-world countries such as Haiti. As a proud Haitian myself, I recognize the struggles that many Haitian immigrant families face with the hope of bringing their children a better life here in the US. I also acknowledge the struggles my fellow Haitian brothers face in Haiti with political uproar at an all-time high since we gained our independence back in 1804. The country has been in shambles for a long time and it pains me to see it happen. I miss my home from the food, the neighborhoods, the people, the music. At my core, it always felt like something was not quite right when I watched Haitian news. Before coming to the US, I went to school at College Sacred Heart of Papay (College Sacre Coeur de Papay) in Hinche, Haiti. Going to school consisted of taking the bus to the town of Papay, which is outside the city of Hinche. We would always pass by rivers, by plantations, and land left uncultivated. I wondered why so many Haitians went home hungry or did not have access to food when we have so much land, and fertile mountains but nobody is working them. The first thing that got former president Jovenel in office was his plantations of bananas, or at least appeared to have done so. I dream of one day buying as much land as possible and working them to feed the country. We have more than enough resources as a country to depend on ourselves than use foreign, borrowed money. I believe Haiti can thrive on agriculture and as the Haitian proverb says "Sak vid pa kanpe". We won't progress with an empty stomach.

My dad brought me to the United States for a better education and a better life. My mom, my younger brother and sister were already living here. I also have an older sister that is still living in Haiti. My dad made many sacrifices to provide for our family. In Hinche, my native city, my dad was going to become the director of the Department of Education. Instead, he now works 11 hours a day as a butcher in Philadelphia. Due to my father suffering from sickle cell anemia, he’s almost always in constant pain from standing up the whole day and cutting meat. He looks as if he is losing his hand as he can barely use it to do anything as his fingers are swollen and very sensitive. When I think about it, it makes me want to cry, but I know that my tears will not change our circumstances. From that point on, I undertook the challenge of learning the English language. My mom and dad did not know how to speak English and still struggle with it as they spend most of their time working and providing for us. My brother and sister know how to speak English, but they mostly communicate in Haitian Creole. Consequently, I challenged myself to learn English as fast as I could. In the summer of 2018, I immersed myself in the English language: watching YouTube videos, listening to English songs, viewing English movies and television series, and studying vocabulary. My goal was to eloquently speak and write in English. After being in America for about a year, I scored high enough on the ACCESS TEST to test out of ESOL. I was later recommended to take on honors classes by my English teacher. I knew that making a big jump from sheltered classes to honors classes was not going to be an easy task. But I was determined to overcome whatever obstacle came my way. After I became fluent enough in English, I realized that learning a language is one of the most rewarding experiences. It is gratifying to look at how I was struggling in the beginning to see how I can speak without worrying about stuttering. English being such a widely spoken language helped me become part of an international community as I got to speak to people with different backgrounds and different cultures. Learning the English language helped foster the passion that I soon developed for learning languages. At a young age in Haiti, I was exposed to Spanish tv shows and songs, which prompted me to start learning Spanish soon after learning English. I also wanted to learn it to better understand my soccer idol, Lionel Messi. Now, I love to learn languages and explore different cultures as I have come to believe when we talk to someone in their first language, we speak to their heart. I believe that speaking to people’s hearts can help change the world. I also believe that learning languages and exploring different cultures allow us to see the world from many different perspectives. I plan to major in International relations and will potentially minor in a language. My belief is that language is the bridge to understanding people on a deeper and more personal level and that understanding can lead to creating a better world. I hope to someday cater to underrepresented communities such as the Hispanic community. People who face a language barrier and are unable to take advantage of the opportunities available to them. With a minor in Spanish, I hope to help cater to the Hispanic community.

It was freezing cold outside when I stepped out of the airport in New York. Due to my fear of heights and the high winds that shook the plane during the flight, I felt that my heart was going to explode on the journey there. But when I arrived unscathed in New York on January 11, 2018, I knew that a whole new world awaited me. My dad brought me to the United States for better education and a better life. My mom, my younger brother, and my sister were already living here. I also have an older sister that is still living in Haiti. My dad made many sacrifices to provide for our family. In Hinche, my native city, my dad was going to become the director of the Department of Education. Instead, he now works 11 hours a day as a butcher in Philadelphia. Due to my father suffering from sickle cell anemia, he’s almost always in constant pain from standing up the whole day and cutting meat. He looks as if he is losing his hand as he can barely use it to do anything as his fingers are swollen and very sensitive. When I think about it, it makes me want to cry, but I know that my tears will not change our circumstances. From that point on, I undertook the challenge of learning the English language. My mom and dad did not know how to speak English and still struggle with it as they spend most of their time working and providing for us. My brother and sister know how to speak English, but they mostly communicate in Haitian Creole. Consequently, I challenged myself to learn English as fast as I could. In the summer of 2018, I immersed myself in the English language: watching YouTube videos, listening to English songs, viewing English movies and television series, and studying vocabulary. My goal was to eloquently speak and write in English. After being in America for about a year, I scored high enough on the ACCESS TEST to test out of ESOL. I was later recommended to take on honors classes by my English teacher. I knew that making a big jump from sheltered classes to honors classes was not going to be an easy task. But I was determined to overcome whatever obstacle came my way. After I became fluent enough in English, I realized that learning a language is one of the most rewarding experiences. It is gratifying to look at how I was struggling, in the beginning, to see how I can speak without worrying about stuttering. English being such a widely spoken language helped me become part of an international community as I got to speak to people with different backgrounds and different cultures. Learning the English language helped foster the passion that I soon developed for learning languages. Now, I love to learn languages and explore different cultures as I have come to believe when we talk to someone in their first language, we speak to their heart. I believe that speaking to people’s hearts can help change the world. I also believe that learning languages and exploring different cultures allow us to see the world from many different perspectives. I plan to major in International relations and will potentially minor in a language. My belief is that language is the bridge to understanding people on a deeper and more personal level and that understanding can lead to creating a better world.