Croix-des-Bouquets
Encyclopedia
Croix-des-Bouquets is a city in the Ouest Department
of Haiti
. It is located 12.9 kilometres (8 mi) to the northeast of Haiti's capital city, Port-au-Prince
. Originally located on the shore, it was relocated inland after the 1770 Port-au-Prince earthquake
. Due to this fact, it was not as badly affected in the 2010 Haiti earthquake
. The city will be home to refugee tent villages of about 10,000 refugees each when the first wave of refugees begins to be resettled there.
in the Port-Au-Prince metropolitan area
. Haiti is world famous for its exuberant art, richly influenced by nature, history and religion, both Christian
and Vodou. The entire village of Croix des Bouquets is a good example of Haitian creativity - it resonates with the sounds of clanging and banging of the mallets and chisels in the process of transforming raw metal into stunning, and often haunting, iron sculptures. The city of Croix-des-Bouquets is on the Plaine du Cul-de-Sac, where many people grow organic foods such as beans, sweet potato, and corn.
In the wake of the 12 January 2010 quake, the Cuban medical mission set up a field hospital
in the region.
to the north east which opened its doors in 1980 which survived the 2010 Haiti earthquake
and its staff were cooperating in relief efforts and sharing space and support with neighbors. A clinic was run at the school by a medical team from the United States and Canada. Currently it is a K-10 school and offers classes to transition from Haitian Creole
to the French language
but also a secondary language in English. The founders of Institution Chrétienne D'Haïti
are seeking to build the Université Chrétienne D'Haïti here.
Another organization is the Haitian-American Caucus (HAC), which runs the Ecole Shalom des Freres (Peace Be With You School of Brothers) in Michaud, a small community in Croix-des-Bouquets. The school is also known as the Alpha Academy and is funded in part by Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. This school was established in 2003 and as of school year 2010-2011, 75 students were enrolled. HAC is only able to accept additional students through child education sponsorships and partnerships with other organizations. Students can be sponsored for $125 a year. M.A.D.E has joined HAC in providing 3 vegetarian meals a week for students. The school also offers community English courses taught by Haitians who went through previous versions of the course, and supplemented with the help of English-speaking volunteers.
Ouest Department
Ouest is one of the ten departments of Haiti. It is the jurisdictional seat of the national capital, the city of Port-au-Prince. It has an area of and a population of 3,093,698 . It borders the Dominican Republic to the east.It is the second largest department in Haiti after the Artibonite...
of Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
. It is located 12.9 kilometres (8 mi) to the northeast of Haiti's capital city, Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince is the capital and largest city of the Caribbean nation of Haiti. The city's population was 704,776 as of the 2003 census, and was officially estimated to have reached 897,859 in 2009....
. Originally located on the shore, it was relocated inland after the 1770 Port-au-Prince earthquake
1770 Port-au-Prince earthquake
The 1770 Port-au-Prince earthquake took place at 7:15 pm on June 3, 1770, on the Enriquillo fault near Port-au-Prince, Saint-Domingue, the French colony that is now the country of Haiti....
. Due to this fact, it was not as badly affected in the 2010 Haiti earthquake
2010 Haiti earthquake
The 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake, with an epicentre near the town of Léogâne, approximately west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital. The earthquake occurred at 16:53 local time on Tuesday, 12 January 2010.By 24 January, at least 52 aftershocks...
. The city will be home to refugee tent villages of about 10,000 refugees each when the first wave of refugees begins to be resettled there.
Culture
Croix-des-Bouquets is a northern suburbSuburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
in the Port-Au-Prince metropolitan area
Metropolitan area
The term metropolitan area refers to a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories, sharing industry, infrastructure, and housing. A metropolitan area usually encompasses multiple jurisdictions and municipalities: neighborhoods, townships,...
. Haiti is world famous for its exuberant art, richly influenced by nature, history and religion, both Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
and Vodou. The entire village of Croix des Bouquets is a good example of Haitian creativity - it resonates with the sounds of clanging and banging of the mallets and chisels in the process of transforming raw metal into stunning, and often haunting, iron sculptures. The city of Croix-des-Bouquets is on the Plaine du Cul-de-Sac, where many people grow organic foods such as beans, sweet potato, and corn.
People
- Wyclef JeanWyclef JeanWyclef Jean is a Haitian musician, record producer, and politician. At age nine, Jean moved to the United States with his family and has spent much of his life in the country...
a Haitian-American rapRappingRapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...
per, singer and member of the trio the FugeesThe FugeesFugees were a Haitian American hip hop group who rose to fame in the mid-1990s. Their repertoire included elements of Hip hop, soul and Caribbean music, particularly reggae. The members of the group were rapper/singer/producer Wyclef Jean, rapper/singer/producer Lauryn Hill, and rapper Pras Michel...
, was born in Croix-des-Bouquets, where he lived until he was nine years old.
History
Prior to the 12 January 2010 earthquake, the once crowded city had been restored. The streets had been cleaned up, wholesale merchants and other commerce had been relocated to Port-au-Prince. Retail commerce which once crowded sidewalks downtown now had a dedicated building.In the wake of the 12 January 2010 quake, the Cuban medical mission set up a field hospital
Field hospital
A field hospital is a large mobile medical unit that temporarily takes care of casualties on-site before they can be safely transported to more permanent hospital facilities...
in the region.
Education
One school close by is Anís Zunúzí Bahá'í SchoolAnís Zunúzí Bahá'í School
The Anís Zunúzí Bahá'í School is a Bahá'í School near Port-au-Prince, Haiti, which first began to hold classes in 1980. It reached the point of offering classes K through 10th grade...
to the north east which opened its doors in 1980 which survived the 2010 Haiti earthquake
2010 Haiti earthquake
The 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake, with an epicentre near the town of Léogâne, approximately west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital. The earthquake occurred at 16:53 local time on Tuesday, 12 January 2010.By 24 January, at least 52 aftershocks...
and its staff were cooperating in relief efforts and sharing space and support with neighbors. A clinic was run at the school by a medical team from the United States and Canada. Currently it is a K-10 school and offers classes to transition from Haitian Creole
Haitian Creole language
Haitian Creole language , often called simply Creole or Kreyòl, is a language spoken in Haiti by about twelve million people, which includes all Haitians in Haiti and via emigration, by about two to three million speakers residing in the Bahamas, Cuba, Canada, France, Cayman Islands, French...
to the French language
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
but also a secondary language in English. The founders of Institution Chrétienne D'Haïti
Institution Chretienne D'Haiti
Institution Chrétienne D'Haïti is a school in Carrefour, Haiti.-Academics:The school operates a bilingual French and English program. The school teaches Language Arts, Musical Arts, Science and Math.-History:...
are seeking to build the Université Chrétienne D'Haïti here.
Another organization is the Haitian-American Caucus (HAC), which runs the Ecole Shalom des Freres (Peace Be With You School of Brothers) in Michaud, a small community in Croix-des-Bouquets. The school is also known as the Alpha Academy and is funded in part by Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. This school was established in 2003 and as of school year 2010-2011, 75 students were enrolled. HAC is only able to accept additional students through child education sponsorships and partnerships with other organizations. Students can be sponsored for $125 a year. M.A.D.E has joined HAC in providing 3 vegetarian meals a week for students. The school also offers community English courses taught by Haitians who went through previous versions of the course, and supplemented with the help of English-speaking volunteers.
External links
- Noailles, Croix dex Bouquets Metal Workers Village
- Haiti-x-change by Gary Charles
- Haitian Revolutionary studies by David Patrick Geggus
- 2003 WELOVEHAITI.COM designed by Marcus (marcus@rexnite.com)
- Image courtesy of Earth Sciences and Image Analysis Laboratory, NASA Johnson Space Center; http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov