Back in the 60s and 70s, the paramilitary Tonton Macoutes held sway over Haitian society, doing the bidding of dictator Francois “Papa Doc” Duvalier, assassinating and disappearing between 30,000 and 60,000 people. Since then, the term “macoute” has come to mean something less overtly dangerous and criminal, though sinister nonetheless. Today being called a macoute means you are someone dreaming of the good ole days of authoritarianism, whereby you get your way through intimidation, strong-arm tactics and implied bodily harm. Read More…

Originally published on Huffington Post. Last week, my husband and I got the sad news that our friend, artist Burton Chenet, was shot to death in his home by an intruder. His wife, Christine, sustained a serious injury when the gunman shattered her elbow with another shot before fleeing. The tragic incident took place in Turgeau, a residential area in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Although ours was not a very close relationship, I liked Burton a lot, kept in touch with him Read More…

My friend Mary called to invite me to a dinner party yesterday. The purpose was to introduce a Maasai warrior she befriended to people she thought would appreciate him and his ongoing project: to eliminate preventable deaths from malaria in his village and surrounding areas; to eradicate female circumcision from his culture; and to make male circumcision medically safe. With his own meager means, he had studied to become a licensed rural Health Practitioner, then he opened his health clinic, Read More…