The Polls are Open

The state of Florida is having Primary Elections on August 26, 2014. Citizens of Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties will be voting to elect or re-elect judges, councilmen, state representatives and state senators. In a special election, the city of North Miami will be voting to replace former mayor Lucie Tondreau. For more information refer back to Miss-Representation

These elections have great significance to the Haitian American community in S. Florida because in comparison to the populace, we have little to no representation in our local government. It is no secret that the Haitian community sometimes finds it very difficult to stand as one and if in any area it is most apparent in politics. Often times you will find several Haitian American candidates fighting for the same political seat while other ethnicities allow one qualified individual to run unopposed to ensure they are properly represented.

Miss-Representation

The month of May is recognized as Haitian Heritage Month in South Florida. All month long the Haitian Diaspora has been proudly representing the Red and Blue and sharing our culture as the world excitedly looks on. Since THE hurricane of 2008 and the 7.0 earthquake of 2010 ravaged Haiti, the small French and Creole speaking island has been in the public eye. With a newly elected President and a new dedication to establishing Haiti as a premiere tourist destination, the negative perception of Haiti has slowly been changing.

But then local news outlets released these headlines:

North Miami Mayor Sought In Mortgage Fraud Investigation - CBS news

North Miami Mayor Facing Mortgage Fraud Charges - NBC News

North Miami Mayor charged in $8 million mortgage fraud scheme - ABC News

North Miami mayor reportedly to be charged with fraud - Fox News

A dish best served cold...

Justice as stated by the Merriam Webster online dictionary is defined as, "the process or result of using laws to fairly judge and punish crimes and criminals."

In every day life we come across different legal cases that may seem as if there was no justice served, and Florida is NO stranger to this. The Trayvon Martin case, the Casey Anthony case, and the more recent Ethan Couch case aka the Affluenza teen, all under public scrutiny, came to unfavorable ends according to public opinion.  Some will factor in race and social status, some will say the prosecution was to greedy, others still will claim that the criminal justice system prevailed in all cases and fair and impartial justice was served (...right...). Well Wednesday, February 12, 2014 at 8:17pm at the Florida State Prison, to some, justice was served.

In September of 1995, Juan Carlos Chavez kidnapped, raped and murdered 9 year old Jimmy Ryce. According to Mr. Chavez's confession, Jimmy was abducted at gunpoint from his school bus stop, forced into his pickup truck and taken back to his trailer. I will spare the more in-depth details but after four hours at the mercy of his captor, Jimmy attempted to flee but was shot in the back. After witnessing the boy's final breath, Chavez dismembered him, placed him in concrete filled pots and hid the evidence. Three months after the incident, with the help of his then employer, FBI agents caught up with Chavez, were able to get a detailed confession from him along with the whereabouts of Jimmy's body. The FBI's findings led to the 1998 conviction of Chavez for kidnapping, capital sexual battery, and first degree murder. He was sentenced to death.