URBAN DWELLINGS, HAITIAN CITIZENSHIPS: HOUSING, DAILY LIFE AND MEMORY IN PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI VINCENT JOOS A dissertation submitted to the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Anthropology Department at the University of North Carolina. Chapel Hill 2015 Approved by: Rudolf Colloredo-Mansfeld Patricia Sawin Peter Redfield Townsend Middleton Karla Slocum © 2015 VINCENT JOOS ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii ABSTRACT Vincent Joos: Urban Dwellings, Haitian Citizenships: Housing, Memory and Daily Life in Port- au-Prince, Haiti (Under the direction of Rudolf Colloredo-Mansfeld) Port-au-Prince is today the site of top-down urban planning practices that deeply affect the lives of its residents and the site of vernacular urban reconstruction by Haitian people who attempt to assert their right to the city. After the devastating 2010 earthquake, the state and many NGOs and UN agencies established and administered vast tent camps or provided temporary shelters designed to meet minimal housing requirements to people affected by the earthquake. However, many people refused to live in these hazardous camps and, instead, implemented housing solutions of their own. Staying or moving into the old districts of Port-au-Prince and the surrounding areas, people started to negotiate their access to resources such as potable water or electricity and their right to use public space for economic activities. Some of these displaced persons live in houses that belong to the national patrimony, like the Gingerbread Houses which are today included on the World Monument Watch List. Though they seem to be able to negotiate their right to stay in these houses with owners, the stability of their settlements is nonetheless threatened by new exclusionary spatial arrangements established by a state that is demolishing neighborhoods at whim. This research explores how displaced persons are appropriating the cultural patrimony of their city to create habitable dwellings and culturally rich neighborhoods, and how these spatial practices shape the collective rights that emerge amid new security apparatuses and destructive urban practices that reduce access to urban space. People are iii using the cultural patrimony of their city as a situational basis for the production of new rights and spaces of belonging. This use of a material culture echoing the colonization, US occupation and brutal oppression of the masses in Haiti warrants serious attention as it presents a vernacular response to disasters in which fruitful visions for the future of Port-au-Prince arise. iv To Mira and Simon, for their love and courage, To my grandmother Angèle Joos who fought all her life for justice, liberty and equality, And to Aland, Rachel and Kaïm Joseph, for their generosity and their friendship v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First, I want to acknowledge my wife Mira and my son Simon for allowing me to leave our home for months at a time while encouraging me at all stages of my work. I am grateful that they both share my passion for Caribbean music and my interests for everything Haitian. I want to thank my parents, Marie-Josée and Alain Joos, and my family in France and Romania for their love and support. I lost my grandmother, Angèle Joos, while doing fieldwork in Port-au-Prince in July 2014. I constantly thought of her when writing this work. She could have been a politician or scholar but toiled as a janitor for most of her life. She was a smart and knowledgeable woman who dedicated her life to others. She was selfless and humble. She didn't cook or bake, she wasn't nice or polite. She fought for equality and justice, every second of her life. She was a radical feminist and a true egalitarian. She helped many folks to get a decent life in unbelievable ways. She had a hard life and I hope there is peace after all she endured. This work is dedicated to women, who, like her, fight injustice at all levels. Kreyon pep la pa gen gonm! This work is deeply collaborative. It would have been impossible for me to walk in Port- au-Prince and to learn as much as I did without the help and support of countless Haitian friends. Aland Joseph, his wife Rachelle and his son Kaïm welcomed me into their home and family. Aland and I became field associates and walked the city endlessly in order to work on common and separate projects. His knowledge and love for Port-au-Prince still nourish our conversations and our common work. I am grateful for our unique friendship and look forward to working with him in the near and distant future. vi M remesye enfiniman tout zanmi m ki rete nan Rue de L’Enterrement: Carl, Dieumeps ak Oscar ; Clomène, Alain, Monique, Franceska, Kyra ak Bob ; Latéral ; Mario ; Lawdson ; Syphrael ; L.P. ; Luckson; Lanmou ; Pierre-Paul ; Anita ; Gisèle. M remesye fanmi Excellent ki rete Potoprens ak Gros Morne : Brunel ak tout fanmi li ede m anpil. M remesye zanmi nan bò Champ de Mars ak Kalfou Tifou : Monsieur Invité ; Daniel ; Rose-Marie ak Marie-Laure ; Monsieur Dominique ; Frantz ak Katya. Nan zon pacot, m vle remesye David, Deton, Prospere ak Rose. Je remercie tous les gens qui m’ont accueilli chez eux. Maryse Jean-Jacques, pour ton hospitalité, ton amitié, ton intelligence et ton courage. Robert Price m’a laissé consulter ses livres et archives. Nos conversations sur la musique m’ont enrichi et nos après-midis à écouter Perez Prado chez vous sont des souvenirs inoubliables. Pierre Josué Agénor Cadet est un éducateur et historien hors-pair que j’ai eu la chance de connaitre. Maître Rosarion, je me souviendrai de vous toute ma vie. Vous êtes parti vers Dieu sans que l’on puisse fumer une dernière cigarette ensemble. Votre amitié et nos conversations nourrissent mes écrits sur Haïti, comme je vous l’avais promis. Jacques Bartoli m’a aidé à tous les moments de ma recherche et m’a facilité la tâche à bien des moments. Enfin, merci à tous les amis qui m’ont hébergé, nourri, abreuvé (de Prestige ou de bonnes paroles). En premier lieu : Jean-Laurent Lhérisson, Hélène Mauduit, Mehdi Chalmers et Carine Shermann. C’est une chance inouïe d’avoir des amis aussi brillants que vous, merci pour tout ce que vous avez fait pour moi. Merci à Lucie Couet et Lyonel Trouillot pour les excellents moments de conversation et les coups bus ensemble ! Merci à Leslie et Frantz Voltaire pour leur aide. Une pensée particulière pour mon amie, Jane Voltaire, et pour tous les bons moments passés ensemble ! vii Merci à toute l’équipe de Radio RFM Haïti de Pétion-Ville. Mon ami Tony Lamothe, qui présente l’émission « La Belle époque » le dimanche matin sur RFM m’a généreusement accueilli dans son émission où nous avons parlé de vieux konpa, de mini-jazz et de jazz Vodou pendant de longues heures. Je veux remercier Pierre-Marie, un passionné du Jazz des Jeunes, ainsi que Sergo Rosenthal, maestro des Shleu-Shleu et sa femme Yolaine. Je veux remercier Louis-Carl St-Jean pour sa fantastique réponse à mon article « Toujou sou Konpa » paru dans le Nouvelliste en Juillet 2014. Monsieur St-Jean, vous êtes un musicologiste hors pair ! Je suis heureux de maintenir notre riche correspondance et espère continuer notre dialogue pour longtemps. Enfin, merci à l’équipe du journal Le Nouvelliste, qui m’a ouvert ses colonnes afin de publier des articles sur la musique, l’histoire de Port-au-Prince et la vie des immigrés haïtiens en Amérique du Nord. Merci à tous les amis de Mount Olive : Faustin et Judelande Dumé ; Michel Obin ; Jerry Armstrong ; Exina Exilus ; Héraste Obas ; Marie et sa famille ; Monsieur Raymond et sa famille. This research would not have been possible without the financial support from the National Science Foundation; Institute for the Study of the Americas at UNC, Chapel Hill; the Center for the Studies of the American South at UNC, Chapel Hill and the Center for Global Initiatives at UNC, Chapel Hill. I am fortunate to have a supportive and thoughtful dissertation committee at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Rudolf Colloredo-Mansfeld, my advisor and professor, provided me with the intellectual tools and moral support needed to accomplish this work. Rudi always made time to engage thoughtfully with my work and has been an ally in difficult periods of my research life. Peter Redfield’s classes, mentorship and friendship have been invaluable. His patience, generosity and insightful advice allowed me to navigate the viii university way beyond the dissertation. Karla Slocum’s classes have deeply influenced my historical and ethnographic approach of Haiti and the U.S. Deep South. Her support and guidance throughout these years greatly helped me. Towns Middletown has been incredibly supportive in recent years. His insightful advice on all aspects of my work and his own groundbreaking research allowed me to grow professionally and intellectually. Finally, Patricia Sawin’s support and her friendship have been essential to everything I have accomplished the past six years at UNC. Her classes taught me enormously on all levels: from her teaching style to her scholarly work and indefectible support of her students, Patricia Sawin remains a model for me. I am forever grateful to her for everything she did for me and my family. Beyond my committee, I want to thank my professors and colleagues at UNC and Duke. In the Folklore Department at UNC, Bill and Marcie Ferris have been incredible mentors. Bill Ferris’ work on Mississippi literature and music sparked my interests in ethnography and remains a major source of inspiration.