HAITIAN RADIO OUTREACH PROJECT Executive Summary A grant of $100,000 will support the purchase of radio time targeting Haitian-Americans in Miami-Dade County and other Haitian communities in Florida. The Project will focus on rais- ing awareness of issues that are important to Haitian-Americans and mobilizing voter turnout on November 2. Strategic decisions about “buy-time” will be guided by an advisory board of Haitian community leaders in Miami’s “Little Haiti.” Demographics 298,000 Haitian-American U.S. citizens live in Florida. The 96,000 who live in Miami-Dade County represent 21% of the entire county’s population. Haitian-Americans are also concen- trated in Broward, West Palm Beach, and Pinelles counties. Florida’s computerized voter file makes race distinctions for Caucasian, Black and Hispanic as well as a specific classification for Cuban, but there are no distinctions for Haitians who are listed as black. Voting Pattern Haitian-Americans traditionally support the Democratic Party. On October 5, Teresa Heinz Kerry’s visited Little Haiti. She addressed the Haitian-American community in a town hall fo- rum and visited two families affected by the recent floods in Haiti. However, the meeting was organized at the last minute event and many people were not informed. In addition, key leaders were not invited and those chosen to speak did not represent the community at large. GOP Efforts The Bush-Cheney campaign is making inroads. The GOP has appointed a Haitian campaign chairman in Miami-Dade. In addition, the Bush administration recently convened an invitation only community meeting to discuss recommendations for U.S.AID emergency relief and recon- struction activities in Haiti. Radio The most far reaching medium of communication for Haitian-Americans is Creole-language ra- dio. A range of topics – from healthcare, parenting, politics, etc. -- is discussed on Haitian radio. Call-in shows are a popular tool for dialogue. Radio talk hosts and DJ’s have become powerful influences over their listeners, guiding them in their political directions by providing information on candidates and their platforms. Content The Haitian Radio Outreach Project will be undertaken in both English and Creole. Funds will be used to buy radio time from the DJ’s and radio hosts who themselves buy time to broadcast their shows. Rather than radio “spots”, programming will emphasize discussions of policy and inter- views with local and national leaders addressing issues of concern to the community. Advisory Board The nucleus of the advisory board will include well-respected Haitian-led organizations, in- cluding: - Haitian American Foundation (Ringo Cayard) - Sant La Haitian Neighborhood center (Gepsie Metellus) - Center for Haitian Studies (Dr. Larry Pierre) Radio Stations Potential participants include: - Antenna 88 (WDNA 88.9FM - Miami) - Carrfour/Radio Carnivale (1020 AM – Pembroke Pines) - Radio Haiti Amerique Internationale (980 AM – Boca Raton) - Radio RCH (1060 AM/88.9FM – Homestead) - Radyo Lekol (WLRN 91.3FM – Miami) - Union Radio (Miami)WVCG (1080 AM – Miami) - WLQY (1320 AM – Miami) Technical Assistance For more information contact Kimberly Green at (786)276-8655 .