Community Assessment And Its Impact On The Community

“Strength lies in differences, not in similarities “- Stephen R Covery. Living in two different countries is an experience that is likely to open anyone mind. One raised in a smaller country, then moved to a larger country mixed with multiple culture is an experience not to be taking for granted. Full of hardships. Yet, despite lacking in the modern luxuries that are readily available in the United States, they also live a vibrant life full of flavorful food, music, dance, ritual and celebration. There are many differences in the way Haitians live in Haiti versus in America, including school, work, transportation, and environment and while not all of these differences are negative, it is obvious that the great disparity of wealth between the

Illness and disease along with poverty still plague Haiti today. The effort to try and recover from the most recent earthquake tragedy has Haitians concerned. The conditions that they have endured in the past just to survive are worse than the conditions brought on by the earthquake. Some Haitian natives feel the Government is moving a bit slow in cleaning up and getting

The Republic of Haiti is in the western part of the island of Hispaniola in the West Indies. It is densely populated and has the lowest per capita income in the western hemisphere (Kemp, 2001). The population of more than seven million is made up of mostly descendents of African slaves brought to the West Indies by French colonists. The horrible conditions in Haiti, such as crushing poverty, unemployment and illiteracy, and high rates of acute and chronic illnesses and child and infant mortality, result in the illegal immigration of many Haitians to the United States, France, and other countries in Western Europe. Most immigrants are adults and teens who leave Haiti in tiny boats, despite the

The relationship between the Dominican Republic and Haiti is defined by Anti-Haitianismo, “an ideology legacy of racist Spanish colonial mentality, nineteenth-century racial theories and twentieth-century cultural neoracism into a web of anti-Haitian attitudes, racial stereotypes, and historical distortions” (Tavernier, 8). Anti-Haitianismo is not only directed towards Haitian migrants, but also towards black and mulatto Dominican lower classes. The ideology is used to continue the oppression of Haitians and dark-skinned Dominicans in Dominican society (Sagás, ix).

Misrepresentation plagues this island nation overwhelmed with endless suffering. No one sees the beauty of Haiti through a television screen. All they see is misery – natural disaster, disease and poverty—writ large on the evening news. When most Americans think of Haiti, they see problems and a stressed people. However, there is a resilience and a beauty of spirit to Haitians. Even after years upon years of being dehumanized, my people have never broken. Our culture is constantly belittled, but we smile and gather strength from the sun that shines on our island and we persevere.

Stepping off the plane in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti, a certain nervous and excitement feeling rushes through the body as Haiti greets with its intense heat. Port-Au-Prince is the capital of Haiti, and when thought of, a capitol looks like a nice city with wealthy people walking around to their busy jobs. In Port-Au-Prince however, jumbles of people run around with rags for clothes, sitting on the side of the street trying to sell to us “wealthy Americans” (or so they call us and so they think) what they can. Driving out of the city there are seldom any cars but there are motorcycles and dirtbikes in which the Haitians will pile on five people to get around. The children run up and greet people as if they have known them their whole lives, with

When Americans think about the Dominican Republic, what often comes to mind are the expensive resorts and their white, sandy beaches. It does not occur to them that while they are enjoying their nice vacations, there are hundreds of thousands of stateless Haitian people barely surviving just a few miles away. What they also do not comprehend is how these four or five generations of Haitians have come to make their homes in the Dominican Republic. Because it is still an issue today, it is important for us to understand the history of how these present-day events came to be and the current living conditions of these stateless people.

The French and their slaves populated the island of Haiti during the 18th century. In the late 1700’s, the slaves revolted against the French and began a thirteen-year war for their freedom. This war began the significant problems for Haiti. Today, Haiti suffers from malnutrition, low standards of living, and poor literacy, which Haiti still faces today.

The separation the Haitian elite enacted and the poor judgment regarding the removal of the white population in Haiti were two detrimental choices the Haitian people made. The majority of the Haitian people did not make the first flawed choice. Much like the Greenland Norse, the wealthier citizens of Haiti tried desperately to cling to European values and societal norms. Instead of helping the lower class and making the collective economy of Haiti grow, “Haiti’s elite identified strongly with France rather than with their own landscape, did not acquire land or develop commercial agriculture, and sought mainly to extract wealth from the

Section 1: My great grandfather was a native resident of Haiti. He was alive during the very hostile period of persecution by the Dominican Republic. They were discriminated against solely because the Dominicans believed that Haitians were “blacker” than them because of their mostly African roots and felt they weren’t good enough to share the island of Hispaniola with. This racial tension between the two cultures is what led to the rift between the countries. This intense discrimination was also supported and reinforced by some government leaders at some points. In 1937, Rafael Trujillo, the president at that time, ordered the execution of every single Haitian person living on the Dominican-Haitian border. The total amount of deaths ranges from a low 547 to over 30,000 due to numerous firsthand accounts.

(Miami: One Hundred Years of History, Paul S. George, Ph.D.) The “new wave” of Latin culture opened the doors for more business and ethnic flavor. Because of many of those who were Cuban migrants carried a passionate anti-Communism standpoint, by the 1980s, the Cuban refugee population was actively engaging in the political process of the city and dominating the government of the City of Miami. (Miami: One Hundred Years of History, Paul S. George, Ph.D.) In addition, Little Havana had become the destination for refugees from other countries, especially Nicaragua. In the northern sectors of the city, refugees from Haiti were migrating into Lemon City and transforming old Miami into a vibrant black Caribbean community that is now known as Little Haiti

Haiti has long been known for its major export of Haitian migrants in search of a better way of life. It is an exodus that goes back several decades, however with recent times the numbers have increased dramatically. In fact, that numbers of Haitians fleeing Haiti in the early 1990's far exceeds the numbers recorded in earlier years. Between 1972- 1979, some 8,000- 10,000 Haitians arrived in the United States. Compare this number with the 14,443 Haitians interdicted between September 30, 1991 - January 1, 1992. By early 1994, this number totaled over 41,000 (Report on the Situation of Human Rights in Haiti, 1994). Economic deprivation has always been the predominant influence for the migrating of Haitians, yet in the

The One Roof Community Community Centre (ORCC) is a program associated with the Warming Room Community Ministries in Peterborough, Ontario. A meal is served twice a day during the week, and once a day on weekends (Warming Room Community Ministries, 2017). The building is also open for drop-in hours from 12-7, providing a warm place to stay during the afternoon. The Warming Room Community Ministries number one goal is to “work toward God’s dream of justice, peace and love in the City of Peterborough by meeting immediate needs, breaking down barriers that exist in the community and advocating for systemic change.” (Warming Room Community Ministries, 2017).

Theoretically, community needs assessments are a great way to identify gaps within communities and improving the life of individuals within a target group. If there is a collaboration of all three components of the community needs assessment model, Assessment, Dissemination and

This paper serves as an overview and reflection of the community assessment assignment process for the Chinatown presentation team with the community issue of gentrification. There will be an analysis of the team’s performance in regards to strengths and opportunities for growth as well as an outlining how roles and responsibilities were formed including collaboration and communication. Further, since our group presented last, there is an inclusion of the positive aspects of our colleague’s presentations and some suggestions for revision if we were to present again. Additionally, there is personal analysis of my role within the team, areas of personal opportunity for growth, and my role within our group. The end of the reflection paper provides an opportunity for potential application of skills in future social work practice and how I will use the principles of community assessment in future practice. Overall, the process of collaborating with colleagues and the intricacies of assessing a community have prepared me for micro and macro level social work practice in communities of any size.