Overview:
Queens Public Library and The Haitian Occasions are partnering to digitize the newspaper’s historic print archives. The initiative, launching Could 17 at Central Library in Jamaica, will culminate in a September exhibition of Haitian diaspora tales.
In a joint effort to protect Haitian American historical past and rejoice Haitian Heritage Month, The Haitian Occasions and Queens Public Library (QPL) are launching a collaboration to digitize the publication’s historic print editions, which chronicled the Haitian diaspora for over twenty years.
The initiative will probably be unveiled throughout a Haitian Heritage and Flag Day celebration at Queens Public Library’s Central Department in Jamaica, Queens, on Could 17. The occasion is a part of the Queens Memory Project, a group archiving program that paperwork the borough’s wealthy cultural cloth by way of oral histories and native supplies.
“After I began The Haitian Occasions in 1999, my objective was easy however necessary: to inform the tales of Haitian New Yorkers in their very own voice. Now, 25 years later, preserving that journey in digital kind ensures our group’s narrative lives on, not simply in reminiscence, however as a part of the historic file,” mentioned Garry Pierre-Pierre, founding father of The Haitian Occasions.
“This collaboration with Queens Public Library is a robust step towards safeguarding our previous and galvanizing future generations to know the place we’ve been and the place we’re going.”
Based in 1999, The Haitian Occasions started as a print weekly serving New York’s Haitian group earlier than transitioning to digital-first publishing in 2012. The digitization venture will make its early archives accessible to researchers, college students and the broader public for the primary time on-line.
As a part of the collaboration, QPL has additionally reserved a gallery area at its Central Department for a particular exhibition on The Haitian Occasions scheduled for September 2025. The exhibit will showcase chosen tales, images and artifacts from the paper’s 25-year historical past, reflecting the evolution and resilience of the Haitian-American group in New York and past.
At Saturday’s launch, attendees can preview the archiving effort and take part in cultural programming honoring Haitian historical past. Queens Reminiscence employees will probably be on-site to help residents in preserving their private tales and household photographs as a part of the borough’s residing historical past.
“Queens Reminiscence empowers the general public to file and share their tales in their very own phrases. We’re thrilled to companion with The Haitian Occasions to create new alternatives for New Yorkers to rejoice the wealthy historical past of this group.,” mentioned Meral Agish, interim director of the Queens Reminiscence Challenge.
The occasion is free and open to the general public, happening from 11 a.m.–4 p.m. at Queens Central Library in Jamaica.