We at Rayjon are concerned about the increase of violent hatred towards immigrant communities, especially Haitian diaspora communities in the United States and Canada. This has come to the international spotlight following recent outrageous remarks regarding Haitian immigrant communities, in Springfield, Ohio.
The specific lies being told may seem laughable, but we know they are dangerous because others falsely see them as proof and use them to fuel their hate. What is being spread is disinformation to demonize and isolate specifically Haitian immigrants, helping to justify and inspire hatred, threats and violence, on the rise in Springfield and other locations around the US, and the world.
This is not the first time disinformation targeting immigrants, or various racialized groups has arisen. This is part of a long-standing pattern of fuelling hatred by creating “the other” as a scapegoat. This tactic has been used repeatedly to shift blame and harness the dissatisfaction and isolation experienced across our nations. This scapegoating has real life consequences including an increase in violent threats from white supremacist groups and individuals holding hateful ideology. There have been some great journalists covering this in much more depth than we have space for here; we encourage you to read some of the work of Ayendy Bonifacio, Claire Wang, or Howard W. French.
Why are we, at Rayjon, bringing this up? Hatred and racism are parasitic ideologies that are easily spread in times of discontent, as we are seeing in our political landscape. Canada has also seen a strong rise in xenophobia and racism towards newcomers that is only more strongly fuelled by such widely publicized disinformation.
We not only collaborate with Haitian partners and friends, who are increasingly targeted by this wave of violence, but our mission includes connecting the global to local. This connection is only possible if we clearly stand against racism and speak out on these matters. It is also not lost on us, based in a city of similar size, similar blue-collar backgrounds and similar demographic make-up, that this hatred can easily become reflected in our communities. We implore those in our community and communities all over the continent, not only to reflect on disinformation, but also to stand against the spread of these hateful ideologies.
“No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.” – Nelson Mandela.
The Haitian Times continues to deliver in-depth coverage on this and other important stories, and we encourage you to follow them for the latest updates: https://haitiantimes.com/
— Rayjon Share Care