Happy New Year!

We hope the new year greeted you as warmly as it greeted us,—with a satisfying bowl of soup joumou! On January 1st, 1804 Haiti became the first independent nation and the only nation in the world to be established as a result of a successful slave revolt. In celebration of the revolutionaries’ relentless fight for freedom, it is Haitian tradition to indulge in soup joumou, also known as “freedom soup.” This savory Caribbean pumpkin dish was originally made for the French enslavers, yet was forbidden to those whose hands prepared it. This inspired a community of hands to join together to dismantle a system of bondage and oppression.

Dr. Martin L. King once said, “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality tied in a single garment of destiny.” In unity, there is strength. Only together can we continue to empower the Matènwa Community to escape the cycle of poverty and change the trajectory of countless lives for generations to come.

We are sustained by this historic legacy of community, strength, and resilience, and we are deeply grateful to our supporters as we stand strong together to fight towards a just and more equitable system of education in Haiti.