a1238: Loser in City Council race a winner in other endeavors (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: leonie hermantin <lhermantin@hotmail.com>

NORTH MIAMI
Loser in City Council race a winner in other endeavors
Activist at 24 seen as having a bright future
BY MICHAEL VASQUEZ
mrvasquez@herald.com

In a city that has become a power base for South Florida's burgeoning
Haitian-American community, Alix Desulme could easily be described as just
another political success story -- except that, at 24, Desulme's story has
barely begun.

''He's a symbol of courage for the youth here,'' North Miami Mayor Josaphat
Celestin said of Desulme, founder of the political action committee Young
Minorities in Action and a candidate for city council during last year's
North Miami elections.

Earlier this month, the National Organization for the Advancement of
Haitians recognized Desulme by giving him its Youth Leadership Award.
Desulme traveled to Washington, D.C., to accept the honor.

The native of Arcahaie, a small Haitian town 50 miles north of
Port-Au-Prince, moved to North Miami in 1993, after spending several years
in Westbury, N.Y. Desulme was first drawn to civic affairs while attending
North Miami Senior High School. At 15, he served on the committee organizing
North Miami's ''Clean City Week.'' That membership snowballed into a host of
others, like the North Miami Jaycees, of which he became vice president last
year.

''I'm learning the process, I'm getting involved,'' he said.

But Desulme wants others to participate in the political system as well.
This year, he co-founded another group, Young Florida Vote, that is
organizing a series of hip-hop concerts at colleges throughout the state.
The concerts are free, but students can only attend if they have a valid
voter registration card or if they register on the spot.

Elora Mason, 29, who founded YFV with Desulme, said that when she met him
last year, she had no idea he was so young. He seemed so ''mature,'' she
says.

''The things that he's done and said so far show that he's going places,''
Mason said. ``I just hope he stays with that vision. I'm proud of him.''

As a job placement specialist at Catholic Charities in Little Haiti, Desulme
regularly encounters laid-off workers short on both funds and hope. Desulme
works to ensure his clients get back on their feet.

''I love helping people,'' Desulme said. ``I have a passion for helping
people.''

In last May's four-man race for North Miami's District 3 council seat,
Desulme placed third. The winner of the seat was Haitian American Jacques
Despinosse, who at 56 is old enough to be Desulme's father.

Desulme remains undeterred. He says he will ''definitely'' will run again.
But being politically ambitious in your 20s isn't easy. North Miami
Councilman Scott Galvin -- who unsuccessfully sought a council seat at age
20 -- can attest to that.

''You have to overcome people second-guessing you or thinking you're not
mature enough,'' Galvin, now 33, said. ``They sometimes attach intelligence
to an age.''


_________________________________________________________________
Send and receive Hotmail on your mobile device: http://mobile.msn.com