15487: (Hermantin) Sun-Sentinel- Haitian-American writer finds new life in S. Florida (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: leonie hermantin <lhermantin@hotmail.com>

Sun-Sentinel

Acclaimed Haitian-American writer finds new life in S. Florida

By Alva James-Johnson
Staff Writer
Posted May 7 2003


As a new driver, Edwidge Danticat carefully navigates the streets of Little
Haiti, a quaint little enclave that is slowly becoming home.

The colorful stucco houses that line the Miami neighborhood intrigue her; so
do the thriving Haitian businesses and the huge trees that sprinkle red
blossoms to the ground.

For Danticat, the young Haitian-American writer who has become a darling of
American critics, the neighborhood represents both the old and the new.

On one hand, it is reminiscent of the place of her birth. On the other, it
offers cultural nourishment for her life as a newly married woman.

"It's a wonderful, new experience," she says from behind the wheel of her
silver Toyota Echo. "And when you're a creative person, that's what feeds
your spirit."

Danticat, 34, is the author of five works of fiction, including Breath,
Eyes, Memory; Krik? Krak! and The Farming of Bones. The first arrived on the
U.S. literary scene in 1994 and shoved her into the national spotlight, even
winning her a spot on Oprah Winfrey's book list.

She was chosen one of "33 Women of the 21st Century" by Harper's Bazaar
magazine in 1995 and one of "20 Writers for the 21st Century" by The New
Yorker in 1999. She served as a visiting professor of creative writing at
the University of Miami in the spring of 2000.

Danticat moved to South Florida from New York City six months ago, after
marrying Faidherbe "Fedo" Boyer, owner of a Creole translation business with
offices in Miami and Broward County. The two live in a charming pink
fixer-upper in the heart of Little Haiti.

So far, Danticat has kept a low profile in South Florida as she works on a
sixth book and travels around the country for work-related engagements.

But that doesn't mean she's not melding into the community.

On Saturday night, she did a reading at Books & Books in Coral Gables as
part of a series of events celebrating Haitian Heritage Month. On Tuesday,
she planned to speak at the Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center's awards
dinner as an advocate for Haitian refugees.

"Whatever community you live in, you must be a good citizen," she says. "You
must vote and look after your neighbors the best way you can. So I try to
serve as much as I can, and in some ways my writing is a part of my
community service."

Some Haitian leaders and immigrant advocates in South Florida say they have
long considered Danticat a valuable resource. And now that she's living in
the area, they think she will be even more of an inspiration to the local
Haitian community.

Marvin Déjean, of Minority Development and Empowerment in Fort Lauderdale,
says he has already tapped Danticat for a project to create a permanent
collection of Haitian art and literature at the new African-American
Research Library and Cultural Center in Fort Lauderdale.

"She's becoming a national treasure for the Haitian community as a writer,"
he says. "I'm sure the Haitians in New York are sad to see her leave, but we
down here are happy to have her. She's one of our more recognizable faces
and heroes."

Cheryl Little, executive director of the Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center,
says she was moved to tears recently when she heard Danticat speak about her
immigrant experience at a dinner in Washington, D.C.

"I've long admired Edwidge, not just because she's a wonderful writer, but
because she's a wonderful human being," Little says. "She was a natural in
terms of someone to speak at our dinner."

For Danticat, a soft-spoken, shy soul by nature, all of the attention still
takes some getting used to.

She came to the United States as a child of 12, fleeing poverty and the
Duvalier dictatorship. She took advantage of the educational opportunities
and eventually earned an undergraduate degree in French translation and
literature from Barnard College and a master's of fine arts from Brown
University.

Danticat was only 25 when her first novel, Breath, Eyes, Memory, was
published. It's a first-person narrative about the troubled life of a
teenager who leaves Haiti to join her mother in the United States. The book
was developed from an essay that Danticat wrote for a high school newspaper
about her own experience.

Her second book, Krik? Krak!, a collection of short stories steeped in
Haitian culture, was a finalist for the National Book Award in 1995.

"First, when you finish a book, you feel like it's the biggest success of
your life because it's a huge accomplishment," she says. "And then you hope
people read it because someone printed it."

Danticat has kept in touch with her immigrant roots. Some of her most
visible projects have been with Jonathan Demme, the Oscar-winning movie
director. In February, the two, in collaboration with the Florida Immigrant
Advocacy Center, visited Haitian refugees who have been living in South
Florida detention centers since October. The project gave her an opportunity
to talk with men, women and children who were living under horrible
circumstances. An editorial she wrote about the plight of the refugees will
appear in the June issue of Essence magazine.

"When I got to Krome [detention center], oh my God! Some of those people had
been detained for months," she says. "One man said if he had a gun, he would
kill himself."

And as a Haitian woman who remembers poverty and oppression, it touched her
deeply. "I look into the faces of those mothers and children and I think,
that could be me."

Alva James-Johnson can be reached at ajjohnson@sun-sentinel.com or
954-356-4523.

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