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Documentary and literature fans alike might want to leave their Sunday afternoon open and enjoy a free day of events that kicks off with the screening of a film that peers into the “soul of Haiti.” Beginning at 3 p.m. at the National Hispanic Cultural Center (1701 Fourth St. NW), Albuquerque’s AfroMundo Festival presents Ayiti Pap Peri: Ayiti Will Not Perish. Haitian-born director Cassandre Thrasybule says the documentary celebrates the human and economic potential of the country and lets audiences hear the authentic stories of its people. Haitian American author Patrick Sylvain, Afro-Cuban artist and actress Lili Bernard and documentarist Aida Esther Bueno Sarduy will be joining Thrasybule for a panel discussion and Q +A following the film.
“There’s no coincidence as the theme of the [AfroMundo] festival is ‘Troubled Territories: The Will to Heal.’ And this is something that we need here in the United States and in Haiti,” says Thrasybule. “The film reminds people about the stress of patience, about the soul of the country, giving them hope and inspiring action. Continue to advocate. Do not stay silent.”
Thrasybule was born and raised in Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, and moved to the United States in 1998. She produced her first documentary Cassures (Fractures): Families Between Haiti and Abroad in 2015 followed by the 2021 sequel Exiled Inland: Cassures II. Her current project is the film Displacement which explores immigration history and discrimination surrounding immigration policy throughout the international community. She says, over the past 15 years, she’s traveled between Haiti and the United States for various projects that bring attention to what is really happening in marginalized countries and “amplify marginalized voices.”
“It’s a work that took me four years going back and forth, but in the end I am so happy, particularly when I’m looking at everything that’s happening right now in this country,” she says. “I am so humbled to have been inspired with the title Ayiti Pap Peri [Haiti Will Not Perish] and I think we need it more than ever today.”
The film has won awards including Best Producer at the Cannes Arts Festival, but Thrasybule says the most beautiful compliment she’s received about the film was, “Thank you for the love letter you wrote about Haiti.” Although the film touches on the political instability of present day Haiti, Thrasybule says the film’s purpose is to remind audiences of the strength and beauty of the country’s working class, especially those working in agriculture and education.
“Oftentimes, when people are talking about Haiti, they talk about the poorest country of the hemisphere. They talk about this country where there’s constant gang violence, political instability. [while] forgetting about the real nature of the country,” Thrasybule says. “Haiti is the first Black Republic, a country where Black Americans used to go to escape different types of discrimination and prejudice. That Haiti still exists despite the different problems that we’re encountering today.”
Following the documentary screening, attendees are invited to stay for an evening of literature readings, presentations and a Q + A session with Sylvain, Bueno Sarduy and Egyptian Palestinian American author, filmmaker and actor Randa Jarrar. “Changing the Narrative” begins at 7 p.m. at the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s Wells Fargo Theater.
Both Sunday events are free, but don’t forget to register here.
Visit Thrasybule’s website the Human Interaction Foundation at humanif.org to learn more about films such as Ayiti Pap Peri: Ayiti Will Not Perish and donate to help bring more of these stories to the screen.
AfroMundo Presents:
Ayiti Pap Peri: Ayiti Will Not Perish
3 p.m. April 13
National Hispanic Cultural Center Wells Fargo Theater
1701 Fourth St. NW
Free with reservation