Mabelle Casimir, sister of Jean Bertrang Casimir, addresses the group during the visit to the General Consulate of Haiti in New York on August 23, 2022. Photo by Leonardo March
The Haitian Times
www.haitiantimes.com
By Leonardo March
NEW YORK —On a Sunday in July, Jean Bertrang called his sister Mabelle Casimir from an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center in Texas for one of their two week chats. Bertrang had been transferred there after completing a 14-year prison sentence on a gun-related charge in November 2021.
But four days after the siblings’ conversation on July 17, Bertrang was in a prison cell at the National Penitentiary of Haiti in Port-au-Prince. It was his first time back in Haiti since he left the country 39 years ago, at age 4.
“He is in jail when he didn’t do anything,” said Mabelle Casimir during a protest in front of the General Consulate of Haiti in Manhattan. “Haiti is his country. He never committed a crime there.”
To view the full story, please subscribe to The Haitian Times. You can choose a $60 Annual Subscription or a $5 Weekly Pass.
When you join The Haitian Times family, you’ll get unlimited digital access to high-quality journalism about Haiti and Haitians you won’t get anywhere else. We’ve been at this for 20 years and pride ourselves on representing you, our diaspora experience and a holistic view of Haiti that larger media doesn’t show you.
Join now or renew to get:
— Instant access to one-of-kind stories and special reports
— Local news from our communities (especially New York and Florida)
— Profiles of Haitians at the top of their fields
— Downloadable lists and resources about Haitian culture
— Membership merch, perks and special invitations
First-time subscribers also receive a special welcome gift handmade in Haiti by expert artisans! Do it for the culture and support Black-owned businesses.
