Power on the move: Haitian migrant women.

At the Migrant Reception Station (ERM in Spanish) in Chiriquí, Panama, near the border with Costa Rica, is Loutianie Pervilus. This 24-year-old Haitian woman of African descent has had different experiences as a migrant woman throughout her life. 

At age 10, she moved to the Dominican Republic, her mother's country of origin, where she studied medicine for a year, met her husband, also Haitian, and had her first daughter, Laura, who is now six years old.  

Nina's story is shared by thousands of Haitian women who have left their country due to various drivers such as insecurity, lack of employment, political crises, environmental disasters, and widespread violence, especially gender-based violence.  

Nina is not considering returning to Haiti, at least for now. On the contrary, she wants to find a job in Panama to save some money to continue her journey north. "I am not pretentious. I can work in anything. My husband is a mechanic; he can work too."  

Regularization means livelihoods 

Roseni Royal has lived in the Dominican Republic for 15 years. She saw in regularization the possibility of working and providing better living conditions for her family. 

Mother of two children, an 18-year-old who still lives in Haiti and a 13-year-old who lives with her in Santo Domingo, Roseni managed to regularize her migratory situation by obtaining her documents after almost a decade. "I spent nine years here working. Thank God I had my passport, and when the plan (the National Plan for Regularization of Foreigners) arrived, thank God and thanks to MUDHA (Civil Organization of Dominican-Haitian Women), I now have my documents." 

Today, Roseni sells avocados, fruits, and vegetables on a wheelbarrow as she pushes from house to house. "You have to be strong to push the wheelbarrow under the sun, but at least I don't carry them on my head," she says. Roseni had no access to formal education, but she has managed to speak fluent Spanish, own a house and raise her family. 

The regularization of her immigration status has been vital to her since it has allowed her to work legally. Additionally, she now has access to social security and health care services. "When you have documents, you walk around with something that identifies who you are, you live happier, knowing that whenever they [Dominican authorities] stop me, and as far as I show my document, I can stay.” 

Migrant women, activist women  

Migratory regularization is one of the many challenges faced by migrants upon arrival in their host country. However, there are also cultural and linguistic barriers. Jessica and Jess Valcin know well. Twin sisters from Haiti who arrived in Tijuana, Mexico, in 2017, they supported the Espacio Migrante shelter ever since, as advisors of the Haitian community. 

These sisters, who are currently studying for a degree in psychology, assist other Haitians in learning Spanish and accessing information on immigration issues and services. They also distribute food and essential items. They know firsthand the needs and challenges migrants, particularly women, face upon arrival in a new country. 

"Being a migrant woman of African descent is difficult because they literally tell you to your face I've never seen a person of your color. For example, they touch you in the sub and tell you, you are gorgeous, why don't you get married?. You feel a little uncomfortable because you are a migrant; you are not part of the community," says Jessica. Her sister Jess also recalls experiencing this type of harassment. 

Their different experiences as migrant women have motivated the Valcin sisters to participate in cultural initiatives to inform migrants and combat discrimination. They have participated in the migrant soap opera "Teacher, veterinarian, astronaut", in the Miradas Fronterizas Festival and Haiti's National Day celebration in Mexico. 

"What we do is to raise awareness of the rights that people have as migrants, right to education, right to health and different services they can access by having a credential for humanitarian reasons. First, we help them with the language and to find what their goals are", says Jess Valcin. 

The work carried out by these Haitian sisters demonstrates the importance of social and community organizations in the integration process of migrants in host countries. In addition to advise on the advocacy and protection of their rights, support networks can guide to help people migrate safely.  

For example, Jess and her sister Jessica accompany Haitian migrants who legally wish to cross the U.S.-Mexico border. "When they want to cross (the border to the United States), we know that the process is totally free, and what we always say is to make sure that the organization that is going to help you cross is 100% legal so you have no problems later on. If you tell me, I will investigate if it is okay or not," says Jessica. 

Gepsie M. Metellus is doing a similar job, but in the State of Florida, USA. She migrated to the United States in the 1960s with her family due to the political and social crisis in her country. She now works to integrate the Haitian community in South Florida through the organization "Sant La Haitian Neighborhood Center", of which she is the director. 

Gepsie experienced firsthand discrimination because of her status as a migrant woman. "My family migrated to New York in the late 1960s because of the dictatorship that Haiti was experiencing back then. I remember that every day at school, I suffered discrimination and bullying. I was even physically assaulted on several occasions. I told my mother that I didn't want to go back to school, my classmates made fun of me because of the way I dressed, the way I spoke. I was only 12 years old," says Metellus.  

The discrimination she suffered inspired Gepsie to spend the last two decades working for women's rights and the Haitian migrant population. 

The life stories of Nina, Rosenie, the Valcin sisters, and Gepsie show the transformative power of migrant women. Their experiences, often mediated by discrimination, abuse, and violence, have been catalysts for them to become dreamers, leaders, and activists. Through their work, these women contribute to guaranteeing the full exercise of the rights of women and migrants and the construction of more just and egalitarian societies.  

Written by Carlos Escobar with the collaboration of Zinnia Martínez (Dominican Republic), José Espinosa Bilgray (Panama), Juan Manuel Ramírez, Alejandro Cartagena, Cesia Chavarría (Mexico) and Lerato Kale (USA).