ABOUT ME:

I am Haitian but I am studying law in Dominican Republic in a University in the capital called Universidad Iberoamericana “UNIBE”.

From the 15 to the 21st of April 2011, I was in a model of the United Nations in New York were college students were participating and delegated a country witch they were representing in different commissions.

Lately I have been working with a Pernille Terllonge, a psychologist from the University of Copenhagen who is making a study on the recovery of children after disasters.   I used to work with her at different shelter of Santo Domingo where my fellow citizens where after 12/01/10 disaster. From the 22 to the 27 of April of 2011 we were on the field in Haiti trying to find the families we worked with to do some follow up and see how they were doing.

  cHRISTELLE, 22, sANTO DOMINGO, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

MY AMISTAD STORY

After the earthquake that strokes Haiti in January 2010, Amistad was at the same time and exiting and peaceful experience for me. It helped me at that confusing moment, put interest in something and realized that I still had a lot of things to live for.

Our trip on the Amistad started by getting to know my fellow Haitian ship companions at the Cross Cultural Center. From the start we identified one to another and a unity bond between us. We were all in thirst of the sea, of the wind, of freedom, of understanding and compassion.

We left from the port of Don Diego. On our first day were we learned our first lesson: Adaptation. It took us a long night to adapt to the rockiness of the ocean. Change is a natural process in life and adaptation takes time. Even though that process was shorter for me but it made me think a lot of my fellow citizens in Haiti and what they were going through with that total change in there life after the 12 of January earthquake. I know we are going to get over it because we are strong! We are the first black-slaved colony to have taken its independence; we are going through so much and still surviving and going forward.

We got in contact with great people that were volunteers on the schooner. We even became friends. Each of them with different origins and cultural differences; lesson two was acceptance and respect of others. And we also learned about the struggle of our Ancestors especially the determination of Sengbe Pieh for freedom.

It was a privileged and historical moment to have been working in one of the paths of those Africans, ancestors of mine from Africa. We experiences just like them for the first time, struggling with the veils and pooling ropes, lifting and dropping the anchor. It was a great experience and I congratulate the Amistad America for there amazing work and I think it is an essential cultural promotion of our history and origins that the entire Caribbean black ex colonies needs to be exposed to. I feel privileged to have gotten that opportunity.

~Christelle Saint-Natus            

 I had the opportunity to do something amazing. I was chosen to be one of 7 Sankofa students, from Britain and the U.S., to embark on the first leg of the Atlantic Freedom Tour on the Freedom Schooner Amistad. The Sankofa program focused on the Amistad incident of 1839-1841 when 53 Africans were captured from their homeland. Being aboard the Amistad was a truly amazing, once in a lifetime experience. It taught me leadership skills, the value of cooperation, the importance of exploring our past, and how everyone is connected by the sea.

The Amistad story is one of freedom, bravery, and humanity. I learned about the Africans who revolted against their captors on the Spanish cargo ship, La Amistad. They were sold into slavery, revolted, were put on trial, acquitted by the U.S Supreme Court, and were able to sail back to Africa as freemen. As a marine sciences major and an African American Studies minor, the Amistad story appealed strongly to both of my interests. In the first two weeks of the program, I lived in a house in Mystic with 6 other students and the professor. During this time we visited over a dozen museums across New England for the purpose of learning the Amistad story told from different angles and perspectives. The more I learned about the Amistad story, the more I admired the Africans for their courage and determination.

I also learned about the history of slavery during the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade which gave a context for the Amistad story. All of the students, both from England and the U.S., were absolutely amazed about how much we learned about slavery and how integral it was in shaping the New World. We all admitted that we knew nothing beforehand about the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. I couldn’t help but feel slighted that this had not been a part of my education. “Why am I just learning about this now!” a fellow Sankofa student exclaimed, and we all knew how he felt. From extensive study of the Amistad story in particular and the history of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade as a whole, we realized how important it was in creating the world we live in today. Sankofa, meaning “go back and fetch”, was rightly given the title of our program. Understanding this rich history was a transformative experience for me. After becoming experts on the Amistad story, we were ready to set sail!

 Sailing across the Atlantic Ocean was incredible to say the least. I learned a lot about nautical science and navigation. When we got on board, the captain and crew taught the students everything about the boat. There was a lot more to it than I previously thought. A sailor’s life is not easy. It is amazing how much work goes into maintaining a boat.  I leaned the names of all the lines and the sails as well as how to sail handle. They showed us how to do different types of knots that would be useful on the boat. There were 19 crew members in all, including the students. The crew and students were split into 3 watches. The watch leaders taught us how to do boat checks, steer at the helm, and do bow watch. There was always something to do; our watches worked round the clock. Eventually the students were able to lead their own watches, which was pretty cool. I learned a lot about leadership from this experience. It taught me how to be strong and dependable and how to rely on my crew members. All we had out there in the middle of the ocean was each other.  Cooperation and teamwork were absolutely crucial for a safe voyage: it is an integral part of life at sea. We were our own little community moving along the waves of the ocean.

There were very few dull moments onboard the Amistad. One of my favorite parts about my experience was the explosion of creativity on the boat. On the Amistad we were not allowed to have ipods, cell phones, or any type of electronics. The only regular music we heard was the sound of breaking waves and the wind hitting our sails. That was a big adjustment for me; but through that void was birthed a wild creativity. There was a need for music on the boat, and I figured that if I didn’t have music, I would make it. Somehow, the humming of simple tunes became melodies and songs. I wanted to create a song that would incorporate the daily ship-work of an Amistad crew member with the history learned by the Amistad students. My resulting creation was The Amistad Sea Shanty. It was a song we sang as we scrubbed the deck, set the sail, did bow watch, and other ship-work activities.  I loved it when we had our music nights when the crew would go below deck and entertain ourselves with songs and musical instruments. The Amistad experience brought out a creativity in me that I didn’t know I possessed.

Being on the Amistad allowed me to travel to lots of exciting places. First we sailed out of the New Haven port in Connecticut and up the Gulf Stream to Halifax, Nova Scotia in Canada. We spent a week there where we explored the city and told the story of the Amistad to the public. Then we embarked on the Atlantic Ocean. There was nothing but water around us; I could not believe how huge the waves were. The scenery was breathtaking. I saw amazing sunsets, and the night sky was dazzled by stars. I saw whales, sea turtles, sea birds, and lots of playful dolphins. We sailed to the Azores and spent some time there. It was an unexpected detour but well worth it. The Azores was really a beautiful place. Then, after about 28 days at sea, we finally arrived in Falmouth, England.

My voyage on board the Amistad helped me grow in so many ways. I learned about an amazing story and the value of cooperation. What I can take from my experience aboard the Amistad is how the sea connects us all. The Amistad story is a story of courage, determination, and of a united struggle for human rights. It is an international story that everyone should know about and one in which I benefited from personally. 

                                                                                                             ~Erica Whyte