15760: (Hermantin) -Sunsentinel-Students gain pride in being like Wyclef (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: leonie hermantin <lhermantin@hotmail.com>

Students gain pride in being like Wyclef



By Karla D. Shores
Education Writer

June 3, 2003

Sometimes, when your Rs sound like Ws, when the large, colorful bows on your
braids give away your heritage, when you're juggling Creole and French to
learn English, and you are only 10 -- it's hard to just be.

But Monday, every Haitian child peeking from the stucco archways in North
Side Elementary's courtyard had no problem saying "I'm Haitian." Like
Wyclef.

Like Wyclef Jean, a superstar recording artist who happens to be from
Port-au-Prince.

The pride shone in the eyes of 300 students who got more than a glimpse of
Jean, who has been in South Florida recording his sixth album, The
Preacher's Son.

These students, more than half of whom are learning English as a third
language and return home to parents who speak no English, welcomed Jean with
shrieks.

"Looking at the kids was like seeing myself," said Jean, who told the
children his story of leaving the care of an aunt in Port-au-Prince in his
teens.

Sitting in the courtyard, Jean waited for the chants to subside. His
backdrop was a Haitian flag.

"Some of ya'll look like me," Wyclef said. "My parents were very, very poor.
I didn't have no shoes."

His story was brief. He didn't need to explain too much because the children
understood.

After a quick anti-drug spiel, Jean enthralled his young fans with his
trademark quiz and spelling bee. He handed over $200 each to Bernard Collie,
who knew Creole is Haiti's official language, and to Darius Stewart, who
spelled "iceberg" correctly.

The treat evolved Saturday during a Haitian opera performance at the African
American Research Library and Cultural Center.

After pushing through a throng of fans at the event, Haitian Principal
Michaele Pope and Haitian activist Margaret Armand snagged Jean.

"My children really need to hear this because ... they need to see that the
beginning does not determine their end," Pope said.



Later, Jean shared his experience with his boss, record mogul Clive Davis,
about plans to feature Michael Jackson on one of his songs.

Pope, whose school is about 90 percent Haitian, said she continually
searches for Haitian role models to speak to her students because so many of
them struggle to maintain an identity that contradicts everything they learn
at school. Since Jean wore a Haitian flag on stage during the 1997 Grammy
Awards, he continues to empower Haitian children to say, "I'm Haitian," Pope
said.

"Like Wyclef."

Karla Shores can be reached at kshores@sun-sentinel.com or 954-356-4552.


Copyright © 2003, South Florida Sun-Sentinel

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