Haiti Alive: A Fundraiser and Cultural Evening of Music, Spoken Word/Readings and Art

A gathering of multitalented people will share their many gifts on Saturday in the Tangeman University Center at the University of Cincinnati to raise money for child survivors of the Haitian earthquake with proceeds to benefit the

Jean R. Cadet Restavek Foundation.

This foundation works to promote education and to build schools and is actively assisting in the current relief efforts.

Featured speaker is Jean-Robert Cadet, author of "Restavec: Haitian Slave Child to Middle-Class American" and founder of the Restavek Foundation. Other performers include Tracy Walker, Baoku and the Afro-beat Band, the Cincinnati Black Theatre Company, Haitian performance poet Lenelle Moïse and Haitian novelist Myriam Chancy.

When: 7 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010
Where: Tangeman University Center, Great Hall [map pdf]
What: HAITI ALIVE: A Fundraiser and Cultural Evening of Music, Spoken Word/Readings and Art
Featured Speaker: Jean-Robert Cadet, Founder of the Restavek Foundation
Performers (in alphabetical order): Baoku and the Afro-Beat Band, Keisa Carroll, Myriam Chancy, Cincinnati Black Theatre Company, Mike Helm, Kawaida 3, Lenelle Moise, Janet Pressley, Aliya Rahman and Tracy Walker

The evening will also feature a silent auction of art by area artists.

Ticket information: General Admission suggested donation $10 for students, $25+ for others (at door and in advance)
Group/Corporate Seating/Tables $50–250
Donors Circle (Gold-Platinum Tables) $1,000–5,000
For tickets and information, email Sharon Doering or call her at 513-633-8798.

Biographies of artists (provided):

Jean-Robert Cadet is the author of "Restavec: Haitian Slave Child to Middle-Class American," published in 1998. An incredibly poor country by any measure, Haiti has the unwelcome distinction of the highest rate of child mortality for children age five and under in the western hemisphere. It is also home to a form of modern-day slavery in which children, called “restaveks,” are turned over (and in some cases sold) by their parents to middle-class households where they become, in effect, manual laborers and indentured servants. Human rights activists claim that many of these youngsters are routinely beaten, sexually abused and denied even the most basic education. A UC graduate, Cadet has created a foundation to advocate on behalf of Haitian children. He raises awareness of the restavek issue by sharing his story, speaking at colleges and universities across the United States. Today, his book is used in numerous American universities for course work in African-American studies, anthropology, Caribbean history and social justice. Cadet has been interviewed by Oprah Winfrey the British Broadcasting Company, Geneva Television, NPR’s Morning Edition, the New York Times, the Cincinnati Enquirer, the Cincinnati Post, Radio France International, the French Reader’s Digest and France-2 television.

Baoku Moses is a Yoruba native from Nigeria, West Africa, living in Cincinnati. Baoku is a professional performer of African Cultural Arts. Baoku started his artistic career in 1994 and Afro-beat in 1997, shortly after the passing of Afro-beat legend Fela Kuti (the father of Afro-beat). Baoku uses Afro-beat to preach, teach, entertain and educate about the issues facing all of humanity. Baoku integrates drums such as the Nigerian Bata and talking drums, Djembe and Senegalese bottom drums and much more into his music which, combined with his original compositions, distinguishes his style of Afro-beat from others. The Image Afro-beat Band is composed of talented musicians who come from different musical and cultural backgrounds to play the unique style of music known as Afro-beat. Using the power of music, the band hopes to create appreciation for cultural diversity, respect for life and to contribute to making the world a more peaceful and respectful place in which to live.

Keisa Carroll

is a fourth-year UC student. She served as the NAACP Youth Council president while she was in high school and on several executive and advisory boards in organizations such as Community Youth Mapping, the National Youth Summit and Youth Crime Watch of America, just to name a few. Her activism during her high-school years gained her recognition from former First Lady Laura Bush and several other local and federal government officials. Keisa is currently actively involved on campus in organizations such as the Residence Hall Association, where she serves as the Minority Residence Committee Chair, and the United Black Student Association, where she serves on the executive board as the programming coordinator. She has shared participated in several showcases and shows, including the “Coochie Chronicles” (a spin off the “Vagina Monologues”) and she has performed with several poets from HBO's Def Poetry Jam.

Myriam J. A. Chancy

is a Haitian writer/scholar born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and educated in Québec City, Winnipeg, Halifax and Iowa City. Her first novel, “Spirit of Haiti” (Mango 2003), was a finalist in the Best First Book Category, Canada/Caribbean region, of the Commonwealth Prize 2004. She is also the author of “Framing Silence: Revolutionary Novels by Haitian Women” (Rutgers 1997), “Searching for Safe Spaces: Afro-Caribbean Women Writers in Exile” (Temple 1997; Choice OAB Award, 1998), a second novel, “The Scorpion’s Claw” (Peepal Tree Press 2005) and “The Loneliness of Angels” (Peepal Tree Press 2009). Her work as editor of “Meridians” (2002–2004) garnered the CELJ Phoenix Award for Editorial Achievement (2004). She is a professor of English at the University of Cincinnati.

The mission of the

Cincinnati Black Theatre Company (CBTC)

is to keep alive the spirit of black theatre by offering top-notch theatrical productions, performance and employment opportunities, children’s theatre, educational programs and community outreach in all aspects of theatre arts. CBTC has proven its influence and effectiveness in the community through recognition and achievements such as receiving its first nomination in the 2004–2005 season of the annual Cincinnati Entertainment Awards for its production of “Ain’t Misbehavin” for Best Ensemble Acting Performance and Best Community Theater Production. CBTC has received recognition from such bodies as the Cincinnati Enquirer Acclaim Awards for Daniel Beaty’s “Emergence-See!,” St. Mark Christian Fellowship, Learning through Art’s Crown Jewels of Jazz Gala and by the Success Guide Magazine.

"Largely acoustic, semi-alternative, jazz-inspired, roots-driven, postmodern, neo-revivalist, protest folk pop" is how songwriter/singer

Mike Helm

categorizes the music he makes. His unique song-craft, delivered with a strong voice and an aggressive, groove-heavy guitar style, is winning broader ear, thanks to critical enthusiasm and radio play. When performing live, Helm keeps the energy up. He succeeds in communicating the passion expressed in his writing by following one simple rule: "Play every gig like it's your very last.” His latest CD, "We Raise Up Our Glasses" was released in 2009 and featured 14 original songs.

Kawaida 3 — “Kawaida,” meaning cultural and social change bringing about good in the world, is an inspired vocal ensemble made up of Kristina Moore, Regina Sewell and Dee Steele accompanied by Al Holbrook. Combining uplifting, inspiring lyrics and vocal arrangements with movement, Kawaida 3 celebrates the universal “all good” in song.

Lenelle Moïse is an award-winning poet, produced playwright and nationally-touring performance artist. Equipped with an MFA from Smith College, she creates fiery, fun and politicized texts about identity, immigration and the intersection of race, class, gender and sexuality and Haitian-American identity. Her writing is featured in several anthologies, including "Word Warriors: 35 Women Leaders in the Spoken World Revolution." She has performed at venues as diverse as the Culture Project, the Louisiana Superdome, the United Nations and dozens of colleges across the United States. “Curve Magazine” calls her work "piercing, covering territory both intimate and political...vivid and powerful."

Janet Pressley manages to transcend the folk, blues and rock genres without leaving them behind. She weaves these traditions into a musical tapestry on her two discs, “Late Last Night” and “A Deeper State of Blue.” The albums are rich with haunting imagery, warm and velvety vocals, and refreshingly beautiful lyrics. The guarantees in Pressley’s music are elegant musicianship and soul-bearing lyricism. Based in hometown Cincinnati and recording on the Blue Jordan Records label, Pressley weaves a warm, sometimes melancholy, but always entrancing musical web. Her lyrics show her gift for seeing the sacred in the everyday as well as her keen sense of the subtle shadings of life, love, romance and spirituality. Her tasteful, understated and melodic touch on acoustic guitar provides the framework for her songs and for her voice, a tender, welcoming and sultry mix with an expressive timbre not unlike that of Sam Phillips.


Aliya Rahman began working as a DJ in Dhaka, Bangladesh, and has remained committed to live music for the 10 years that she has spent in the United States. She characterizes her music as transnationally focused and concentrates on live performance in an effort to use music as a vehicle for activism and building community networks. She also teaches cultural studies and does research on study abroad and educational economics as a graduate student at Miami University.

Tracy Walker

possesses a soaring alto demanding of attention. Walker beat stiff competition and was named 1997 Best Singer/Songwriter and 2000 Best Folk Artist by the Cincinnati Entertainment Awards (CEA) sponsored by Cincinnati CityBeat, the city's leading weekly newspaper of arts and issues. She was also awarded two CAMMYs, the Cincinnati Enquirer Pop Music Awards, for Best Solo Act 1999 and Best Folk/Bluegrass Vocalist 2001. She was voted Best Local Musician in CityBeat's “Best Of” Cincinnati readers' poll and received another CEA nomination in 2002. Walker has contributed her talent and time to many fundraising efforts and has often been selected as a panelist at music seminars to share what she has learned about the business of music. Walker was a member of the judging panel for the National Association of Recording Arts & Sciences Demo Review Panel. She is a songwriting mentor for the Songwriter's Summit for Oneness Retreat produced by Columbus Ohio's CAPA and Los Angeles' Oneness (national organization promoting racial and ethnic diversity and unity through music). She has also worked with youth through the True Body Project, Artworks, BOYAC and ArtSafe. Walker has played extensively in the Greater Cincinnati area and has appeared on stages in Iowa City, Tucson, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Indianapolis and many other cities across the country.

Read more about Myriam Chancy:

Professor Finds Home in Cincinnati, Keeps Heart in Haiti

New English Professor Myriam Chancy discusses Haitian scholarship and the recent tragedy that rocked her homeland.