Back-to-school block party supports Haitian community amid immigration fears

Squeals of delight poured out of a bouncy castle as children ran through an obstacle course, rode a short slide to 99th Avenue in Queens Village on Monday, and got back on the line to do it all over again. Older kids battled each other during a spirited game of street soccer, while young men played a fierce game of three-on-three basketball.

The aroma of grilled hamburgers and hot dogs filled the air, and music boomed from the stage in front of the Premiere Eglise Apocalypse, a spiritual haven sandwiched between two auto repair shops that serves the Haitian and Haitian American community that straddles Nassau County and Queens.

Pastor David Celestin said the event — the Welcome Back to School Block Party — was a way to support Long Island’s beleaguered but resilient Haitian community. The church teamed with barbers and hair salons to offer free haircuts and braiding so students can look their best.

Donations from businesses, charities and church members provided the funds for free burgers and hot dogs, as well as sneaker and backpack giveaways.

"It’s a hard time," Celestin said as he greeted party guests with his 10-year-old daughter, Angela. "Being from a church organization, we just want to give back. This is my community, I grew up here."

There was nothing but smiles, laughter and bright blue skies at the block party, which Celestin hoped would provide a welcome antidote for a community that appears to be a target of the Trump administration’s anti-immigrant policies.

"They have this sadness for what is happening to their neighbors, their family members and community," said Assemb. Michaelle Solages (D-Elmont), "But you can see right here, they take that joy and they put it into something real, and so this block party is a part of taking that sadness and making it something that is better."

In July, the Trump administration revoked Haitians’ temporary protected status, which allows foreign nationals to live and work in the United States without fear of deportation when conditions in their home nations are considered too dangerous for them to return. Haiti has suffered through a surge of gang violence in recent years.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security posted a social media video on Aug. 27 that showed men, their hands and feet bound and linked to a chain around their waists, boarding a deportation flight to Haiti.

"Those with terminated TPS are in our nation illegally," the post said.
"They have two options: LEAVE IMMEDIATELY or be DEPORTED."

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials have not targeted Long Island’s Haitians as aggressively as they have other communities across the nation, Celestin said, but there has been a tremendous chilling effect.

People are afraid to go to work because they fear they will be caught in an ICE sweep, even if they are legal residents. Residents have lost jobs because TPS was revoked. Businesses are struggling because people are afraid to go shopping.

"We are feeling hunted," Celestin said. "We can’t go back home and they don’t want us here. We can’t work, we can’t make money."

But for a few hours on Labor Day, the emphasis was on getting kids ready for school. When kids look good on the first day, they feel good and are more apt to do well in school, said Quadir Hough, of Exit 13 Grooming Lounge of Elmont, as he prepared to groom a grade-school boy.

"It’s confidence, you know, just being able to go to school and not even have to worry about how they’re looking," Hough said. "You know what I mean?"