Joasil Déméus Débrosse (12 January 1968 – 13 January 2013) was a Haitian

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

and

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

. He ran for the Haitian Congress twice and lost both times. He died January 13, 2013, in a hospital center in

Port-au-Prince Port-au-Prince ( ; ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Haiti, most populous city of Haiti. The city's population was estimated at 1,200,000 in 2022 with the metropolitan area estimated at a population of 2,618,894. The me ...

. He was the Radio Star Presenter of ''Morning Train'', a program broadcast every morning on Radio TV Zenith.

Early life

Débrosse was born in the Province of Artibonite. He was one of the eight children of Joseph Dieulifort Joasil and Marie Merzila Elysée Joasil. Because of his intelligence, he was sent to Port-au-Prince to continue his education.

Career

He first ran for elected office in 2000 and found it necessary to

boycott A boycott is an act of nonviolent resistance, nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organisation, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for Morality, moral, society, social, politics, political, or Environmenta ...

the elections when

Fanmi Lavalas Fanmi Lavalas (; ''lavalas'' is Haitian Creole for 'avalanche' or 'flood' ) is a social-democratic political party in Haiti. Its leader is former Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. It has been a powerful force in Haitian politics since 199 ...

, the political party of President Jean Bertrand Aristide, was about to win. After Lavalas' parliamentary victory in 2000, Joasil retreated from politics to concentrate on

social work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...

and philanthropy. He sent scores of impoverished children to school using his own funds. He had no children of his own. He used his last savings to feed street people and have-nots. Joasil established the Noël Emmanuel Limage Foundation, named after a former Haitian Senator from Artibonite. The foundation became a platform for his philanthropic and social endeavors. Concurrently, he revamped his radio program, renaming it "Train Matinal," which encompassed a blend of social, political, and religious content. The show aimed to represent a diverse range of perspectives, reflecting the beliefs of Haitians both within the country and across the

diaspora A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of birth, place of origin. The word is used in reference to people who identify with a specific geographic location, but currently resi ...

Personal life

In December 2010, Joasil Déméus Débrosse married Jerry Milfort, a nurse in

Arcahaie Arcahaie (; ) is a commune in the Arcahaie Arrondissement, in the Ouest department of Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the ...

. They had no children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Debrosse, Joasil Haitian journalists 1968 births 2013 deaths People from Artibonite (department)