Haitian Canadians () are

Canadians Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

of Haitian descent or

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 Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

-born people who reside in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. As of 2016, more than 86% of Haitian Canadians reside in

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

Haitian migration to Canada

Immigration

1960–1980

Immigration from Haiti to Quebec started in 1963. Haitian settlement in the Quebec municipality Montreal increased about 40% between the late 1960s and the early 1970s. Immigration data from 1968 shows that Haiti placed fifteenth in overall origin countries outputting migrants to Quebec; in addition, Haiti had 1.6% of the total immigration percentage of Quebec in 1968. In the span of five years, Haiti became the second-largest source country for Quebec immigration, accounting for 8.4% of the total number of immigrants to Quebec in 1973.

The impact of nationalism and political tension in Haiti on immigration

The migration of Haitian immigrants between 1969 and 1974 can be understood through the political institutions in place within Haiti at the time. Haiti was governed by way of a dictatorship, led by François Duvalier. Duvalier had been contested by the leftist Unified Party of Haitian Communists, who failed in resisting Duvalier's authoritarian regime. Duvalier's death and the subsequent succession of his son Jean-Claude Duvalier led to the notion of “patriotic action”, a declaration of nationalism directed towards Haitian Canadian and Haitian American immigrants, as well as a call to action in assisting their Haitian brethren. Haitian Canadians joined forces with their home country brethren in some cases to assist in the "“resolution of the Haitian crisis” and to attempt to establish greater leftist political power. The idea of “patriotic action” finalized with the potential deportation faced by around 700 Haitian Canadians from 1972 to 1973. These Haitian Québécois joined forces under a protest movement in regards to their rights as citizens; these protests were organized by the Christian community of Haitians of Montreal.

Demographics

Haitian Canadians by Canadian province or territory (
2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
)

Notable Haitian Canadians

Culture

Noted representations of Haitian Canadian culture have included the novels of

Dany Laferrière Dany Laferrière (; born Windsor Klébert Laferrière, 13 April 1953) is a writer and filmmaker. He was elected to seat 2 of the Académie française on 12 December 2013, and inducted in May 2015. Born in Haiti, he lives between Montreal and P ...

, and the television comedy series '' Lakay Nou''.Chantal Guy
"Une famille bien de chez nous"
'' La Presse'', January 22, 2024.

References

External links

''The Haitian Community in Canada''Multicultural Canada: HaitiansHaitian Consulate General in MontrealMontreal International Haitian Film FestivalQuebec Government Portal: Relations with Haiti
{{Haitian diaspora * Caribbean diaspora in Canada Immigration to Quebec