Jean-Marie Théodat describes a potential collaborative project:
“I believe it’s time that the network of cultural centers that is administered in Haiti by AUF (University Agency of “La Francophonie”) and OIF (International Organization of “La Francophonie”) make space for documents and other materials in Kreyòl. Such use of Kreyòl is mandated by the country’s constitution. Indeed Haiti has two official languages. But there’s one language that’s given more power than the other, as certain speakers are given more power than others. I believe that supporting both Kreyòl and French in Haiti will allow the country to advance on two legs with the same length. That way the population will run faster and further on the road to knowledge. My presentation is titled: “What we speak and what we write are our treasures.” That’s one way to say that we must give back their voices to the voiceless. We will not betray our language. We will speak it and we will write it. And we will create archives of what’s been spoken and written, and these archives will become heirloom for future generations. To that end, I propose that we gather, digitize and, if necessary, transcribe a vast library of Kreyòl “texts” (both written and verbal), and that we use the internet and other technologies to put this digital library at the disposal of anyone who wants to discover the treasures of our Kreyòl language. It’s time that school children in Haiti learn to read and write in Kreyòl with the beautiful texts that our artists have created and sung. It’s time that the historical records of our people be preserved and cherished the way our ancestors’ spirits are preserved and cherished in our Vodou temples. We should not let these treasures disappear or remain in private circles only. We want to assume our culture. We’ll make these archives public so that everyone can understand.”
