Now I Can Read My Name!

by Nadine Augustin Paul, Child
Advocate and Adult Literacy Program

Our literacy program is a place where people can learn how to read and write, in a country where lack of education is a major issue. The need for literacy training is huge in Haiti, where 64% of the population is estimated to be illiterate. The level of education is very low, and curriculum is not standardized.  The last study on the restavek system, published in December 2015 by the MAST, in partnership with multiple NGO’s, demonstrated that 70% of children in Haiti show educational underachievement.  These educational problems prove serious when it comes to the socio-economic development of the population, considering that quality of education in a country contributes to
personal and collective fulfillment.

As an organization, Restavek Freedom is working directly with the most important root of societal need.  A lack of education causes the deepest problems in our society, as it produces a lack of information, which leads to violence in many aspects, including violence against children, women, and the environment. Most of the participants in our literacy program are women, as we know that according to tradition in Haiti, girls were the ones to do the domestic chores, and were many times asked to be a
“restavek” in someone’s house.

That being said, we can’t ignore the damages of the restavek system on these women’s lives.  In this case, the literacy program provides them an education they never had the chance to receive, as well as other special training.  One of the women I met last month during our training on family planning said to me, “I wish I had met you before, because I would have known how to better control my life and not have so many children that I can’t take care of.”

We are investing in people’s education, as well as preparing them to create a better society for the next generation of children. I will never forget the woman who came to me and said, “Nadine, I did not know I was abusing the kids who are living with me, until you did this training on children’s rights!”

At the graduation of three of our literacy sites, the participants created powerful skits showing the impact the program had had on them.  They acted out being more confident to go to the hospital with their children and being able to participate in a parents’ meeting for their children.  They also showed how education creates the opportunity for them to find jobs and feel part of the society that they previously suffered exclusion from.

Finally, one woman shared with me recently, “Before coming to this program, I could not identify my name when it was written somewhere…now I can say I was blind but now I see!  I appreciate each testimony these women share with me.  They encourage me to not only believe in our vision, but they also inspire me to continue working with them.