Spaces and Stories: Haitian Churches and Oral Histories in Chicago

Summary:

This project maps the Haitian church community in Chicago, locating about 13 churches that serve the Haitian commnity. Our criteria for establishing what counts as a Haitian church included those who have the word Haiti in the name of the church, those that have a Haitian congregation of at least 20 people and those that hold mass in Haitian Creole and/or French. Using storymap we provide a brief historical overview of each church. We also include a timeline of Haiti-Chicago connections, a brief overview of Haitian religious traditions and a snapshot of the 10 oral history interviews completed for this project.

Chicago Fellow:

Courtney Pierre Joseph , Assistant Professor of History and African American Studies, Lake Forest College

Chicago Fellows Year:

2018

Chicago Fellows Research Assistants:

Stephen Buban, Lake Forest College ’21

Paula Pelletier, Lake Forest College ’21