Our guest this morning was Ray Laforest, Haitin freedom fighter, expat activist par excellence and currently union organizer with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) in lower Manhattan. But – as the saying goes – it wasn’t always like this. François Joseph Raynald Laforest was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti in 1947 into what, by no means, most people would consider a typical Haitian childhood. By the age of 12, Ray had joined a youth organization run by Catholic priests, opposed to Papa Doc. It was this organization run by “people of action” that got Ray his start in the world of activism. From the youth organization Ray, along with his brother Gerard, were asked to join Haiti Progress, a clandestine group that styled itself after Fidel Castro’s Cuban Revolution and was comprised of a similar group of wealthy, progressive intellectuals with varying socialist leanings. Ray was a popular, charismatic figure in Haiti Progress who rose quickly through the ranks. He commanded his own cell, was known for his skill with firearms, as and for being one of the group’s most eloquent speakers. But Ray’s charisma also brought him to the attention of Papa Doc’s administration. After a failed attack on the Haitian Army near the border with the Dominican Republic, leaders in Haiti Progress decided that Ray should flee to the United States. In 1967, Ray moved to New York City to rally support for the movement in the United States. He left just in time. Three months after he arrived in New York, a Haiti Progress safe house was raided and those found inside were arrested, tortured and ultimately executed.
- KBOO