Sarodj Bertin wearing her Miss Haiti 2010 crown with Miss Haiti contestants look onMiss Haiti 2010 Sarodj Bertin, 24, will be the first Haitian woman to compete in the Miss Universe pageant in 22 years. She was crowned Miss Haiti 2010 this past May in Port-au-Prince. Which is amazing considering Haiti was in the middle of a horrific crisis at that time, as it still is.
Ms. Bertin is a very accomplished and interesting person. She's either a lawyer or studying to be one, there are conflicting reports on that. She speaks French, Spanish, English and Creole, and is learning Mandarin.
She comes from an interesting family as well. Her mother who was a lawyer, Mireille Durocher Bertin, was assassinated in Haiti in 1995 after announcing she was founding a political party. So this involves some political intrigue as well.
After her mothers assassination, Sarodj was 9 years-old at the time, the family moved from the Haitian side of the island of Hispaniola to the other side which is the Dominican Republic. Which is where she grew up.
There is a lot going on here. First, I can't help notice the colorism aspect of Ms. Bertin's Miss Haiti win. Haiti has a long history of colorism. The lighter the complexion of a Haitian the more likely they are to be of the upper or ruling class. Also considering that the vast majority of Haitian woman are of a darker complexion than Ms. Bertin, one might wonder what her win says about skin politics in Haiti at the moment.
Second, it's hard to ignore the political aspect of this. It is especially interesting that Bill Clinton and Ms. Bertin's mother had a history considering Bill Clinton is now very involved in the rebuilding of Haiti after the quake.
Third, I wonder how the Haitian people feel about all of the ex-patriots being on the scene these days. First there was Wyclef Jean attempting to run to be the President of Haiti and now Ms. Bertin, also an ex-patriot from the Dominican Republic, winning Miss Haiti.
Anyway, it will be interesting to see how this plays with the Haitian people. And if Miss Haiti should happen to win Miss Universe this story is going to take on a life of its own.
The Miss Universe contest will air tonight on NBC at 9pm eastern and pacific/ 8pm central.
8 comments:
Considering what happened to her mom, i can understand why she's an expat. She could have been a legitimate target for a killing too.
She is indeed very light, but no doubt pretty. I actually thought she was white. The rest of the girls look very attractive too though.
As far as skin politics go, this wouldn't be too unique. You see this kind of thing in Latin America all the time.
It's nice though that a Haitian woman will be able to compete in Miss Universe. I wonder why this is the first time they're doing that ?
Very interesting... Thanks for sharing, as usual.
I noticed the difference in skin tone, hair, and just about everything right away. It is quite calculating that she was 'chosen' to represent Haiti. Your other points concerning Mr. Clinton and her being an expatriate are valid as well.
Personally, I am so over "the lighter the better" or "white being right." I hope I remember to watch at least some of the show tonight...
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I'm not sure why they haven't competed in so long. Maybe it was political?
Yep, colorism is all over the globe, unfortunately. But it's especially pronounced in some places like Haiti.
@Felicia Monique
It does seem calculated doesn't it. That's sad. At a time when so many Haitian women could use a shot of self-confidence they missed the opportunity.
I confess, this too was my reaction upon first seeing the pic! But then again, it's not surprising when you compare features of beauty contestants to those the general populace, especially in Latin American and Caribbean countries.
Either way, she/her family has an interesting story.
@Moufbreatha
"it's not surprising when you compare features of beauty contestants to those the general populace,..."
You're right about that. I watched some of the Miss Universe last night and they all had a certain look.
Yeah her family story is very interesting. I'm wondering if she will go back to Haiti and enter politics?
Without question, she's beautiful.
@Reggie
Yep, there's no denying that.
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