A Haitian migrant seeking a better life first goes to Brazil and then to Tijuana on his way to the US. He finds his life in Tijuana almost unbearable.
Denis, a former merchant in Haiti, is now working very long hours in an underpaid job in Tijuana. If he can’t cross to the US, he’s considering going back to Haiti. “Here [in Mexico], you find both good and bad people. When we [Haitians] came here, we came for work, but it’s not a place that we like. I don’t feel encouraged to stay here. Haitians came here to make money, and we don’t make enough. They kill us through heavy labor, yet we don’t get paid. They’re killing us here, and we get no money! I don’t want to stay in Mexico. No Haitian would ever stay here long term.”
My name is Denis, and in Haiti I was a merchant. I used to sell everything from solar panels to sewing machines and even motorcycles. I would buy the merchandise in the Dominican Republic and then sell it in Haiti. My wife sold fabrics. I made about $105 a day. I decided to leave Haiti because I wasn’t earning enough money. The country was unstable, there were protests, and I stopped being able to sell my merchandise. I used the money I earned selling goods to fund my way to Brazil. I had saved up to $2,270 and got [to] Brazil in 2013. I spent three years there and worked at a chicken factory. I made $400 a month and was able to rent a house and send at least $200 home to Haiti. After three years, I felt I wasn’t making any progress in my job, but I had managed to save $6,000 – enough to fund my travel from Brazil to Mexico.
Here in Mexico, they treat us harshly. That’s why you’ll find there are Haitians who have returned to Brazil and Chile. In the places where we work here, we’re treated less than dogs. Where I work now, they treat us badly. I’ve lasted a year there out of sheer will. I had a friend working here for three years and then they fired him suddenly and only gave him $101. You can’t just sit there and give someone $101 for three years of working after you’ve fired him!! My friend had his papers, but they fired him because he doesn’t speak Spanish.
To make a living here, I work in a construction company. I’ve been at my current job for a year and a half. I didn’t stay in my previous job because the Mexicans treated us so poorly. They made us feel as though our lives were at risk. They were criminals with bad thoughts and bad ideas. They want to hurt us. That’s why you’ve seen some Haitians come here and can’t keep a job. The jobs are awful. They want to kill us, and that’s why we’re scared. That’s why Haitians don’t want to stay here. They want to kill us with overwork. You can get asked to do ten different jobs in an hour! My old factory job made me work at least twelve hours a day, seven days a week, for only $70! When I couldn’t take it anymore, I left. If I wanted to, I could file a complaint, but nothing ever happens. Instead, the person you complain against may even get promoted. I’d rather just leave the factory than go through the trouble. The factory I worked in assembled car parts. They had us sign a contract saying they would pay us $90, but the bosses were crooks. They pocketed $10 for themselves and I got paid $80 instead, so I left after a week.
I don’t like my current job. I work in construction with one other Haitian. I do so much at work. I can’t even describe it all. The only thing I don’t do at that job is give my boss a bath. I work from 7:00 am–5:00 pm and my boss is very harsh. I do get health insurance, and I have all my papers, but the job is too hard and they only pay $80 a week. Right now, I’m staying at a shelter and that’s what allows me to save some money to send my daughter to school. I send $315 per year to pay for my daughter to attend school in Haiti. I stay in touch with family back there by phone.
What I came here for and what I found did not meet my expectations. I didn’t come here to stay in Mexico. I can’t get to the United States, so I stay here and try to make a living so I don’t die. If I had the chance to go to the United States, I would leave immediately.
If I can’t find anyone here in Mexico to help me get into the United States, then I’m going back to Haiti. I’ve lived here for three years and I don’t see the progress I’ve made. Better to suffer in your country than in a foreign place. If I were to go back, I would just pick up where I left off and go back to selling merchandise. I prefer going home to losing my life here. I don’t like the way I’m living.
I’m going to start saving money. I can’t do it right now, but I’m thinking of asking family to support me and help me save because I just can’t do it anymore. If I had a family member of mine tell me they wanted to come here, I would tell them not to come. I can’t be doing horribly in a place and invite someone to join me in my misery. The only person that’s truly helped us is the pastor at the shelter I’m staying in. Even when the place wasn’t fully functional yet, he made sure that we didn’t go hungry and that we weren’t on the streets.