THE BILL ITSELF

HR 8031

Haitian Heritage Month

VERSION H 8031 Filed · BACK TO THE SUMMARY · OFFICIAL RECORD

underlined language is being added; struck language is being deleted. Line numbers are the Legislature's own — the same ones amendments cite.

1 House Resolution

2 A resolution designating May 2026 as "Haitian Heritage

3 Month" in the State of Florida.

5 WHEREAS, Haitian Heritage Month is celebrated by the

6 Haitian diaspora around the world to celebrate Haitian heritage

7 and culture, and

8 WHEREAS, as educators, authors, entrepreneurs, community

9 leaders, activists, athletes, artists, musicians, and

10 politicians, Haitian Americans have made their mark and have

11 contributed to the betterment and diversity of this state and

12 the nation, and

13 WHEREAS, Haitians fought in the American Revolution to

14 support independence efforts from the British, and

15 WHEREAS, on January 1, 1804, Haiti declared and won her

16 independence from the French, led by revolutionaries to include

17 Toussaint de Bréda (also known as "Toussaint l'Ouverture"),

18 Jean-Jacques Dessalines, Henri Christophe, Alexandre Pétion,

19 Victoria Montou (also known as "Gran Toya" and "Adbaraya Toya"),

20 Dutty Boukman, Marie-Jeanne Lamartinière, Cécile Fatiman, and

21 Suzanne "Sanité" Bélair, and

22 WHEREAS, Haiti is the only country to be born of a

23 successful revolt of enslaved people declaring their

24 independence and affirming their humanity, becoming the first

25 independent state in Latin America and the Caribbean, and

26 WHEREAS, Haiti was the first country in the world to

27 abolish slavery, helped Simón Bolívar lead the charge to

28 liberate Latin America from Spanish rule, supported Greece's

29 efforts for independence, and cast the deciding vote in the

30 United Nations to allow Israel to be recognized as a nation in

31 modern times, and

32 WHEREAS, May 18 is Flag Day in Haiti, and

33 WHEREAS, the United States and the State of Florida have

34 thrived as a melding of immigrants, united by common values and

35 the promise of a better tomorrow, and

36 WHEREAS, according to the Migration Policy Institute, more

37 than two-thirds of Haitian immigrants living in the United

38 States reside in Florida and New York, and

39 WHEREAS, there are significant populations of Haitian

40 Americans in New Jersey, Massachusetts, Maryland, Virginia,

41 Pennsylvania, Georgia, New Hampshire, Illinois, Texas, and

42 Washington, D.C., and

43 WHEREAS, there is a strong connection between Haitians and

44 Florida, including hundreds of thousands of Haitian Americans

45 residing in South Florida alone, NOW, THEREFORE,

47 Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives of the State of

48 Florida:

50 That May 2026 is designated as "Haitian Heritage Month" in

51 the State of Florida.