When Georges Bossous Jr. opened a WhatsApp group chat last Wednesday morning, he felt a whirlwind of emotions.
“I was surprised, in shock, in awe, disturbed,” the Haitian American said.
He learned that Haitian President Jovenel Moïse had been assassinated in his home in Port-au-Prince. The brazen attack also wounded the first lady Martine Moïse, who was later flown to Miami for medical treatment.
Bossous, 47, grew up in Limbe, Haiti, and came to the United States when he was 21. A psychotherapist, he is the executive director of the nonprofit group Word and Action and the Haitian American Leadership Initiative in Orlando.
He said that while Moïse had faced heavy criticism, the assassination in his home was unexpected. “It tells us a lot about the security level of the country,” Bossous said.
Moïse, 53, was elected in 2016 and took office in February 2017. Protests broke out in 2019 calling for his resignation due to allegations he and other government officials had embezzled money intended for social initiatives. He denied the allegations, yet the turmoil in Haiti continued.
The rates of gang violence, kidnappings, murder and economic insecurity have risen tremendously in recent months.