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Haitian kids love American cartoon characters
Haitian culture is a fascinating mix of African, Caribbean and French influences, which swirl together in the streets of Port-au-Prince in ways that can dazzle and confuse foreign visitors, especially Americans.
Billboards sport indecipherable phrases in Creole, the meanings sometimes becoming at least partly clear from accompanying photographs of bottled water or beer or happy young Haitians using the latest cell phones.
But American culture still intrudes and is nowhere more noticeable than on the signs and billboards advertising kindergartens and preschools, which at times seem to be located on nearly every corner.
No Haitian kindergarten’s sign seems complete without an American cartoon character. Winnie the Pooh, Goofy, Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck beckon children to come play and learn, their jaunty images plastered in bright colors on cement block walls in even the most depressing neighborhoods.
While American corporations sometimes make headlines when they track down small businesses that use the characters without licenses, trademark disputes seem unknown in Haiti.
The characters are so ubiquitous it would take an army of lawyers to even make a dent.
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