Ti Mache A Piti by photographer Zarita Zevallos

by Zarita Zevallos

“When I was a kid, my siblings and I used to try to sit on my mom and she would scream out ‘Ti Mache A piti’ or Ti Mache A Kont!’ which translates into ‘The Marketplace is small/enough’. What she meant was that there isn’t enough space on her lap for all of us to sit on; and when I think of the translation, the bigger picture and what’s been happening recently, it is true. The marketplace isn’t big enough for all of us.

Most of us knew we were due for a recession but we didn’t know when or how little warning and flexibility we would have. The market has crashed, we are locked in our houses to avoid getting sick or being vectors of the virus, most of us can’t even afford to pay for medical care, demands are higher than supplies and we are all under the same umbrella of economical stress; I know I am.

Although this is a global crisis, all I can think of is my home country, Haiti, as well as other third world countries, honestly. How we are always the ones to carry most of the burden of recessions when we were barely surviving before this? After only one week, I can feel the pressure of it all. I try my best to not think further into the future but how can I not?” - Z.Z.