In a formal letter, band management pushes back on claims the group was denied a parade permit, says the decision was a deliberate act of solidarity with a Haitian community “going through an extremely difficult period”
T-Vice management has issued a formal, on-the-record response addressing the band’s absence from Eastern Parkway during this year’s West Indian Day Parade, directly rebutting public statements attributed to Cecile Ford suggesting the group had been denied a parade permit over past rule violations.
In a letter signed by Jessie Al-Khal of T-Vice Management, the band states unambiguously: “T-Vice did not apply for a permit to participate on Eastern Parkway this year,” and that it is therefore “inaccurate to suggest that T-Vice was denied a permit or that our absence from the Parkway is the result of disciplinary action or violations from previous years.” The letter states plainly that the decision not to participate was T-Vice’s own, made collectively by the band.
The Stated Reasoning
According to the letter, the decision was shaped by a convergence of crises affecting Haiti and the Haitian diaspora: “the uncertainty surrounding Temporary Protected Status (TPS), the changes affecting Haitians in the United States, the difficult political and humanitarian situation in Haiti, and the continued deterioration of security and stability — including the recent events in Kenscoff.” T-Vice frames the choice as an act of solidarity rather than a scheduling or logistical decision, writing: “For us, this is not simply about performing at a parade. It is about understanding the reality our people are facing and showing solidarity with them.”
This is a significant, explicit confirmation of a dynamic this outlet has previously examined in the context of Boston’s Caribbean Carnival weekend, where multiple Haitian compas concerts saw unusually thin turnout following Haiti’s TPS termination in late July. T-Vice’s letter marks one of the clearest, most direct on-the-record statements yet from a major touring act naming TPS-related fear and instability as a factor directly shaping Haitian cultural programming decisions this carnival season — not merely an inferred community reaction, but a stated organizational choice by one of compas music’s most prominent bands.
A Broader Argument About Cultural Representation
The letter goes further, addressing what it frames as a separate but related issue: how Haitian cultural expression is represented within the broader, pan-Caribbean framework of the West Indian Day Parade. T-Vice management writes that “Haitian carnival culture has historically been characterized by tremendous crowd energy, elaborate floats, powerful sound systems, animation, vibrant colors, musicians, performers, and, importantly, the display of Haitian flags” — and argues that this form of expression should be respected on its own terms rather than reshaped to match expectations drawn from other Caribbean nations’ traditions. “There is no single definition of what Caribbean culture should look like,” the letter states, while affirming that T-Vice “fully understand[s] that the parade has rules and that those rules must be respected.”
The Bottom Line
T-Vice’s letter closes by reiterating its central factual claim — “T-Vice was not denied a permit. T-Vice did not request a permit. T-Vice made the conscious decision not to participate on Eastern Parkway this year” — while expressing continued respect for the West Indian Day Parade, its organizers, and the broader Caribbean communities it represents. The band asks for the same respect in return regarding its own decision and its own cultural traditions.
Haiti Politic and HMI Music were not able to independently review Cecile Ford’s original statements referenced in T-Vice’s letter, as they were not included in the materials provided. This report reflects T-Vice management’s characterization of that dispute as stated in their letter.
Source: Official letter from T-Vice Management, signed by Jessie Al-Khal, addressed to Cecile Ford, regarding T-Vice’s absence from the 2026 West Indian Day Parade on Eastern Parkway.
