Description

A deeply moving memoir, *Talk to Me* recounts a grandson’s journey to uncover the truth behind the coup that toppled his grandfather’s presidency in Haiti, the silence that concealed this trauma within his family, and his determination to understand his mother despite the burdens of the past.

Rich Benjamin’s mother, Danielle Fignolé, grew up as the eldest child in a large, well-off family in Port-au-Prince. Her mother was a schoolteacher, and her father was a revered political leader who fought for the rights of Haiti’s Black working class. In 1957, he briefly became the country’s president—a historic achievement that was short-lived. Just two weeks after assuming office, a coup orchestrated with the backing of the Eisenhower administration abruptly ended his presidency. Soldiers forced Danielle’s parents onto a plane bound for New York at gunpoint, while she and her siblings were kidnapped before eventually being smuggled out of Haiti.

Rich grew up knowing little about this painful past. His family never spoke of it, leaving him to wonder about his mother’s emotional distance, her unpredictable temper, and the struggles she carried. At the same time, she knew little about her son’s own pain—the loneliness he felt as a child, his battle with a painful blood disease, and his journey to embrace his sexuality in the midst of the AIDS crisis. Though they could discuss literature, education, and world affairs, the most intimate aspects of their lives remained unspoken. As Rich got older, the weight of this silence became unbearable.

Over the years, he slowly pieced together the legacy of upheaval that shaped his grandfather, his mother, and ultimately himself. In this powerful memoir, he not only unravels his family’s history but also delivers a sharp, provocative examination of America—its foreign interventions, the struggles of immigrants, and the enduring bonds of family that persist through hardship, resilience, and generations of untold stories.