NORTH MIAMI, Fla. — Soup Joumou is a pumpkin-squash based soup mixed with vegetables and beef.
Joumou is important to the Haitian culture because before Haitian slaves freed themselves from the French, they were not allowed to eat the soup.
“They weren’t allowed to have this soup, so when they declared their independence, we’re going to have what you wouldn’t let us have,” said Miami-Dade County Commissioner Oliver Gilbert. “It’s a bunch of stories of how we have overcome. It’s about saying we deserve what we say we deserve. If we can work for it, we can earn for it. And that spirit is embodied in the Haitian culture.”…