On October 6, 2011, Max Charlier was mortally burned at the age of 62 at St. Mary`s Hospital in Montreal.
The man who his relatives and friends called Maxon had since his early teenage years worked with peasants, promoting literacy and education, building homes for them and mobilizing people to defend their fundamental rights. Thus he became inevitably one of the numerous victims of the Duvalier's bloodthirsty dictatorship.
Maxon spent 9 long months in jail in inhuman and degrading conditions: he was tortured and deprived of all basic necessities. He carried in his body and soul the scars of this detention for the rest of his life.
When Max Charlier was eventually released with other political prisoners on December 24, 1976, and illegally expelled from Haiti, he arrived in Paris starving, gaunt and sickly, with a high fever. He weighed less than 100 pounds despite his lengthy frame of almost 7 feet. He was hospitalized in France and gradually regained his health. He came to Canada where his mother was living. He returned to Haiti after the fall of Baby Doc and lived in Gonaives with his spouse Gérarda Elysée, and continued his work with the grassroots organizations.
He was taken ill and returned to Montreal where he was hospitalized at St. Mary's Hospital.
When speaking about Maxon, it is impossible to forged his beloved mother Ghislaine Rey Charlier, author of an anthology of the Haitian novel and of a renowned historical novel, and his two brothers, André, a well-known journalist and poet, and Jacques, a renowned poet and play producer.
During his last years, Maxon was sheltered by his mother who encouraged him when he faced the demons of his long detention. Even though she was 93 years old, she continued to surround him with love and attention, retuning the love he had ever shown her since his childhood.
Their only riches was the passion they shared for literature and their beloved homeland Haiti and its vibrant culture. They were mutually uplifted and joyous when writing and conversing on their readings, or when they exulted in the history of their native country, contributing their support whenever possible.
Maxon will be remembered for his writings and his acting with Roland Menuau, and also his playing with the Black Theater Workshop.
His life must be recorded as an illustration of human values lived unselfishly, and his perennial humor in the face of overwhelming adversity; his life is a story of patriotism and altruism which today are all too often relegated in the shadows, if not totally abolished.
His tragic death is also a reminder of the ongoing suffering of the victims of the Duvalier regime. He is survived by his loving wife, his children and family.
Two manuscripts of Maxon will soon be published.
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