Marie Marcelle Buteau Racine was born on May 31, 1934, in Les Cayes, Haiti.
[1] She was a Haitian professor of linguistics and a founding member of the Akademi Kreyòl Ayisyen/Haitian Creole Academy.
[3][4] She would later teach at the University of the District of Columbia while being involved in social issues related to education, women's rights, and justice in Haiti, Latin America, and the United States.
[5][6] Racine was hired by Federal City College (later University of the District of Columbia) in 1969.
[5] In addition to her work fostering the study of Haitian Creole, Racine also published on critical education issues in the American context.