Submitted by Bryan Schaaf on Fri, 06/27/2008 - 11:52.
Admit it. You are Jean Claude Duvalier writing from France, aren't you? Haiti's African influences are every bit as strong and probably more so though than its French influences. Toussaint Louverture, Haiti's brilliant revolutionary leader, didn't want independence for Haiti right away. He wanted Haiti to be part of France like Guadeloupe and for Haitians to have equal rights. He knew it would take years and years to develop a strong economy, educated populace, good governance, etc. The French invited him to negotiations and kidnapped him. He died in a French prison. Jean Jacques Dessalines saw what had happened to his mentor and came to the conclusion that no negotiation with the French was possible. He launched a scorched Earth campaign against the French which was successful but also destroyed the plantations and organized agriculture. Haiti was at a crossroads and France, given the decision between equality and violence, chose the latter. I dont mean to suggest the United States or other countries are innocent - they are not. But Haiti is not hell (ever been there?) and has a lot of potential. Most of my Haitian friends are proud of their country and want to stay. However, they also want education, health care, jobs, and a decent house to live in. Those aspirations are not unreasonable and we can all play a part to help create the conditions for that to happen.
An Orphaned African Country (but not a lost child of France)
Admit it. You are Jean Claude Duvalier writing from France, aren't you? Haiti's African influences are every bit as strong and probably more so though than its French influences. Toussaint Louverture, Haiti's brilliant revolutionary leader, didn't want independence for Haiti right away. He wanted Haiti to be part of France like Guadeloupe and for Haitians to have equal rights. He knew it would take years and years to develop a strong economy, educated populace, good governance, etc. The French invited him to negotiations and kidnapped him. He died in a French prison. Jean Jacques Dessalines saw what had happened to his mentor and came to the conclusion that no negotiation with the French was possible. He launched a scorched Earth campaign against the French which was successful but also destroyed the plantations and organized agriculture. Haiti was at a crossroads and France, given the decision between equality and violence, chose the latter. I dont mean to suggest the United States or other countries are innocent - they are not. But Haiti is not hell (ever been there?) and has a lot of potential. Most of my Haitian friends are proud of their country and want to stay. However, they also want education, health care, jobs, and a decent house to live in. Those aspirations are not unreasonable and we can all play a part to help create the conditions for that to happen.