CANDLELIT CHRONICLES: HISTORIC HAUNTS

More Recollections on Haiti

Haiti-as a nation and as a geographic locale-has had a bizarre and frequently troubling history. A country founded in colonialism, enslaved to the French conception of Manifest Destiny (startling and essentially troubling when the student of history recalls that France's own revolution, in 1789, was fought under the banner of “Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite,” or “Liberty, Equality, Brotherhood,” and overturned the French Monarchy. Yet in the colonial nations, the natives were assumed to be not citizens and worthy of no recognition, except the recognition they received when not performing to the expectations of their conquerors.





American citizens, who seem to have limited tolerance of any duration for foreign aid, began quickly to rail against the monetary amount and Federal assistance to the earthquake-torn island in January. I've noticed over a lifetime of historical fascination that Americans, in general, are both anti-intellectual (a failing Richard Hofstadter pointed out in his book on the 19th century, Anti-Intellectualism in American Life) and devoid of either historical knowledge or interest. In this particular case, they overlook the persistent, continued, intervention of the U.S. Federal government in the life, politics, and well-being of the nation of Haiti.





         The American government has never practiced an isolationist policy in regard to Haiti; indeed, it has stirred the political, social, and cultural pot of that portion of the island of St. Dominque far more than it has interfered with the government of Cuba. (If the American approach to Cuba over the centuries had equalled that of its approach to Haiti, Cuba would never have acquired Communism and the Mafia would still be controlling the casinos in Havana). Let us face the truth: in the eyes of the American government, Haiti has alwasys been a “hands-on” encounter.