Haiti S Turmoil

After Haiti was struck by a devastating earthquake on January 12, 2010, aid workers and offers of support poured in from around the world. Tellingly, though, news reports on the catastrophe and relief efforts frequently included a pejorative description of the country that outsiders were determined to rebuild: the troubled island nation, a nation plagued by political violence. There was much talk of inventing a “new” Haiti, which would presumably mimic Western modes of development and thus mitigate political instability and crisis. As contributors to this wide-ranging book reveal, Haiti has long been marginalized as an embodiment of alterity, as the other, and the idea of a new Haiti is actually nothing new. An investigation of the notion of newness through the lenses of history and literature, urban planning, religion, and governance, The Idea of Haiti illuminates the politics and the narratives of Haiti’s past and present. The essays, which grow from original research and in-depth interviews, examine how race, class, and national development inform the policies that envision re-creating the country. Together the contributors address important questions: How will the present narratives of deviance affect international relief and rebuilding efforts? What do Haitians themselves think about Haiti, old and new? What are the potential complications and weakness of aid strategies during these trying times? And what do we mean by crisis in Haiti? Contributors: Yveline Alexis, Rutgers U; Wein Weibert Arthus, State U of Haiti; Greg Beckett, Bowdoin College; Alex Dupuy, Wesleyan U; Harley F. Etienne, U of Michigan; Robert Fatton Jr., U of Virginia; Sibylle Fischer, New York U; Elizabeth McAlister, Wesleyan U; Nick Nesbitt, Princeton U; Karen Richman, U of Notre Dame; Mark Schuller, York College (CUNY); Patrick Sylvain, Brown U; Évelyne Trouillot, State U of Haiti; Tatiana Wah, Columbia U.

This is not just another book about crisis in Haiti. This book is about what it feels like to live and die with a crisis that never seems to end. It is about the experience of living amid the ruins of ecological devastation, economic collapse, political upheaval, violence, and humanitarian disaster. It is about how catastrophic events and political and economic forces shape the most intimate aspects of everyday life. In this gripping account, anthropologist Greg Beckett offers a stunning ethnographic portrait of ordinary people struggling to survive in Port-au-Prince in the twenty-first century. Drawing on over a decade of research, There Is No More Haiti builds on stories of death and rebirth to powerfully reframe the narrative of a country in crisis. It is essential reading for anyone interested in Haiti today.

Haiti may well be the only country in the Americas with a last name. References to the land of the "black Jacobins" are almost always followed by the phrase "the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere". To that dubious distinction, on 12 January 2010 Haiti added another, when it was hit by the most devastating natural disaster in the Americas, a 7.0 Richter scale earthquake. More than 220,000 people lost their lives and much of its vibrant capital, Port-au-Prince, was reduced to rubble. Since 2004, the United Nations has been in Haiti through MINUSTAH, in an ambitious attempt to help Haiti raise itself by its bootstraps. This effort has now acquired additional urgency. Is Haiti a failed state? Does it deserve a Marshall-plan-like program? What will it take to address the Haitian predicament? In this book, some of the world's leading experts on Haiti examine the challenges faced by the first black republic, the tasks undertaken by the UN, and the new role of hemispheric players like Argentina, Brazil and Chile, as well as that of Canada, France and the United States.

Democratic Insecurities focuses on the ethics of military and humanitarian intervention in Haiti during and after Haiti's 1991 coup. In this remarkable ethnography of violence, Erica Caple James explores the traumas of Haitian victims whose experiences were denied by U.S. officials and recognized only selectively by other humanitarian providers. Using vivid first-person accounts from women survivors, James raises important new questions about humanitarian aid, structural violence, and political insecurity. She discusses the politics of postconflict assistance to Haiti and the challenges of promoting democracy, human rights, and justice in societies that experience chronic insecurity. Similarly, she finds that efforts to promote political development and psychosocial rehabilitation may fail because of competition, strife, and corruption among the individuals and institutions that implement such initiatives.

"When most people think of Haiti; many images and preconceived notions are embedded into their mind-political pandemonium, horrible ravaged land, heavily over-populated, dirt poor unpleasant people. Tragically, the truth of the matter is for most people these images and thoughts reeks into their mind and are not reassuring. Images that are portrayed in the media will usually show the worst of Haitian society and culture. The Images are usually of the worst Haitian gutters, People of Haiti are frequently portrayed to be uneducated, angry, violent, helpless and always waiting for rescue. Haiti is the Western Hemisphere''s poorest country; many people always ask or wonder -- Why is Haiti so poor? Why is Haiti always facing political turmoil? Why are so many rejected "boat people" coming to the shores of Florida? Will Haiti ever change and how? The answer to these questions is very complicated to answer and to understand." Despite the tale of tragedy and violence, epic poverty and political turmoil there is still so much beauty in this tiny island. There is beauty in the way of the people, their history, their culture and their passions. Haiti boasts a creative, exotic culture whose roots run deep from Africa to France, and to The Caribbean. Haitian art is notable worldwide from primitive styles to hand made sculptures, and to paintings that tell stories. Haiti: A different image captures a more stirring view of Haiti-- a stark land of contrast, the beauty of the land, its dynamic history and unique culture and validates why Haiti was once called "La Pearle des Antilles."

Toussaint L’Ouverture was the leader of the Haitian Revolution in the late eighteenth century, in which slaves rebelled against their masters and established the first black republic. In this collection of his writings and speeches, former Haitian politician Jean-Bertrand Aristide demonstrates L’Ouverture’s profound contribution to the struggle for equality.

Haiti shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic. Since the fall of the Duvalier dictatorship in 1986, Haiti has struggled to overcome its centuries-long legacy of authoritarianism, extreme poverty, and underdevelopment. Economic and social stability improved considerably, and many analysts believed Haiti was turning a corner toward sustainable development when it was set back by a massive earthquake in January 2010 that devastated much of the capital of Port-au-Prince. Although it is recovering, poverty remains massive and deep, and economic disparity is wide: Haiti remains the poorest country in the western hemisphere. Haiti is in a political crisis as the expiration date for terms of most of the Haitian legislature approaches. In the fourth year of President Michel Martelly's five-year term, Congress and the donor community have expressed growing concern about his commitment to the democratic process due to his government's failure to hold legislative elections almost three years overdue. Haiti took some steps to move the process forward, but the Senate has failed to pass the necessary electoral law amendments. Saying they lack confidence in the provisional electoral council (CEP) that is to oversee the elections, some opposition members refuse to vote for the bill. Several major opposition parties are boycotting the elections. Thousands of protesters have called for Martelly's resignation. If the elections do not occur before January 12, 2015, the parliament will lack a quorum, and Martelly could rule by decree, increasing already-high political tensions. On December 9, a commission appointed by Martelly called for the CEP and the prime minister to resign and a consensus government to be formed. Haiti is a key foreign assistance priority for the Obama Administration in Latin American and the Caribbean. Haiti's developmental needs and priorities are many. The Haitian government and the international donor community are implementing a 10-year recovery plan focusing on territorial, economic, social, and institutional rebuilding. An outbreak of cholera in late 2010 has swept across most of the country and further complicated assistance efforts. Progress has been made in developing democratic institutions, although, as evident in the current crisis, they remain weak. The United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) has been in Haiti to help restore order since the collapse of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristideâe(tm)s government in 2004. The mission has helped facilitate elections, combat gangs and drug trafficking with the Haitian National Police, and played a key role in emergency responses to natural disasters. Nonetheless, popular protests have called for MINUSTAHâe(tm)s withdrawal because of sexual abuse by some of its forces and scientific findings that its troops apparently introduced cholera to the country. In 2013 the U.N. said it would not compensate cholera victims, citing diplomatic immunity. Victims have filed a class action suit against the U.N. in U.S. federal court. The main priorities for U.S. policy regarding Haiti are to strengthen fragile democratic processes, continue to improve security, and promote economic development. Other concerns include the cost and effectiveness of U.S. aid; protecting human rights; combating narcotics, arms, and human trafficking; and alleviating poverty. Congress shares these concerns. The immediate priority is that a resolution to the elections impasse be reached quickly: concerns are high that further delays and Martelly ruling by decree will heighten political tensions and instability.