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In fact, it was difficult to recognize Haiti as a sovereign
think about Haiti at all without nation and kept it in a state
considering that devastating Help must be given wisely. of constant embargo. Cut off
day. It seemed impossible to from vital international trade
move past those few seconds and commerce, Haiti’s leaders Hope Rises from the Rubble
that claimed hundreds of agreed to a humiliating treaty
thousands of lives. But I slowly learned that with France in order to earn the recognition
Haiti’s problems lie much deeper and began of the former colonial master. The 1825 treaty Hope Rises from the Rubble
much earlier than January 12, 2010. Even a included an indemnity equivalent to thirteen
natural disaster is not entirely natural, and billion dollars today, accounting for inflation.
the one that devastated Haiti was as much a Throughout history, defeated parties have
product of the two centuries of history that paid reparations after war, but in this case
preceded it as it was of the movement of the alone, victorious Haiti was bullied into paying
earth on that fateful afternoon. inconceivably large reparations to the defeated
France. The tremendous debt was not fully
A DiffiCulT HiSTORy paid until 1947, well over a century later. At
times, as much as eighty percent of Haiti’s
It was in modern Haiti that the New national revenue was being handed over to
World colonial project began in 1492, when France. Though Haiti was the second New
Christopher Columbus established the colony World colony to unchain itself from colonial
of La Navidad along the northern coast and shackles, this crippling debt, combined with
began a painful period of oppression and political instability and linguistic, political, and
annihilation. Haiti became a center of the global geographic isolation, left Haiti forever lagging
slave trade, and its indigenous population was behind its neighbors.
almost entirely exterminated.
In the two centuries that followed, Haiti
But Haiti was also the first country south suffered through a never-ending cycle of
of the United States to throw off the colonial political instability. The president’s chair saw
yoke. Under the leadership of former slaves, the eleven different heads of state from 1900-
Haitian people defeated Napoleon's army and 1915 alone, and even two “emperors” and one
declared independence from France in 1804. “king” in the century prior. Since then, the
This successful slave rebellion—the only one Haitian people have suffered countless military
in world history—is a historic moment of glory coups, two decades of U.S. occupation, and
that Haitians still recall fondly two centuries the Duvalier dictatorship of 1957 to 1986. Even
later. when the 1990s brought democratic elections,
the difficulties continued: Jean-Bertrand
With its independence, Haiti became the Aristide was elected twice and each time driven
Western Hemisphere’s second oldest republic. into exile.
Its first leader, Jean-Jacques Dessalines,
became the region’s first black head-of-state a Internal instability, foreign debt, and
mere fifteen years after George Washington’s international embargoes contributed to
inauguration, six decades before the U.S. finally devastating poverty, poor infrastructure, and
freed its slaves. rampant deforestation. These problems, in turn,
were frequently exploited by nature: first by
But the silver cloud of independence had the annual hurricanes that flood cities, send
its own dark lining. Already separated from its mudslides crashing down deforested hills,
neighbors linguistically as an enclave of French devastate crops, and spread infectious diseases,
surrounded by Spanish and English speakers, and then by the historic earthquake of January
Haiti now became a pariah as the slave-owning 12, 2010.
powers strove to ensure that their colonial
subjects would not follow Haiti’s example. As the earth shook on that fateful day,
it brought to the surface all the underlying
As a result, most foreign powers refused to problems that plagued the country. Hastily

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