Why has the Haitian Revolution been forgotten?

Part III of my Haitian Revolution series, wherein my students wonder why the French Revolution gets 90+ pages in their textbook and the Haitian Revolution gets only half a page.

An article to read: The Root of Haiti’s Misery: Reparations to Enslavers

Instead of a book on Haiti, I’m going to recommend reading or listening to the The Root of Haiti's Misery: Reparations to Enslavers. Published by the New York Times in 2022, the article was written by Catherine Porter, Constant Méheut, Matt Apuzzo and Selam Gebrekidan. This article alone is worth springing for a Times subscription, but I apparently have 10 free “gift articles” to give, so the first 10 people to click this link will get the article for free. Here ya go!

With a listening time of just over an hour, the article is practically a book.

The 2022 article begins with an intimate look at poverty in Haiti and then zooms out to explain that all this poverty has a root cause: France. After enslaved Haitians fought for and won their independence, the French military continued to threaten Haiti. Meanwhile, the rest of the world (including the USA, where slavery was still very much legal) refused to acknowledge Haitian independence.

In order to survive, Haiti was forced to pay reparations to France. It’s been called an “independence debt.” The Times article calls it a ransom.

Of course Haiti had no money to pay France, so the “enlightened” country did what every predatory pay day loan company does. It offered to lend money. Therefore, Haitians borrowed money from French banks to pay the French government. From the Times:

This became known as Haiti’s “double debt” — the ransom and the loan to pay it — a stunning load that boosted the fledgling Parisian international banking system and helped cement Haiti’s path into poverty and underdevelopment.

Depleted after decades of paying France, Haiti took out even more loans after that. By 1911, $2.53 out of every $3 Haiti took in from coffee taxes, its most important source of revenue, went to paying debts held by French investors

Wall Street got in on the swindle, and Haiti was soon borrowing money from the US institution that would become Citigroup. For the next two decades, the US and French militaries inserted themselves into Haitian politics to protect their investment. A 20 year occupation, training a vicious national army, supporting coups, and foisting terrible trade deals upon the country all followed. The article breaks it all down in shocking clarity, while also suggesting that history has been kept hidden so France and the USA would never be held accountable for their nefarious actions.

A place to explore: Paris

While in Paris last summer, I scoured the country for any mention of Haiti. While most countries do a terrible job acknowledging their colonial crimes, usually there are some clues. The Royal Museum for Central Africa in Brussels “takes responsibility for the impact that its previous propaganda for colonialism has had on the multicultural society of today, and for the message of Western moral and intellectual superiority it has conveyed in the past,” for example. Although the museum is a half hour bus ride out of town, so one wonders how many tourists make the journey.

I found zero museums about Haiti in France, in town or out of town. There are a few Caribbean restaurants in 18th arrondissement that have a couple Haitian dishes on the menu. There is a Haitian market. There is a measly plaque honoring Toussaint Louverture near Luxembourg Gardens, and a few streets and parks outside of town that bear his name.

But that’s it. Do better France.

I would love a plaque (a BIG ONE) on the Eiffel Tower that explains how Crédit Industriel et Commercial, the French institution that helped finance the Eiffel Tower, was a major beneficiary of an 1875 loan to Haiti.

No mention of Haiti here. Kinda makes me feel guilty for going to Paris. Photos by my husband :)

Would the iconic Parian tower even exist without the money extorted from Haiti? While this seems like an excellent question for French history students to ponder, they don’t get a chance. Again, from the Times:

Little of this history is recognized by France. The reparations Haitians were forced to pay their former masters for generations are not covered in French schools, researchers say. And when a Haitian president began loudly raising the subject, the French government scoffed and tried to squelch it.

Well, MY students are sure as hell going to learn about.

A lesson to teach: Why has the Haitian Revolution been forgotten?

Now that my students have learned about the Haitian Revolution and have discussed Frederick Douglass’s comments on the country, it’s time to link history to the present day. I introduce students to their thesis question: Why has the Haitian Revolution been forgotten? To answer this, I give them two readings and then we listen to the New York Times article.

• First reading: A History of US Policy in Haiti: This is a quick primer on the US occupation in Haiti in 1915 and President Aristide’s removal. The NYTimes article goes more in-depth, so have students read this one first to prep them.

• Second reading: We Owe Haiti a Debt We Can’t Repay This document includes the text of a reading and student comprehension questions I wrote to go with it. This article was written in 2021 after the Haitian President was murdered - an event Haiti is still reeling from today.

• New York Times article: See above! I give my students quotes from the article, with space for student notes here. We listen to the the first 20 minutes of the story one day of class and the last 15 minutes the next day (skipping the history bit in the middle because they’ve already learned that). The quote sheet helps keep them focused while listening to the story, and then they can use the quotes in their essay.

Then they write an essay! Here is the outline I give students.

I conclude the unit by spending a million years grading essays. Everything

Marcus Luther

writes about grading essays on

The Broken Copier

is true: It takes forever and there are no hacks. Just do the work. All weekend long.

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