Continued from Part One...

Few monuments help illustrate those connections, though a Miami society is looking to change that. The Haitian American Historical Society is planning a monument in Savannah, Ga., to honor the Haitians who fought alongside colonial soldiers in the siege of Savannah during the American Revolution. At least 500 free black men from the French colony that became Haiti volunteered with American colonists and French soldiers in October 1779 in an unsuccessful attempt to drive the British from the coastal Georgia city.

Their little-known contribution... more

Here is a fascinating article linking Haiti with Black History Month:

Published Wednesday, February 14, 2007 Haitians celebrate cultural legacy during Black History Month

By JENNIFER KAY Associated Press Writer MIAMI Abolitionist Frederick Douglass and writers Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston are among the heroes celebrated every February during Black History Month. Shadowed in history, however, are their ties to Haiti, the first free black republic.

That relationship is being examined this year by the founders of Black History Month. The Association for the Study of African American Life and History designated this year's theme... more

"Misery won't touch you gentle. It always leaves its thumbprints on you; sometimes it leaves them for others to see, sometimes for nobody but you to know of." (From The Farming of Bones)

A couple of months ago, I read the book The Farming of Bones, by Edwidge Danticat. The Farming of Bones takes place on the island of Hispaniola in the 1930s. It begins in a fictional village in the Dominican Republic; at the same time Dictator Rafael Trujillo began his policy on Haitian genocide. We... more

Brief History of Haiti continued from Part Two...

Democracy continued to falter in Haiti for the next two decades until 1957, when Doctor François “Papa Doc” Duvalier was elected president. In 1964, Duvalier consolidated power, naming himself President-for-Life. Using his notorious enforcement squad, the Tonton Macoutes, thousands were imprisoned, exiled, and murdered.

Before his death, Papa Doc named his son Jean-Claude as his successor. When he... more

A Brief History of Haiti continued from Part One...

A short time after they gained independence, the people of Haiti were thrown into a fierce civil war; dividing the country for almost 20 years. Dessalines was assassinated, and an illiterate ex-slave named Henri Christophe took his place. King Christophe ruled the North, and Alexandre Petion, a mulatto, ruled the South.

In 1818, Alexandre Pétion died and Jean-Pierre Boyer, the former secretary... more

Recently I have been reading about the history of Haiti, and thought I would share a little with you all. (I will share links to the informative websites at the end.)

Haiti shares the western half of the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic. Haiti is the world’s first Black republic, and it is the only nation to be born of a successful slave rebellion.

In December of 1492, Christopher Columbus landed on Hispaniola in and claimed it for the Spanish crown. He called it, “La Isla Espanola,” which was later shortened... more