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Haiti Haiti: Historical Setting
![[GIF]](http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/haiti/ht06_00a.gif)
Figure from a painting by Prosper Pierrelouis
HAITI FORMALLY RENOUNCED its colonial bond with France
in
January 1804, as the result of the only successful slave
rebellion in world history. The country's longevity as an
independent nation in the Western Hemisphere is second
only to
that of the United States. Over this span of almost two
centuries, however, the country has never known a period
free of
tyranny, repression, political conflict, racial animosity,
and
economic hardship.
Haiti, the first black republic in modern times, sprang
directly to self-governance from French colonialism, a
system
that had a profound impact on the nation. Haiti's colonial
origins had demonstrated that an illiterate and
impoverished
majority could be ruled by a repressive elite. The
slaveholding
system had established the efficacy of violence and
coercion in
controlling others, and the racial prejudice inherent in
the
colonial system survived under the black republic. A
lightskinned elite assumed a disproportionate share of
political and
economic power.
The chaotic and personalistic nature of Haitian
political
culture combined with chronic underdevelopment to provide
fertile
ground for a succession of despots, strongmen, and
dictators.
Even the few national leaders whose election apparently
reflected
popular sentiment, such as Dumarsais Estimé (1946-50) and
François Duvalier (1957-71), rejected constitutional
procedures
in favor of retaining personal power. The popular revolt
that
deposed President for life Jean-Claude Duvalier (1971-86)
demonstrated the Haitian people's rejection of parasitic
despotism. At the same time, however, the revolt
reaffirmed
another lesson of Haitian history: violence has often been
the
only effective route to change.
Data as of December 1989
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