Haiti: Land of Tragedy, Land of Hope Documentary

    In this documentary, we are given a historical background and context and shown how Haiti got to the place it is today, through many struggles and set backs. Much of Haiti's downfall has seemed to come from the lack of an effective governing system. Time and time again with different regimes, the country has failed to see positive, centralized leadership. The country has faced division throughout its history, one person in the documentary saying, "We're faced with a situation where it is proved impossible to apply these constitutional texts to political practices, to make these texts a reality, to such a degree that we have a two tier regime. There's the regime embodied in the constitution, and there's the regime as it is in practice." This power struggle and political corruption makes it hard for positive governing to take place. With no good leadership, the people of Haiti are often forced to fend for themselves, while they receive backlash for the country's struggles rather than its so-called leaders.
    Haitian people are forced to deal with a lack of rights, a form of slavery for lack of better terms, still existing as some are not experiencing the freedom, justice, and liberty that others are. One Haitian man in the documentary states slavery, "remains a problem in Haiti today in the sense that the Haitian peasants or the ensemble of Haitians living on Haitian soil are not really considered citizens." With these people being treated and feeling like lesser people, they have sometimes turned to violence and destruction. It is hard to blame these individuals. Why should they follow an already-flawed system of laws if they are not even looked at as citizens? The great point is raised in the documentary, "Whenever a foreign journalist says to me, you're killing each other, I say, that's appalling. We're not killing each other. Those in power are killing the population." Again, it seems the real issue, as seen across the Caribbean, starts at the top and flows down to the people in these places. If Haiti had better leadership, maybe the people would not be in the situations they are currently facing and have faced historically. 
-cs

Comments

  1. JP RicheyOctober 3, 2020 at 2:18 PM

    I agree that those who have been in power are responsible for the Haitian people’s plight. I also believe however, that the people themselves are going to have to create reliable institutions that can lead to a resilient government. I have been thinking a lot about this as we watch events unfold in our nation with regard to the presidency. Our institutions of government have kept us from a national collapse. In Haiti, there were no reliable institutions in place (like a justice system) to hold dictators accountable.

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  2. BryceF112October 4, 2020 at 5:34 PM

    Those in power are responsible for Haiti's problems. The essential rise to independent power and fall into poverty and problems with economic status. Haitian citizens are forced to deal with a lot of lack in money, food, and services in their country because in the documentary the leadership in power never prioritize the matters of the country over the matters over their own agendas. You are absolutely right in emphasizing the power and corruption trickling down to others.

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  3. Ian MillerOctober 5, 2020 at 7:31 AM

    This documentary was very fascinating. I believe that the reason that Haiti cannot capably govern, and is in in such economic ruins is due to the original French colonization and how hegemony played a role in Haiti. the entire country was ruled by a different group for years, and when they finally assumed power the country was left to fade tragically. In addition I find that the weak governing system is a common theme for most Caribbean countries and if they were able to fix this, they could gain an extra sense of financial stability.

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