GLOBAL POSITIONS S haron G ram b y - S o b u k w e
Mud Cakes or a Spoonful of Rice The history and continued legacy of Haiti, while typically considered a tragedy, is replete with scriptural parallels, lessons, and hope for the future. Often considered a dismal example of “chronic collapse,” Haiti today is the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, with 80 percent of the population living under the poverty line and 54 percent in abject poverty.The site of frequent tropical storms, persistent government corruption, and resulting popular unrest, Haiti now faces not only rising fuel prices but also food shortages. Recent news reports point to conditions so desperate that some Haitians have resorted to eating mud cakes to survive. This Haiti is strikingly different from its earlier identity as a leader in liberty, equality, and independence. Just as the biblical Hebrews overcame enslavement in Egypt, so, too, Haiti, a nation of enslaved Africans, emerged from capture, cultural oppression, and dehumanization. Both peoples sojourned as strangers in strange lands. Both endured bondage and suffering. Ultimately both peoples, guided and inspired by unlikely leaders, would triumph against great odds to model faith and justice for others. The Haitian Revolution (1791 to 1804) was, like the biblical exodus, a tremendous achievement. Twelve years after 40,000 enslaved Africans started a rebellion against French slavery and colonialism, the Haitian army,led by ex-slaveToussaint L’Ouverture and military genius Jean-Jacques Dessalines, defeated the French army twice and also defeated the armies of England and Spain. Haiti became the first free republic in the Americas where slaves were emancipated and slavery outlawed. Haiti also extended its support to others fighting injustice, most notably
Simón Bolívar in his quest to unshackle South America from Spanish colonial rule. In 1816 Haitian president Alexandre Pétion agreed to support Bolivar with both arms and supplies in return for a pledge that slaves would be freed in any colonies that might be liberated. Overall, Haitians made it clear that Haiti was a refuge for any seeking escape from enslavement or seeking greater personal freedom. However, in Haiti as in the exodus, newly independent peoples paid a high and lasting price in the journey to transformation. While Pharaoh initially permitted the Hebrews to leave Egypt, he sought to drive them into the sea once they began their journey. Similarly, although Haiti had won its independence, enemies continued to seek to destroy her. In 1825, France exacted “reparations,” the equivalent of $21 billion in today’s currency, to reimburse France for the lost privilege of owning Haitian slaves. Surrounded by French military ships, suffering French, Spanish, and US trade boycotts, and facing starvation, Haiti was forced to accept the reparations. In return it received French recognition of Haitian sovereignty, but ironically the new republic was able to make the scheduled payments only through high-interest loans from French banks. This debt essentially re-enslaved Haiti to its former ruler and robbed the new nation of its early potential for development. Debt service absorbed virtually 80 percent of Haiti’s available budget for over a century after the completion of their revolution. Fearing that the Haitian spirit of liberty would infect the enslaved within its own borders, the United States refused to recognize the new republic until 1862, when it sent abolitionist Frederick Douglass as its first ambassador to Haiti. Further, US presidents throughout history have consistently meddled in Haiti’s affairs, including Jefferson and Washington, who feared the impact on slavery, and Wilson, who approved an invasion in 1915 that led to the killing by American troops PRISM 2008
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of the resistance leader Charlemagne Peralte and the US occupation of Haiti. US troops eventually withdrew in 1934, but the US retained financial control over Haiti until 1947. Most recently, the Bush administration has been accused of deposing the democratically elected President John Bertrand Aristide in 2004, resulting in his exile to the Central African Republic. Finally, just as the Hebrews spent 40 years wandering in the desert because they failed to faithfully embrace the new values and culture worthy of an emancipated people, so, too, have Haitians delayed their own deliverance. Corrupt leaders and greedy elites have denied Haitians the opportunity for true emancipation and development. But just as the nation of Israel emerged in biblical times through a process of holistic transformation— encompassing the emotional and physical, spiritual and temporal—so, too, there is hope for Haiti’s holistic transformation. One way that global Christians can support the Haitian people in their fight for shalom is to partner with indigenous NGOs and partnerships, such as Beyond Borders (beyondborders.net), the Haitian FoundationAgainst Poverty (HaitiPoverty. org), Lambi Fund of Haiti (LambiFund. org), Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti (IJDH.org), and Grassroots International (GrassrootsInternational.org). Haiti’s story and the biblical exodus remind us that God is a lover of justice, that he uses the unlikely to achieve amazing feats, and that he does not give up on our restoration. Further, this history echoes the Haitian proverb: “One spoonful of rice from each plate makes enough for another plate.” If we each will do a small part, God will do something amazing! (See Randall Robinson’s An Unbroken Agony: Haiti, from Revolution to the Kidnapping of a President [Basic Civitas, 2008].) n Dr. Sharon Gramby-Sobukwe is department chair of the School of Leadership and Development at Eastern University.