Haiti is frequently described as the poorest country in the western hemisphere. “This poverty is the direct legacy of perhaps the most brutal system of colonial exploitation in history, compounded by decades of systematic postcolonial oppression,” notes Canadian political philosopher Peter Hallward.
Spain, France, the US, and most recently Canada have all had a direct hand in this oppression.
Haiti takes its name from the language of the Taíno, the indigenous people whose sophisticated society was wiped out through a combination of foreign disease and subjugation, beginning with Christopher Columbus and his men.
Against all odds, the Republic of Haiti became the first independent country in Latin America in 1804. Since most of the colonial powers were slave-owning societies at the time, they wouldn’t recognize the republic for decades. Although slave owner Thomas Jefferson supported the emigration of American slaves to Haiti, he also felt a republic of emancipated negroes might send the wrong message to the toiling chattel of American plantation owners.
Much of what has occured in Haiti over the past 300 years can be interpreted as retaliation by the great powers against against dark-skinned people who led the only successful slave revolt in recorded history. That makes the current pride and and determination of the Haitian people both remarkable and understandable.
The astounding and mostly unknown past and recent history of the nation is addressed in filmmaker and photographer Elaine Brière’s excellent film, Haiti Betrayed, which will be screening at the VIFF Centre this Saturday, Jan. 28. Tickets here. (For those outside Vancouver and/or those who prefer to rent and watch at home, go to the film’s website.)
Endorsements:
“Haiti Betrayed, which includes the lengthy history of interference, subversion and outright invasion by developed nations to undermine Haitian sovereignty, begins with a cri de coeur against one of the countries most responsible for Haiti’s current state of immiseration: Canada.”
- Andray Domise, MacLeans Magazine
“Haiti Betrayed may be the most important documentary ever made on Canadian foreign policy.”
- Bianca Mugyenyi, Director, Canadian Foreign Policy Institute
“Haitian Lives Matter. This fact has eluded the Canadian media, and the general Canadian population, which prefers to think of itself as, “good guys” when it comes to foreign policy. Elaine Briere’s deeply-researched and highly engaging documentary, lays bare a hidden history that now—of all times—we all need to pay attention to.”
- Mark Achbar - The Corporation
“The Haitian revolution drew the bitter hostility of a colonial world that has persisted through Haiti’s tortured history. This evocative film pointing to Canada’s role in the 2004 coup d’état portrays yet another chapter of sordid betrayal. This film should be a call to action.”
- Noam Chomsky
“This powerful film, with its heart-stopping footage, captures the brutality of what the ‘advanced’ world has done to the people of Haiti since their heroic revolution against slavery. Haiti Betrayed exposes the lie behind Canada’s good-guy image in the world.”
- Linda McQuaig, author, journalist & social critic