#duvalier era

[haitianhistory]

Today in Haitian History - April 14, 1907 -- Birth of former Haitian President François Duvalier 

Few Haitian heads-of-state have and continue to inspire as much passion as the former Haitian president François Duvalier. Born in Port-au-Prince on April 14, 1907, Duvalier would become one of Haiti’s most infamous leaders. Despite his humble origins, the young Duvalier studied at the well-respected Lycée Alexandre Pétion only to start his medical studies at the École de médecine de Port-au-Prince in 1928. Like many individuals of his generation, Duvalier was troubled by the U.S Marine Occupation of Haiti (1915-1934). Deeply inspired by the work of the Haitian scholar Jean Price-Mars who in 1919 and 1928 published his two most influential works La vocation de l’élite and Ainsi Parla L'Oncle: Essais d'Ethnographie respectively, Duvalier began his own intellectual exploration into Haiti’s political and social ills in the 1930s. 

Just as he was building a reputation for himself as a country doctor, Duvalier formalised his interest in such questions by taking an active role in different organisations. In 1948, with his close collaborator Lorimer Denis, he published Le problème des classes à travers l'histoire d'Haïti : sociologie politique a collection of articles previously printed in the journal Chantiers. The book, which presents a simplistic somewhat racialist and poorly nuanced view of Haitian history was the result of increased polarisation in Haitian society and the adoption of a Noirist framework to make sense of the country’s troubled past. Like other members of the emerging urban black middle-class, Duvalier located Haiti’s problems in the colour question and criticised the mulâtre upper class for its greed and deep prejudice against the majority of Haiti’s population. Far from being inspired by the (sometimes) more egalitarian tenants of popular Marxist Haitian thinkers of the day, Duvalier’s vision for the Haitian state was one controlled by a strong man who by virtue of his skin colour would naturally be a fair representative of the black population.

With the downfall of Élie Lescot in Revolution of 1946 and the election of Dumarsais Estimé in August 1946, Duvalier got his chance at occupying a national political post as Ministry of Public Health. In spite of Estimé’s downfall in 1950, Duvalier’s association with the former president proved to be useful in the months following the fall of Magloire (1950-1956) and his election nine months later.

Despite the clear sense from Duvalier’s writing that he saw Haitian history as a battlefield between the black and mulâtre fractions to control the state, during the 1957 election, the former minister ran both as the logical heir of Estimé and of 1946′s revolutionary fever but also, as a great conciliator disinterred in partisan politics and attentive to doing away with colour divisions in Haiti.

As François Duvalier the candidate and aspiring president increasingly relied on thugs to intimidate his political opponents, it was clear to most that, once in power, he would not tolerate any sort of challenge to his authority. For the next fourteen years, Duvalier indeed ruled the country with an iron fist, with the type of state-sponsored violence that despite Haiti eventful history, shocked most sensibilities.  

François Duvalier. Date unknown. Image Courtesy: Haiti-Référence.

[haitianhistory]

Today in Haitian History - April 11, 1959 -- Death and mysterious disappearance of Clément Jumelle’s body 

Clément Jumelle’s death in April 1959 amid François Duvalier’s efforts to better consolidate his power continues to be puzzling and according to scholars like Paul Christopher Johnson (2006), greatly contributed to the aura of secrecy and mysticism that surrounded the former Haitian president.

Along with Louis Déjoie, Daniel Fignolé and François Duvalier, Jumelle was one of the main contenders for the national seat following President Magloire’s hasty departure in December 1956. A former member of both Estimé’s and Magloire’s cabinets, Jumelle close association with the latter quickly became a liability that his adversaries would use against him. Indeed, according to Etzer Charles (1994), he was criticised for his role as Secretary for Finance and National Economy under Magloire and accused of corruption. While this charge, especially in the Haitian context where corruption is part of the political habitus was not taken particularly seriously, Jumelle’s incapacity to generate solid support behind his candidacy coupled with Duvalier’s increasing reliance on thugs to dissuade opposition to his nomination, ultimately led to Jumelle’s downfall. According to Matthew J. Smith (2009), before election results were even announced in September 1957, “primarily out of fear, Jumelle withdrew from the election and urged his followers to abstain from voting” (p.185). For the next two years, he remained in Haiti but in hiding. In April 1959, he finally died of hypertension in the Cuban embassy. 

Certainly, that this “forced” interior exile led to Jumelle’s death is not what makes his demise so noteworthy. Indeed, the brutality of Duvalier’s regime assuredly contributed to many such deaths. It was the disappearance of Jumelle’s body the next day while on its way to Church that made the event so macabre. As noted by Johnson (2006), "mysterious theft of bodies [...]  was one of Duvalier’s means of circulating the repute of his priestly power. The most notorious example was the theft of his former rival Clément Jumelle’s body, in April of 1959. Police stopped the black hearse, pulled the casket into their own vehicle and drove away from stunned mourners [...] Officially, the body’s removal was to stifle the public rally that might have gathered on the occasional of Jumelle’s burial; but the gossip network spread the word that Jumelle’s heart would be used as a wanga (magic charm) to fortify and armor Duvalier’s office” (p. 434). These dramatic events helped confirmed the suspicion held by many that Duvalier had out of this world powers and could attack his political enemies even in death. 

Clément Jumelle by Robert W. Kelley. Location unknown. Image Courtesy: Medium.com.

[haitianhistory]

I don’t hear much about Jean-Claude Duvalier, most of the conversation is usually about his father, do you think you will ever post about him and ‘jeanclaudisme’? Also, is there anything you recommend I read about him?

Hi, many thanks for your question!

First, my apologies for this long delay! 

Now, I understand this frustration you may be experiencing. It is true that most of the conversation about Duvalierism focuses on François Duvalier but I suppose it is understandable as he is/was, after all, the main architect of that political ideology.

Now, as for sources on Jean-Claude Duvalier and jeanclaudisme, I would suggest any (serious) scholarship about the Duvalier era. Jean-Claude Duvalier was president for longer than his father and it is during his regime (although this was started during his father’s tenure) that Haiti developed such a close relationship with the United States. Elsewhere, I was suggested books/articles on this period. I will copy them below with a few additional resources. Here are they:

Haiti: The Duvaliers and Their Legacy by Elizabeth Abbott

Haiti: A Shattered Nation by Elizabeth Abbott (this is a more recent take on her previous book)

“Language, Culture and Power: Haiti under the Duvaliers“ by Anthony Lewis

Haiti, State Against Nation: The Origins and Legacy of Duvalierism by Michel-Rolph Trouillot  

“Haiti: The rise and fall of Duvalierism” by David Nicholls

“Conceptualizing the Duvalier Dictatorship“ by Alex Dupuy

Les Duvaliéristes après Duvalier by Gérard Barthelemy

From occupation to Duvalier : a history of United States-Haitian diplomatic relations, 1915-1986 by Paul Richard Sadler

Haiti’s Predatory Republic: The Unending Transition to Democracy by Robert Fatton Jr. (the first few chapters)

“The Effects of the Cold War on U.S.-Haiti’s Relations” by Jean-Claude Gerlus (offers good context for the migration of Haitian “boat people” to the United States)

The military and society in Haiti by Michel S. Laguerre (relevant sections)

Le pouvoir politique en Haïti de 1957 à nos jours by Etzer Charles

For a more complete list on the Duvalier era (1957-1986) see here. Anyways, I hope this helps for now. Have a great day!

[haitianhistory]

Today in Haitian History - July 3, 1951 -- Birth of former Haitian dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier

Son of the country doctor and later dictator François Duvalier and his wife Simone Ovide Duvalier, Jean-Claude Duvalier was born on July 3, 1951. Following his father’s death in April 1971, Duvalier became Haiti’s new head of state at the age of nineteen. As president, Duvalier announced that he would undertake an economic revolution just as his father, first elected in 1957, had brought about a political one. “Jeanclaudisme,” based on an alliance with the Haitian merchant sector and an increased reliance on U.S. capital, was a moderate success in the 1970s. Haiti, however, remained the poorest country of the region and well before the popular rebellion which forced his departure on February 7, 1986, Jean-Claude Duvalier had become particularly unpopular both within the duvalierist circle and the Haitian populace. 

After his departure for France in 1986, Duvalier remained there until 2011 when he decided to come back to Haiti. Despite hopes that we would face the Haitian justice for the crimes he helped perpetuate, he died in Haiti on October 4, 2014, before any real progress could be made. 

While many remember Jean-Claude Duvalier’s presidency as less violent than that of his father, it would be a mistake to assume that his regime constituted a complete break from the practices associated with duvalierism which included state-sponsored violence, disregard for the rule of law, financial corruption and lack of true interest in the well-being of the Haitians.

Jean-Claude Duvalier, 1972. Image Courtesy: Le Monde.

[haitianhistory]

Do you know of any documentaries about Haitian's whole history or maybe cut into segments such as pre-revolution to independence, independence to the Duvaliers, if you know what I mean.

Hi! First of all, I want to express how sorry I am for taking so long to answer this question (especially since I don’t have much to say)! 

I cannot recommend any documentary (rigorous or not) on Haitian history that covers the entire colonial period up to the Duvalier era. (*Actually, see the second to last paragraph.)

Now, if you are interested in the Haitian Revolution, an obvious choice would be PBS’s Égalité for All: Toussaint Louverture and the Haitian Revolution (2009).  (I believe it is now part of the public domain?) Now, the documentary has its own issues and it completely leaves out the war between Toussaint Louverture and André Rigaud (which, is regrettable given how important it is both in Haitian historiography of the Revolution but also in popular imagination as it is seen as”the first” war between blacks and “mulâtres”). While I wouldn’t go as far as to say that the documentary was simply an hour of hero worship, I think anyone better acquainted with the literature on the Haitian Revolution would be somewhat disappointed at times. Overall, however, if you are simply looking for an introduction to the topic, I believe it makes a very good contribution!

I am not sure I know of any documentary that covers the nineteenth century, particularly the post Jean-Pierre Boyer era (1843-1900). That being said, I am aware of at least one documentary by the CIDIHCA that may interest you. (I should note that it is in French.) Une histoire de la banque en Haïti (which I believe was released in 2015 around the time of the “celebrations” to mark the 100th anniversary since the beginning of the US Marine Occupation of Haiti) talks about the history of the Haitian bank. The story is very important and helps better understand foreign (particularly French and American) interventions in Haitian domestic affairs. The controversies around the Haitian bank are also crucial to grasp how the indemnity question was played out in the early twentieth century. They also provide a good prelude to the history of the Occupation. I know only what would be “common knowledge” about the founding of the bank therefore I am not really able to critique the documentary. From where I am standing, I enjoyed it and it did correspond to most of my (light) reading. Perhaps an economic historian would feel it was too simplistic but since we are in the spirit of finding accessible introductions to Haiti’s past, I think this one is also a great to watch. 

Moving on to the early twentieth century and the pre-Duvalier era (so really, everything from 1901 to 1957), I would absolutely recommend Les chemins de la mémoire, Haïti avant Duvalier (2001). This documentary by the CIDIHCA makes clear that it is possible to produce work that is entertaining, accessible and well-researched. As I said before, this documentary covers all the major events prior to 1957: the political instability of the pre-Occupation era, the US arrival, the rise of the Indigéniste and Noiriste movements (although not in enough details in my opinion), the Revolution of 1946, the election of Dumarsais Estimé, the coup against Estimé and Magloire’s military government, “the” 1957 election which elevated François Duvalier to the presidency. This is a lot to discuss in a documentary (that yet, I don’t remember being particularly long) but it is done very well. Frantz Voltaire, the director, mixes testimonies, with archival pictures and videos. While, of course, additional research is needed to really grasp the explosive nature of Haitian politics of that time (and because I am a bit partial to any discussion on Noirisme, I was a bit sad they did not address it more, particularly knowing the CIDIHCA supervised a book exploring this period), this documentary is still a very good place to start.

Now, if you are interested in the 1940s and Haitian literature I recommend Arnold Antonin’s Jacques Roumain, la passion d'un pays (2008). (Once more, it is in French.) As the title suggests, this documentary focuses on the Haitian writer and political figure Jacques Roumain (1907-1944). Beyond this, I think the documentary gives a good feel of 1930s and 1940s Haitian politics. I’ve watched this quite some time ago and cannot remember what faults I remember finding in it. Overall, my impression was positive one. There is a lot of interest for Jacques Roumain both in francophone and anglophone intellectual circles at the moment (well, probably always, but even more so now). I am sure you will enjoy learning about his life and time. 

On to the Duvalier era (1957-1986). My understanding is that there are a few documentaries that were made about this period. I will admit I haven’t watched a single. Simply reading about torture is difficult, seeing photographic evidence of it, even for “scholarly pursuits” seems somewhat unnecessary and can even become voyeurist. Now, a documentary which has been recommended to me time and time again by Haitians whom I deeply respect is Arnold Antonin’s Haïti: le chemin de la liberté (1973). Now, the act of making the documentary in itself during Jean Claude Duvalier’s presidency (1971-1986) is an evidence of great courage. I think the documentary can be seen as both a primary and secondary source. It serves as a great testimony of life under the Duvaliers but also of the increased awareness and adoption of “human rights language” in political and activist circles during the 1970s. My understanding is that the documentary deals with state-sponsored violence and armed resistance to the Duvaliers. (I have it that a version with English subtitles exists somewhere.) I am sure it is a difficult watch but a worthy one. 

Continuing with the Duvalier era, in 2004, the CIDIHCA and their colleagues produced Au Nom Du Père… Duvalier (which I am guessing focused on François Duvalier’s regime as opposed to that of his son). Once more, this is a documentary I haven’t watched. As you can see from my previous recommendations (and this blog in general) I have a high esteem for the CIDIHCA and therefore I am inclined to believe this documentary was well-made. The title itself “In the name of the Father” is a good jab at how François Duvalier enjoyed appropriating Roman Catholic language and symbolism to make his regime seem divine and god-sent. I am guessing the totalitarian aspect of his tenure will be well explored there.

*Since writing the above, it occurred to me that I had not included Haiti, land of tragedy : Haiti, land of hope (2004) which I recently became aware of. It apparently covers all Haitian history from the French colonial era to Jean-Bertrand Aristide’s first (and potentially) second term. I know little about this other than Antoine Léonard-Maestrati, Frédéric Tyrode Saint-Louis, Peter Hudson (who is an historian) were involved in the project. Again, I have not watched it and given it was released in 2004 (probably amid the second coup against Aristide) I am intrigued by the potential political motivation behind it. 

At any rate, I hope this was useful. I am sorry I am not a big “documentary junkie” and don’t have much more titles to share. If anyone is aware of an important contribution I have missed, please let me know. I am working on a permeant page for the blog where I review documentaries. Anyhow, good luck @i-amneveralone!

[haitianhistory]

Haitian Women protesting. Port-au-Prince. Date unknown. Image Courtesy of: CIDIHCA Collections.  

The Ligue Feminine d'action sociale from “Feminism in the Third World: Women in Haiti” by Myriam J. A. Chancy

“In 1934, the Ligue Feminine d'action sociale was formed among women of the upper classes. According to Haitian historian Madeleine Boucherau, Ligue members chose to move away from their usual model of inidvidualized patronage to a more communal one of inter-class cooperation which would attack Haiti's greater social problems. The Ligue founded the "Association des Femmes Haitiennes pour l'Organisation du Travail / Association of Haitian Women for the Organization of Work" in 1935, a foundation for homemakers in 1937, and an organization working on behalf of children's rights in 1939. The latter pursued legislation for the protection of children and published a journal entitled l'Aube [Sunrise]. A fund for social assistance was created in 1939, following a successful lobbying campaign in 1934 to provide an equal minimum wage for men and women, and three weeks paid maternity leave for women. In 1943, their efforts resulted in the opening of a high school for young women in Port-au-Prince and by 1944, girls were admitted to traditionally male high schools in the capital. In the country, literacy was perhaps the dominant educational issue. A statistical review seems to indicate that the Ligue's efforts contributed to significant growth in functional literacy. Sociologist Errol Miller found that literacy among the general Haitian populace rose from 12 percent in 1920 to 44 percent in 1980-86.”

“The Ligue's two most prominent achievements were the passing of constitutional amendments in the 1940s, validating women's rights as fully emancipated citizens of the State which culminated with suffarage in 1950, and their promotion of cross-class unity through the literary/political journal Voix des Femmmes (1934-1945). The Ligue took seriously its mandate to disseminate information on the realities of women's lot in Haiti, and internationally perpetuate an overtly feminist politic. In effect, the Ligue's main purpose was to act as a bridge between the global and the local.”

“Suffrage, however, did not give Haitian women the human face they yearned for; it was a hard-won right, later denied under the Duvaliers (1957-1986) for the purpose of exploiting a vast labor force. Haitian women have since been used as political pawns between male-dominated political factions, their bodies occupying the nexus of racial and sexual oppression.” (Read More)

[haitianhistory]

Jean Dominique on Michel-Rolph Trouillot’s Ti Difé Boulé Sou Istoua Ayiti

For those interested, here is the Haitian journalist, radio host and activist Jean Léopold Dominique (left) commenting on Michel-Rolph Trouillot’s monograph, Ti Difé Boulé Sou Istoua Ayiti. In this segment from a show aired in 1977, Dominique praises Trouillot’s book both because of its scholarly value, but also because of the author’s choice of writing a concise and engaging narrative about the Haitian Revolution in Haitian Creole. As we know, Haitian Creole was only recognized as one of Haiti’s two official languages in 1987. Trouillot’s efforts were thus as remarkable as they were unorthodox. 

Images Courtesy: Jean Dominique: HAC-Haiti / Michel-Rolph Trouillot: American Anthropological Association

[haitianhistory]

Everyday scenes, Port-au-Prince, Haiti, 1974. Courtesy of: François Bérubé.