Discusses C.L.R. James's chronicle of the history of the Haitian revolution of 1843 in his book 'The Black Jacobins.' Contrast between the behavior of the Haitian slaves during the working day and their conversations around the supper fire; Conscious organization of the Caribbean nation; Processes of communication that took place in the midst of conflicts.
Discusses the struggle for freedom and full citizenship in the Caribbean. Background on the Haitian Revolution which is recognized as the third pillar in the making of modern citizenship and freedom; Factors that affect the effort of Caribbean people to fight for universal citizenship; Manifestations of the differential valuing of white and black bodies in the Caribbean; Lessons being taught by the Caribbean history.
African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Notes:
160 p., Chronicles the history of slavery in Haiti through a recitation of the brutality of the colonisers and the often mundane and trivial ways in which they attempted to dehumanize Haitians. It seeks to illustrate how Haitians' 300-year journey to freedom was illuminated by the African philosophy of Ubuntu, a world view that embodies human solidarity, respect, dignity, justice, liberty, and love. In this philosophy, Africans found an unmatched strength to resist slavery.
Reviews several books which focused on the social and political history of Haiti. Haiti in the New World Order: The Limits of the Democratic Revolution, by Alex Dupuy; Building Peace in Haiti, by Chetan Kumar; Haiti Renewed: Political and Economic Prospects, edited by Robert Rotberg; The Haitian Dilemma: A Case Study in Demographics, Development, and U.S. Foreign Policy, by Ernest Preeg.;
This essay is framed around interpretations of Haiti's long history in order to demonstrate that there is neither curse nor punishment in Haiti's history; there is only intrigue, interest, and interference. The natural disasters whether earthquakes or hurricanes do not occur because of some rational targeting of the country but are the results of the arbitrariness of nature.
Maintains that the period between 1750 and 1850 represented an age of interrelated revolutions, and events in Haiti constitute an integral part of the history of the Atlantic world
Argues that Haitians used music, and particularly religious singing, self-reflexively, in a culturally patterned way, to orient themselves in time and space, and to construct a frame of meaning in which to understand and act in the devastated Haitian capital. Non-Haitian observers noted with astonishment Haitians’ widespread use of song, but could not make sense of the singing.
