Haiti: Its history and the negative connotation of being called Haitian.
The History:
A lot of people do not know the incredible History of Haiti. I believe that in order to understand the culture, it is imperative to know the history of Haiti. In 1492 when Christopher Columbus landed in the northern part of Haiti, he was astounded at the beauty of the island that he declared Haiti as the Pearl of the Antilles. The island soon transitioned from being colonized by the Spanish to the French.
At the time, the revolution in France had an extreme effect of the relationship between the slaves and the colonists. On August 22, 1791, slaves in the northern region of the colony staged a revolt that began the Haitian Revolution. Tradition marks the beginning of the revolution at a ceremony at Bois Caïman (Alligator Woods) near Cap-Français. The call to arms was issued by Dutty Boukman. Within hours, the northern plantations were in flames. The rebellion spread through the entire colony. Boukman was captured and executed, but the rebellion continued to rapidly spread.
With the colony facing a full-scale invasion by Britain, the rebel slaves emerged as a powerful military force, under the leadership of Toussaint Louverture, Jean-Jacques Dessaline and Henri Christophe. L’Ouverture successfully drove back the British and by 1798 was the defacto ruler of the colony. In 1799, he defeated the mulatto General Andre Riguad who controlled most of the south and west and refused to acknowledge Toussaint's authority. By 1801, he was in control of the whole island, after conquering Spanish Sanr Domingo and proclaiming the abolition of slavery there.
On January 1, 1804 Dessalines then declared independence, reclaiming the indigenous Taíno name of Haiti ("Land of Mountains") for the new nation, cementing Haiti as being the first black establish republic.
The Negative Connotation:
With such powerful history, you would expect a measure of respect as to being Haitian, instead of the ostracizing. When I was in elementary school, if a kid wanted to hurt your feelings or belittle you, they would say: “You Haitian” about 99.99% of the time. I have always had pride in my culture, but to see people using being Haitian as a negative characteristics called into question its negative connotation. First, a lot of people attribute Voodoo to something that came from Haiti. In fact, it came from Africa, and spread among South and Central America, and the West Indies. Most do not know that Voodoo is a religion; a spiritual belief that has been misconstrued by the media to portray something that is barbaric and savage. It is a shame that people believe what they hear instead of what they see. Another misconception is that Haitians eat cats. How did this originate? I wish I knew, because that is so farfetched. In all honesty most of us do not even like animals, much less eating a cat. But when you have people that believe a lie, it turns into a societal truth; and that is when it is the most hindering on any culture.
From the early stages of elementary and school, kids had this negative outlook on the country that I love so dearly. Being called Haitian turned from something prideful to now shameful. So many young Haitian adults deny their true identity with the fear of standing out. It saddens me to think about not only how some Haitians are ashamed of their culture, but also how in other cultures, people are embarrassed by their ethnicity. Are you one of them? If you are, please understand that your background is what makes you unique; being Haitian lifts me up into a whole different level. I am more grounded and sure of whom I am as a young lady. Despite the negative stereotypes that are attributed to your culture, have pride in it; because having pride in it, is also having pride in yourself.
