Republic of Haiti Summary

Haiti gained its independence in 1804 and was not truly accepted by the world once it broke free from France. The Republic of Haiti was shunned by the United States after its revolution. Thomas Jefferson feared that the slave uprising in Haiti could spark a new revolt in the U.S. Jefferson did not officially recognize Haiti as a nation and declared that all trade with Haiti to be suspended and claimed their leaders were "cannibals". Jefferson, being a slave owner, could not be able to deal with, "one group of Africans as leaders and another as chattel."

Haiti, given no help from other countries, fell prey to an unjust indemnity from France. In the article, Ignoring the Revolution Next Door, by Edwidge Danticat, it says that; "Haiti, burdened by its post-independence isolation and the 100 million francs in payment it was forced to give France for official recognition--an amount estimated to be worth nearly $22 billion today" Haiti was kept from prospering by France because of all the money they had to pay back. This indemnity would keep draining their treasury and would make them remain poor. But because of how other countries saw the new nation of Haiti, they did not oppose the unfair payments. Even today, Haiti has still not been payed back for the unfair indemnity. Payments had been made to France up until the 1940's. Had Haiti been given a fair chance by the world, it may have been a flourishing new nation.

Here we see the poverty in Haiti that was heavily caused by the indemnity payed to France.