"CARICOM-Haiti-U.S. Relations: Afrocentric View"

Haiti emerged on the world's geo-political center-stage in the 19th century. And the three major events that have fashioned and/or molded the island's national identity are the liberation of Haitians from under the yoke of French bondage in 1791, the attainment of independence through revolution on 1 January 1804 led by former slaves Toussaint L'Ouverture, Henri Christophe and Jean Jacques Dessalines and the pro-longed American occupation from 1915-1934. In the 19th century, Haiti "had twenty-six presidents, twenty-five of whom were generals." Governance was implemented to the extent that "power was won with the aid of troops, mobilized for the most part in the (peasant) country areas, which mounted largely bloodless campaigns before defeating their rivals." (Hector and Casimir 2004,20). The unique significance of the Haitian revolution is that it was the first Black Republic in the Western Hemisphere.

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