The book “Democratic Insecurities: Violence Trauma And Intervention In Haiti” by Erica James examines the connection between the problems that Haiti has with democracy and security and the level of humanitarian and military involvement that has occurred within the country. The author examines the effect that the recent history of political strife has resulted in changes in the way that the citizens identified with themselves and with their government. These changes, the author contends are rooted in the violence and repression that these individuals have been subjected to. As these groups continue to intervene in the lives of the Haitian people James explores the effect that this has on the relationship that people have with their government and those that they interact with. The political, communal, and personal lives of these individuals is explored in order to determine the impact that the involvement of these groups has on the individuals and groups within the country.
James contends that the historic legacy of the policies directed at Haiti can address the level of difficulty that is faced in establishing a deeper level of commitment from the international community in regards to the challenges that the country is facing. The adoption of techniques that can help to promote these expectations then seems to be an important issue to address. In essence, the Haitian nation has seen a long history of corruption and exploitation which has resulted in its present state. James establishes the root of the nation's present day problems within its unique history. She focuses on the priorities of the colonial powers of years past and the international system of slavery that promoted the degridation of basic human rights and values while, at the same time, nations were espousing policies of social reform and justice for specific nationalities or groups while wholly ignoring others. While originally a slave colony, the inhabitants of Haiti would be one of the only to rise up against their oppressive governments and attain independence for themselves. People of different races worked together in order to establish the Haitian government in the early 19th century. This seems to indicate a strong commitment towards the values of enlightenment thinking and the overcoming of ethnic and racial boundaries in order to create a wholly new nationality, much like had occurred in the United States. However, the country would, early on, be enamored in dept due to an agreement with France to compensate them for the loss of their businesses. This, coupled with a growing disparity between race that was occurring throughout a variety of countries at this time, would coalesce with other important factors resulting in growing and systemic problems related to Haiti's political economy.
James continues by establishing the developments that would occur in the country upon until the modern day. After the revolution the economic issues of the country would ultimately result in political and social unrest making the establishment of a legitimate democratic government difficult. The author seems to indicate that this is also the result of a systemic reliance on foreign influence and aid that allows corruption and violence to run rampant within the country. Haiti would come to rely on the U.S. for a large portion of its trade, prompting a U.S. military presence in the country. However, this would also continue a strong reliance on a foreign power. “In the twentieth century decades of U.S. occupation, political instability, and economic development strategies” would essentially result in “a docile labor force that was available for industrial export production” (James 2010). These developments continued the long-ingrained patterns of exploitation. The economic and political effects of these practices, James argues, have resulted in the current defunct state of Haiti today. The argument made by James is based in the view that there has been, throughout history, a systemic exploitation of Haiti's instability in order to promote the values of, previously, colonial powers and other foreign interests. Looking at the views expressed by other authors this seems to be the case.
The exploitation of Haiti demonstrated by James seems to extend to the very foundations of the nation itself. This can be understood in looking at the impact that the international slave trade had on the founding of their nation and how the reaction from the international community to their liberation would ultimately result in the failure of their democracy. The essay “Hegel and Haiti” by Susan Buck-Morss argues that the underlying dilemma of Haiti is that it existed within an international community that espoused the enlightenment of humanity and independence and the ideals of moral freedom on the one hand while promoting a system of subjugation and exploitation on the other. “Even when theoretical claims of freedom were transformed into revolutionary action on the political stage, it was possible for the slave-driven colonial economy that functioned behind the scenes to be kept in darkness” (Buck-Morss 2000). Furthermore, despite what many historians might argue, it seems that the Haitian people brought about their own ideas of democracy and revolution rather than adopting them from foreign powers.
History suggests that the root of the Haitian rebellion “did not come about through the revolutionary ideas or even the revolutionary actions of the French; it came about through the actions of the slaves themselves” (Buck-Morss 2000). This is a fundamentally essential idea that likely presented major considerations for the implications of the enlightenment regarding its moral and ethical directives. Buck-Morss asserts the value of the revolution in this sense in its ability to establish a new paradigm in regards to human freedom. “The Haitian Revolution was the crucible, the trial by fire for the ideals of the French Enlightenment. And every European who was part of the bourgeois reading public knew it” (Buck-Morss 2000). However, they largely ignored the implications, as the independent revolution suggests. This indicates that the arguments that James made regarding the systemic institutionalization of fear in the nation was likely the result of the international stigma associated with the uprising of a slave nation at the beginning of Haiti's history. She also asserts the effect that views of poverty and identities regarding social and economic position can be profoundly impacted by the level of interest in the people versus the economic interest in their capital. In assessing the historic view that western nations had of the notion of poor her consideration of these values can be better understood.
James considers the establishment of these principles of protection and economic exploitation to have a profoundly negative impact upon the nation's sense of identity. In assessing the underlying consideration of poor and rich within the social views of hierarchical societies this view can be better established. Chapter 2 of Paul Slack's “Poverty and policy in Tudor and Stuart England” entitled “Perceptions of poverty” discusses the subjectivity of notions of economic justice and social rights. This subjectivity is generally directed towards the interests of those that are espousing those rights. In this sense, there are different ideas of what can be described as poor or disenfranchised. He discusses the historical framework by which the development of modern distinctions between rich and poor, and their social, economic, and political roles, have become polarized to the point where the poor are institutionally exploited by the rich in the name of progress and harmony.
Public perceptions of the poor can be greatly effected by these underlying currents of identity. In turn, these perceptions can have a profound impact on how issues such as charity and hospitality are understood. Distinctions made between the duties and obligations of the rich and poor have generally been directed at the implications of their roles. Those who had wealth and cared for the poor in any way would be considered to be just and pious individuals, while the poor themselves had no way of attaining this type of idealization. “Discrimination and public relief made it necessary to define private charity, and in the process it became exclusive, calculating, and deliberate” (Slack 1988). This fundamentally altered the notion of poor. This can be seen to have had a profound effect on the view that international nations have of those nations that have less economic performance or stability.
Misrepresentation, misleading information, and institutionalized fear of the poor would all ultimately result in a state of terminally dependent stagnation. This was the result of identification of the poor in negative ways, associating their situation with their ability or their capacity as humans. “The able-bodied poor fell traditionally among the idle: if they could not support themselves it was their own fault” (Slack 1988). This view has a profound effect on the policies that are levied towards poor countries. This seems to provide evidence for the case that James is making regarding the exploitation of Haiti by foreign powers and corrupt interests. The desire for increasing the overall capital of nations presented the need for theorists to establish philosophic debates concerning the poor and their “roles” in society. These roles result in the adoption of specific policies. These policies ultimately result in the “deliberate combination of repression and relief” (Slack 1988). Slack's arguments therefore seem to corroborate with the point that James is making regarding the conflicting nature of social justice and systemic reliance on relief from interested parties. This is the fundamental root of exploitation that needs to be addressed in order to solve the problems that Haiti faces today.
The argument presented by James can be further understood in relation to the capacity of the international community to consider the Haitian people through the establishment of priorities that dictate the establishment of more coherent forms of justice. The essay “The Haitian Revolution and the articulation of a modernist epistemology” by Clinton Hutton further corroborates this viewpoint. The author challenges the views of intellectual thinkers in France, the United States, and elsewhere due to their inability to develop new modes of thought that moved beyond those of the previous century. This is an important point to consider in relation to the modern dilemma that James is discussing. “By doing so, they denied or underestimated the cognitive agency of Africans in the making of the Haitian Revolution and thus presented a distorted picture of the Haitian Revolution in Haitian revolution studies” (Hutton 2011). It is therefore important to view the historic context of the Haitian struggle through the lens of the people that took part in the struggle and their expectations, rather than attempting to frame into a larger problem of social justice. This presents a more accurate way of reflecting the position of James in regards to the Haitian crisis. It is therefore important to consider the relationship between the priorities dictated by those within Haiti and those simply interested in promoting their own position or agenda.
The view that James presents challenges the expectations of the international response to crises. The reliance and expectation of aide presents a profound moral consideration in relation to the challenges that a country is likely to face. In her article “Witchcraft, Bureaucraft, and the Social Life of (US) Aid in Haiti” James goes on to discuss the unintended consequences that resulted from the international community providing aid to Haiti following the reestablishing of democratic order in the early 1990s. This presents an important case that demonstrates the moral implications of these types of policies. She describes these as “well-intentioned activities that nonetheless include opaque bureaucratic practices and competition over knowledge, scarce resources, and institutional territory” (James 2012). The establishment of processes that continue the systemic violence and corruption that the country has been dealing with demonstrates the need for further valuation of the principles by which these policies have been implemented. She argues that there have been a large amount of accusations involving “malfeasance, scapegoating, and violence directed toward both providers and recipients of humanitarian and development assistance” (James 2012). This simply shows the length to which the values and assumptions that nations make regarding the social good or harm that certain policies will make should be critically assessed.
James' book establishes the essential criteria by which the issues facing Haiti, and many other modern nations, can be better understood. The valuation of specific policies and protocols by international political and economic interests can have a profound impact on the considerations that are adopted in order to help a country in need. However, if these ideas do not challenge the expectations of these communities in order to ensure that corruption and violence are rooted out than issues such as those that Haiti faces, and has faced for much of its history, will continue to persist into the future.
References
Buck-Morss, S 2000, Hegel and Haiti, Critical Inquiry, Vol. 26, No. 4, 821-865.
Hutton, C 2011, The Haitian Revolution and the articulation of a modernist epistemology, Critical Arts: South-North Cultural and Media Studies, Vol. 25, Issue 4.
James, E 2010, Democratic Insecurities: Violence, Trauma, and Intervention in Haiti, University of California Press.
James, EC 2012, Witchcraft, Bureaucraft, and the Social Life of (US) Aid in Haiti, Cultural Anthropology Issue 27, No. 1, pp. 50–75.
Popkin, JD 2011, A Concise History of the Haitian Revolution, Wiley Online Library.
Slack, P 1988, Perceptions of poverty, from Poverty and policy in Tudor and Stuart England, Longman, pp. 17-36.
