Should the US try to help Haiti become stable and prosperous, since they are our neighbor?

Question

Haiti has the worst poverty in the Western Hemisphere. I'm not advocating any kind of military intervention. Instead I'm advocating aid and supportive trade agreements, and maybe a guest worker program.

Answer 1

Yes the US should give aid to Haiti.Why ?

the Haitians had fought alongside the American revolutionaries to help them throw the British out of the American colonies. Haitian help was crucial in at least two battles in which British power was broken - at Savannah, Georgia and at Yorktown.

In addition to all that, the Haitian revolution made another massive contribution to the new American nation: in defeating France, the Haitians exhausted the French treasury to the point where Napoleon had to sell Louisiana to the US or risk losing it to the British. The Louisiana Purchase doubled the size of the US.

The United States and Britain refused to recognize Haiti after it declared independence. The US made recognition conditional on the former colonial power, France, recognizing Haiti's autonomy. At that time, of course, the United States was busy titrating the humanity of blacks and came to the conclusion that a black was 60% human and therefore not entitled to all the rights of Man. And Liberty was as dangerous then as socialism was in the twentieth century.

Early in the last century, the Americans became a little dissatisfied with Haitian repayment of their debt, and that led to an immediate increase in Haitian haplessness. The US invaded, changed their constitution, took away their land, chopped down their trees to plant sisal, logwood, coffee and pineapple and destroyed the agricultural base of the country. After they left officially in 1935, however, the Americans bequeathed Haiti an armed force which was corrupt, cruel, ungovernable and in thrall to the US. It guaranteed that any Haitian President either obeyed Washington or went into exile. In 1947, Dumarsais Estimé, said to be a socialist, was deposed after a couple of years. That began a period of dictatorship distinguished chiefly by American support for the ruthless Francois Duvalier and his inane son, Jean-Claude 'Baby Doc' Duvalier.

If Haiti was more stable , less people would try to move to the States.

Retired people would return home.

Domains where the States can help :
Education
Electricity
Security.
Health.

The States should stop sending back criminals to Haiti.tHIS POLICIY iS SO short sighted.The Haitian Government tried to stop this year. The US reaction , if you refuse accepting the convicted criminals we will stop our Aid.

Haiti doesn't need free American Rice, this kills the local market .

Answer 2

Well first of all there are hundreds of countries that fit the description of poverty stricken. I think that the US has tried to help Haiti before, and every time their qovernment shuts us down. Unless we go in as a dictatorship (which they already have) there is no way to help these people. If the US could deal with the people of Haiti directly lending them suppport may be a different issue, but when you are dealing with a dictator there is really no way to ensure that the aid that we would be giving would go straight to the people and how do you make a trade agreement with someone who has low ethical standards. As most dictators do? I think that Haiti's situation is sad, but we have tried to help before and nothing has changed. Plus the US is busy being active in other parts of the world. Yes, America is wealthy and prosperous, but we can not save the world, nor is that our job. If we spread ourselves too thin we put our own nation at risk. Plus, you can not make someone prosperous by giving them money, you have to also be able to give them the knowledge and education to be able to make themselves prosperous with the resources that you give them. Otherwise the money is spent and they are right back where they were before. Your idea about guest workers is good, but it also raises the issue, how do we get them permission to be able to leave their country? Their government will not allow them to leave. Your heart is in the right place, but right now a lot of hands are tied.

Answer 3

Sadly Haitians have no love of US today, yesterday and none to hope for tomorrow.
Why is that?
Not once in all its history has several interventions by US been good for the Haitian people. At only one time in its history did the United States even attempt to help the Haitians by self determination, and that was done by one of worst US presidents ever Bill Clinton.
Of course the old timers who only saw Hatians, as only good enough for burning sugar cane, or sewing clothes for American textile industry took the Islanb back just when it was beginning to fee as one country.
A country with a growing small bisness sector, yes still primarily for US markets but locally owned or in partnership with not US but Latino and Carribean companys.
A country with a stuttering but every day becoming much more democratic, with all elected officers done by popular vote, wh0o even with a popular President still had paid henchmen of Blackwater. a US mercneary group protecting him. Well it seems they were there more to keep him in line as his popualrity became to great and they spirited him away to the middle of Africas most oppresive regime, Congo.
The UN ever in love with pretending to be peacekeepers helped by US paid mercs who used to butcher the old Hatioans before they got an elected poresident now rule the country.
Together the UN, Lavatistas and Americans military they shoot anyone from old regimne who protest this internatinal takeover.
behind the scenes one Carolina buisness man, guess what buisness, textiles of course, a billionaire in his own right now is once again setttng up his sweat shops the old presidnet had kicked out and even had the cajones to try and run one of his white buddys as President. the white guy lost, and cost the Carolina billonaire a couple of million as even the Lasitas could not stomache the thought of a white guy running the show as it souled cut out thir source of income from US coverts. US covets that had trained them on opther side of Island inland called Dominican Republic whose sole reason for beign profitble as it is the largest training ground for of operations by US coverts undemning Latin and southern American Nations

Answer 4

Nope, we shoulod let them eat each other, and help reduce overpopulation of the world by the human race!

Answer 5

Sure! The answer is simple. Haiti is in desperate need of help -- help from an international community that has deserted the country's citizens time and time again.

Haiti was the world's first independent Black republic. It won that independence in a bloody revolt of slaves, who prevailed against the three dominant European militaries. This shattered the myth of white supremacy at a time when slave labor was still the economic foundation of every surrounding country, to include the new United States.

As punishment, Haiti has been attacked, exploited, and vilified every since.

During debate on the US senate floor about recognition of Haiti, Democratic senator, Garret Davis of Kentucky declared that: "Washington society was not ready to receive a black minister".

On the same line, Democratic senator, Saulisbury of Delaware objected to the eventual presence of Haitian minister in the Senate gallery reserved for diplomats. It was Charles Summer, a Republican Senator of the state of Massachusetts, who made the case for Haiti, when he pointed out in a speech on April, 23, 1862:

"The traditional policy of the United States required recognition of a nation that had been independent in fact for almost sixty years and that had been recognized by other powers. He further stressed the importance of the commerce of the United States with Haiti, standing above that with Prussia, Sweden, Turkey, Japan and Russia, countries with which the United States had ministers."

Charles Summer argument in the US Senate was convincing. On June 5th, 1862, President Lincoln signed the bill for the appointment of commissioners to Haiti and Liberia, his decision was perhaps a side effect of the South's Secession from the Union.

Benjamin Whidden of the US state of New Hampshire was appointed weeks later as the first diplomatic representative of the US in Haiti. On April 27th 1863, President Geffrard of Haiti made this only comment at the opening of the Legislature: "The government of the United States has recently recognized the sovereignty of the State of Haiti.

This recognition will without doubt, give a new impulse to the commercial transactions between the two countries. The other consequences of this great act belong to the future."

President Geffrard may have been right in his apprehension, since history will prove him right, in 1915 during the failed Haitian Presidency of Vilbrun Guillaume Sam and the U.S. President Wilson administration, when political in fighting by poorly financially managed weak nationalist and unstable successions of short lived feudal Haitian governments, gave the US the opportunity and the excuse: not only to occupy Haiti militarily with the land invasion on July 28th, 1915 led by Admiral Capertown aboard ship, Washington, which was stationed in Cap-Haitien since July 1st, under the pretense of protecting the lives and properties of North Americans and foreigners.

It is rather an ironic historic fact that: when the US marines landed on the beach of Bizoton near the Haitian Capital of Port-au-Prince, they were guided by four Haitian marines. Capertown during the invasion had also dispathched from the US base of Guantanamo Cuba the US destroyer Jason with the 24th company of marines, and also from Philadelphia arrived reinforcement for the invasion of Haiti the following US battle ships: the Connecticut, the Eagle and the Nashville with five companies of the second regiment of Marines, under the command of US Colonel E. Coles.

This was also a financial occupation as President Wilson would admit later. The Haitian economic system was taken over, beginning with: the custody of the gold reserve, the Haitian customs, the control of Haiti's national Bank etc...

From that point almost all fiscal and financial matters had to be approved by the state department of the occupying forces. There was also a quasi take over of all Haitian ministries by US generals originally of the mostly still segregated US deep south. A general even headed the Haitian ministry of Education.

During the occupation, Haiti lost its pride and autodetermination as a sovereign nation, and seems to have lost also the control of its destiny as the sister republic nation, which had as much right to be guided by the aspiration of its own people, as its strong neighbor on the North would want for its own people.

The US agricultural company and merchants on Wall street stand to benefit the most from the US occupation. The small Haitians family farm were sold to large US company such as, Mc Donald, HASCO, Standard etc... Who would then create large plantations of bananas, sugar cane, rubber trees, sisal etc. A large section of the Haitian forest would be lost during clearing for plantation, thus marking the beginning of Haiti's environmental problem in the arena of visible deforestation of trees. Part of the peasants population began to suffer from malnutrition "No land, No food".

Most of them no longer had their small farm to cultivate and harvest to feed themselves, or sell or make exchange to survive, as the founder of the Haitian nation, Dessalines had planned and envisioned during his short live agrarian reform. In search of a better economic life, poor Haitians started their mass exodus and began to migrate legally and illegally to other neighboring islands of the Caribbean, such as Cuba and the Dominican Republic, etc.

The Haitians people who had enjoyed the freedom to take care of their own country for over one hundred and ten years, resisted the US occupation and conducted guerilla type warfare led by Charlemagne Peralt of the indigenous nationalist section of the Haitian society called "Les Cacos/Haitian liberation Army". The Haitians peasants were also unhappy, because of the ill treatment they received from the US troop, while they worked in a public work program called "La corvee", which reminded most of them of the bygone days of slavery before Haiti's independence. It was only after diplomatic negotiating effort made by the Haitian President Stenio Vincent, who came to the US on Mars 22nd, 1934 to continue to negotiate the disoccupation of Haiti by the US. This was followed by a reciprocal trip to Cap-Haitien on July 5th, 1934 by the US democratic President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Then came out a joint press statement to the effect that: the Haitian national guard will be completely haitianized by August 1st, 1934 and that 15 days later, there shall be no more US marines on Haitian soil. It was by the way, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who as sub-Secretary of the navy under the Wilson administration, had drafted the Constitution that the US would imposed on Haiti during its 19 years of occupation. Roosevelt was probably convinced that the continuing occupation would hurt Haiti further, rather than help it, but the harm was already done. However his change of heart and policy woud clear the way for Haiti's liberation of direct US occupation with US marines on its soil.

Answer 6

TOUGH LET THEM BURN - THEY HATE AND KILL EACH OTHER YOU CAN'T FORCE UNEDUCATED PEOPLE TO GROW