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Hispaniola was first occupied roughly 7,000 years ago, but by the 15th century, some half-million Taino and Ciboney people lived on the island. Within 25 years of Spanish settlement in 1492, most of these people were gone—largely wiped out by diseases borne by the Spanish conquerors, but also killed through war, famine, and enslavement by the Spanish.
After the Spanish had exhausted the gold mines, the French began to develop the western coast, bringing African slaves by the thousands during the 17th century. A slave revolt took place in 1791, kicking off a revolutionary period of colonial insurrections. In 1804, Haitian revolutionary forces won independence, although a coup against the emperor soon divided the new Empire of Haiti into two rival regimes.
Haiti was reunified from 1820 to 1843, before losing its Spanish-speaking territory in the Dominican War of Independence in 1844. Decades of political turmoil followed, with a series of military strongmen ruling over the country in chaotic succession of power grabs. American military occupation, from 1915 to 1934, brought a period of political stability, economic development, and infrastructure improvements.
In 1957, Francois “Papa Doc” Duvalier came to power, establishing a brutal and repressive dictatorship. He was succeeded by his son, Jean-Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier, who was forced to flee the country in 1986 amid a popular uprising. A series of presidents and military rulers have governed Haiti in the decades since, some taking power through military power grabs, others though shaky elections marked by corruption and violence.
World Trade Press. (2021, December). Haiti: Country Overview. Global Road Warrior. Retrieved December 10, 2021, from https://www-globalroadwarrior-com.allstate.libproxy.ivytech.edu/haiti/country-overview.html
The first major wave of Haitian immigrants in the United States in modern times were escaping the Duvalier dictatorship from the 1960s-1980s.
Most Haitian immigrants in America now left after the 2010 Port-au-Prince earthquake, which left 1.5 million homeless and thousands dead. Many tried to settle in Brazil or Chile, where they faced discrimination, before settling in the US (Olsen-Medina & Batalova, 2020). Recently, the situation in Haiti was made worse when President Jovenal Moїse was assassinated on July 7th, and in August another earthquake hit the country, quickly followed by Tropic Storm Grace. Many Haitians are fleeing increased violence and economic deterioration in Haiti (Solomon & Pamuk, 2021).
On July 29, 2021, the US granted Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Haitians already in the US. The TPS includes temporary work authorization and protection from deportation for 18 months (Olsen-Medina & Batalova, 2020). However, in September 2021, border officials resumed an expulsion policy begun during the pandemic, and began deporting Haitian migrants from the migrant camp at Del Rio, TX. The US Special Envoy to Haiti Daniel Foote resigned in protest to the deportations, which he called an “inhumane, counterproductive decision (Solomon & Pamuk, 2021).
Haitian immigrants face racial discrimination and language barriers in the US when it comes to jobs, social services, and legal protections. Many immigrant services focus on Spanish-speaking immigrants; however, most Haitians speak French and Haitian Creole.(Olsen-Medina and Batalova, 2020).
Olsen-Medina, K. & Batalova, J. (2020). Haitian Immigrants in the United States. Migration Policy Institute. https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/haitian-immigrants-united-states-2018
Solomon, D.B. & Pamuk, H. (2021). U.S. envoy to Haiti resigns, blasts returning migrants to 'collapsed state'. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/haitian-migrants-face-crucial-choices-expulsion-flights-ramp-up-2021-09-23/
