Haiti, the revolution of black consciousness

In 1804, Haiti became the first black republic of the only successful slave revolution in the world. The undisputed leader who charted the course of this historical event was a slave whose name is today a timeless symbol of freedom: Toussaint L'Ouverture. 

The Haitian Revolution was the first to declare independence in all of Latin America, but it was also the most radical in social and political terms, as it was the most exploited classes, the black slaves, who carried it out, expelling colonial power and founding a new nation based on a profound transformation of production relations.

Due to the hegemonic racist/Eurocentric worldview in the Western and Latin American intellectual world, its history has been practically silenced and forgotten. During Black History Month, it is worth remembering the history of the first Latin American country to confront colonial tyranny and the first country in the world to abolish slavery.

In 1492, Columbus "discovered" Aytí, the paradisiacal home of the Taíno people. That year, after a brief period of peaceful contact, the "discovery" turned into a conquest, the island was renamed Hispaniola, and the indigenous people were subjected to the encomienda system. Thus, in a short time, the colony prospered, becoming the center of the Spanish Empire in America. However, the overexploitation of labor, wars, and diseases quickly decimated the indigenous population, undermining the very foundations of colonial accumulation. To solve the labor shortage, the colonists began introducing African slaves, establishing the slave system on the island.

In the mid-16th century, the colony began to lose economic and political importance as the Spanish colonized the indigenous peoples of the mainland and discovered riches of enormous value there. Thus, in the 17th century, the Castilians concentrated their dominion over the eastern region of the island, leaving the western region abandoned. Taking advantage of this opportunity, hundreds of pirates began to settle on the island, forming a community of outlaws. However, this situation lasted only a few decades, as France managed to impose its military control over it, thus founding the colony of Saint-Domingue in that region. This reality was finally accepted by Spain in 1697 with the signing of the Treaty of Ryswick.

The colonial order in Haiti began to crumble in 1789, when the French Revolution shook the island. The colonists feared that the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen would apply there; however, it soon became clear that the man it referred to was none other than the white, European, property-owning man. This contradiction first inflamed the affranchis, who rose up for equality, leading to clashes between the landowners on both sides. However, they were not the only ones to rise up. The slaves rebelled in August 1791. Their demand was clear: Universal Liberty and Equality. In one of their proclamations, leaders Jean François Biassou and Toussaint Louverture stated: "Yes, gentlemen, we are as free as you (...). We are your equals, by natural right, and if nature also congratulates itself by giving diversity of colors to the human race, it is neither a crime to be born black, nor an advantage to be born white."

The rebels embraced Enlightenment ideology, but reinterpreted it by universalizing it beyond its classist, racial, and Eurocentric limitations. Thus, as a counterpoint to the American and French Revolutions, a radically decolonial discourse emerged, which, while not yet denouncing colonialism itself, challenged two pillars of coloniality: racism and slavery. Initially, France and the landowners resisted the insurgents.

However, in 1793, when Saint Domingue was invaded by the Spanish and British, the metropolitan commissioners were forced to declare the abolition of slavery to gain their support. The National Convention ratified the measure in February 1794, and it was a political-military success, thus managing to keep the colony under French control. However, the costs were high for the metropolis, as it strengthened a sector of the rebels, led by Toussaint Louverture, who managed to seize power on the island. In 1800, after a brief civil war between former slaves and affranchis, Toussaint imposed a new post-racist and post-slavery social order that, while formally maintaining the colonial pact, in fact limited it. In doing so, the Revolution had gone too far, and Napoleon decided to end it, sending a powerful expedition to restore the old regime. The expedition initially achieved, after arduous fighting, the surrender of Toussaint, who was eventually captured and sent to the metropolis, where he died in 1803. However, success turned to failure when Leclerc, commander of the mission, attempted to reimpose slavery. The former slaves, allied with the mulattoes, led by Jean J. Dessalines and Alexandre Pétion, rebelled and, in a popular war of national liberation, managed to expel the French. The revolution thus ended its cycle, becoming purely decolonial, adopting radical anti-colonialism among its banners.

On January 1, 1804, the first Black Republic in the world and the first independent nation in Latin America was born.

The blow to the modern/colonial system was very harsh, and the imperial powers, in response, imposed a closed cultural, economic, and political blockade on the nascent state to prevent its example from spreading. Once independence was declared, Dessalines assumed the responsibility of strengthening internal order by massacring the French colonists who still remained on the island. However, he did not suppress all whites, as he respected the Polish and German doctors, priests, and soldiers who supported the revolution.

In Brazil:

From November 16th to 19th, 2022, the 1st Haiti Culture Showcase – Itajaí 2022 will take place in the city of Itajaí. This project was born from the attentive vision of cultural producer Andréa Müller, from the Beija-Flor Cobra Criada Cultural Space, and is aimed at the Haitian community residing in the São Vicente and Cidade Nova neighborhoods.

The exhibition brings Haitian music, visual arts, dance, gastronomy, crafts, and culture to Itajaí, shedding light on a cultural treasure hidden since 2012, the year the first immigrants arrived in the city. It's a rich heritage of history, art, and culture. It also offers a glimpse into the history of a nation influenced by its original inhabitants, the Taíno Indians, by Spanish and French colonizers, by African slaves from Congo, Benin, Nigeria, Senegal, Guinea-Conakry, Sierra Leone, Ghana, South Africa, and Madagascar; and by the American occupation.

This multicultural melting pot forged a resilient people in Haiti, who constituted the first black republic in the world, the first independent nation in the Caribbean, and the first country in the world to abolish slavery. Furthermore, it fosters enriching debates that will seek affirmative action for public policies aimed at the inclusion of the Haitian community.