The deliberate portrayal of Haiti as one of the poorest, most dangerous, and most "underdeveloped" countries in the world is part of an ongoing attempt to dehumanize black and indigenous peoples, who represent more than 95% of Haiti's population. The systemic poverty present on the island is a reflection of the destabilization of Haiti, and not of the morality or choices of its population. Haiti's instability is the result of centuries of colonization, not the Haitian Revolution. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get the original essay The Haitian Revolution lasted 13 years against slavery and colonialism by self-liberated slaves in today's Haiti today, then called Santo Domingo. Hundreds of thousands of Africans and Afro-descendants were enslaved in Haiti due to the transatlantic slave trade, where millions of Africans were kidnapped and transported to various parts of the Americas and then enslaved on plantations owned and controlled by white planters. The Haitians were victorious not only against the island's white plantation owners (today's Dominican Republic and Haiti), but also against the French, Spanish, and British forces sent to conquer them. In 1804, Haiti became the world's first independent black-led republic after colonization, although colonization never actually "ended." After the revolution, France (backed by the US government) demanded that Haiti reinstate slavery or pay 150 million gold francs to "compensate" planters who had lost their "properties", aka slaves, during the fighting (Ms. Joshi, Google Slides). Spain demanded the same from the Dominican Republic and while the Dominican Republic chose to reestablish slavery and Spanish rule to avoid further fighting and future debts, Haiti chose to pay rather than renounce its freedom. Both choices reflect the cruelty of European colonialism and communities trying to make the best decision for their people. Haiti only finished repaying France's debt in 1947, 122 years later (Ms. Joshi, Google Slides). This debt, along with the greed of capital, has left Haiti in a state of extreme poverty. Colonial nations like France and the United States drained the island of its resources for their own benefit, leaving Haitians extremely vulnerable. “Haiti is a place where every time the United States occupied it, they took a piece of our land, they took our wealth. » This quote comes from a young Haitian girl responding to an American talk show host asking a group of elementary school children if Haiti needed help from the United States. She continued: “We don’t need help from the United States. They're going to come here and take our stuff. In another episode of the show, a Haitian woman responds to the statement that the white TV host came to capture the "positive and beautiful" things about Haiti rather than the stereotypes: "Make sure Trump knows that you are the ones who intimidated us, and brought us to be in the state we are in. Natural disasters hit Haiti much harder than the Dominican Republic and other neighboring islands due to a lack of relief funds as well as soil erosion from the French's mass-produced sugar cane and tobacco crops. on Haitian soil. The island has suffered many major natural disasters over the past decade, such as the earthquake and tsunami that struck”.