The Morning: Haiti’s burden

How the Americas' poorest country ended up there.

Good morning. The Times reveals how Haiti became the poorest country in the Americas.

Adrienne Present harvesting coffee beans in Haiti.Federico Rios for The New York Times

France's ransom

Haiti is one of the poorest countries in the world, and a new Times investigative series explores why. One stunning detail: France demanded reparations from Haitians it once enslaved. That debt hamstrung Haiti's economy for decades — and kept it from building even basic social services, like sewage and electricity.

The series is based on more than a year of reporting, troves of centuries-old documents and an analysis of financial records. I spoke to my colleague Catherine Porter, one of the four reporters who led the project, about what they found.

Why tell Haiti's story now?

I've been covering Haiti since the earthquake in 2010, and returned dozens of times. Any journalist that spends time in Haiti continually confronts the same question: Why are things so bad here?

The poverty is beyond compare to anywhere else. Even countries that are impoverished compared to the United States or Canada, or many Western countries — they still have some level of social services. Haiti just doesn't.

Even if you're rich, you have to bring in your own water, and you need a generator for electricity. There's no real transportation system; it's basically privatized. There's no real sewage system, so people use outhouses or the outdoors. There's no real garbage pickup, so trash piles up. There's little public education — it's mostly privatized — so poor people don't get much, if any, formal schooling. The health care is abysmal.

The usual explanation for Haiti's problems is corruption. But the series suggests something else is also to blame.

Yeah. This other answer lodged into the side of my mouth as I read more history books on Haiti. One by Laurent DuBois mentioned this "independence debt," but he didn't go into much detail. That was the first time that I read about it and was like, "What is this?"

So what was it?

After Haiti's independence in 1804, France came back and demanded reparations for lost property — which turned out to include the enslaved humans. French officials encouraged the Haitian government to take out a loan from the French banks to pay.

It became known as a double debt: Haiti was in debt to former property owners — the colonists — and also to the bankers. Right from the get-go, Haiti was in an economic hole.

It is wild: The colonists asked the former slaves for reparations.

You have to remember that, at the time, no one came to help Haiti.

It was the only Black free country in the Americas, and it was a pariah. The British didn't want to recognize it because they had Jamaica and Barbados as colonies. The Americans most certainly did not want to recognize it; they still hadn't ended slavery.

The Citadelle was built to defend Haitians from a return by the French.Federico Rios for The New York Times

What might Haiti look like today without this double debt?

One example is Costa Rica. It also had a strong coffee export industry, like Haiti does. When Haiti was spending up to 40 percent of its revenue on paying back this debt, Costa Rica was building electricity systems. People were putting in sewage treatment and schools. That would be closer to what Haiti could have been.

We haven't even gotten into the U.S. occupation from 1915 to 1934 and Haiti's dictator family, both of which further looted the country. It was one crisis after another inflicted on Haitians.

That's true. A dictator, François Duvalier, came into power in 1957. Before that, the Haitian government had finally cleared most of its international debts. The World Bank had said that Haiti should rebuild. Instead, Duvalier and then his son put the country into increased misery.

As if that wasn't enough, after Haiti's president asked for reparations in 2003, France removed him from office, with U.S. help. Have France and the U.S. owned up to the damage?

France has had a slow softening. In 2015, its president, François Hollande, said that France had imposed a "ransom" on Haiti, and that he would pay it back. But very quickly, his aides corrected him, saying that he meant he was going to pay the moral debt back; he wasn't talking about money.

The Times is translating these stories to Haitian Creole. What's the goal?

If I'm talking to anyone on the street in Haiti, they'll speak only Haitian Creole. So I felt that if we're going to do a story about Haitian history, surely it should be accessed by the people of that country.

The most popular form of media in Haiti is the radio, especially in rural areas where illiteracy is high. My hope is that we can get the Creole version in the hands of some people to read parts of it over the radio, so people in Haiti can hear it and debate it and form their opinions.

This is a Haitian history. It should be made as accessible as possible to Haitians.

More on Catherine Porter: She grew up in Toronto and got her first full-time journalism job at The Vancouver Sun. In 2010, she went to Port-au-Prince for The Toronto Star to report on the earthquake — an assignment that changed her life. She has returned more than 30 times and written a memoir about her experiences there. She joined The Times in 2017, leading our Toronto bureau.

The Haiti series

The Times this weekend published several articles on Haiti's history, including:

NEWS

The Latest
Residents in a courtyard of a damaged apartment building in Mariupol yesterday.Alexander Ermochenko/Reuters
Other Big Stories

FROM OPINION

The Sunday question: Would a domestic terrorism law help reduce violence in the U.S.?

A House-passed bill could focus law enforcement's attention on violent extremists like the Buffalo gunman, says Carrie Cordero. But a new law could become a pretext for the federal government to violate Americans' civil liberties, Lucy Steigerwald fears.

Deeply reported journalism needs your support.

The Times relies on subscribers to help fund our mission. Subscribe now with this special offer.

MORNING READS

Peter Phobia

Hybrid work: Are employees ever really coming back in full force?

Sunday routine: The cosmetics executive Sandra Velasquez takes walks in a cemetery.

In conversation: Baz Luhrmann wants to restore Elvis Presley's humanity.

Daily aspirin: It might hurt more than it helps.

Waist trainers: Be skeptical of the promise of long-term results.

Advice from Wirecutter: Cool off with a great fan.

BOOKS

Summer reading plans: New books include a book for "White Lotus" fans, a coming-of-age story, Werner Herzog's debut novel and more. The Times's Sarah Lyall recommends books that are their own destinations.

By the Book: The novelist Ann Leary is not picky about true-crime books, "as long as there's a psychopath."

Times best sellers: Jennifer Weiner's "That Summer Place" is a hardcover fiction best seller. See all our lists here.

The Book Review podcast: The novelist Brian Morton discusses his new book about his mother.

THE SUNDAY TIMES MAGAZINE

Paolo Pellegrin/Magnum, for The New York Times

On the cover: Ukrainians in Kharkiv, 25 miles from Russia, have forged a new wartime culture.

Making a choice: Doctors gave her antipsychotics. She decided to live with her voices.

Recommendation: Forget about perfection. Embrace "mamahuhu."

Eat: Salmon and rice, perfect culinary harmony.

THE WEEK AHEAD

What to Watch For
  • Alabama, Arkansas and Georgia hold primary elections on Tuesday, and Texas will hold runoff elections. Here's what's at stake.
  • The Biden administration plans to begin blocking Russia from paying American bondholders this week, increasing the likelihood of a Russian default.
  • The World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, returns after two years.
  • The French Open tennis tournament begins today. On Saturday, Liverpool and Real Madrid will play in the Champions League soccer final.
  • The defamation trial between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard is expected to conclude on Friday.
What to Cook This Week
Christopher Simpson for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Frances Boswell.

NOW TIME TO PLAY

90-Across: There was Noah-counting for it

Take the news quiz to see how well you followed this week's headlines.

Here's today's Wordle. Here's today's Spelling Bee. If you're in the mood to play more, find all our games here.

Thanks for spending part of your weekend with The Times. — German

Claire Moses, Ian Prasad Philbrick, Tom Wright-Piersanti, Ashley Wu and Sanam Yar contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com.

Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance.

You received this email because you signed up for the Morning newsletter from The New York Times, or as part of your New York Times account.

To stop receiving these emails, unsubscribe or manage your email preferences.

Subscribe to The Times

Connect with us on:

facebooktwitterinstagram

Change Your EmailPrivacy PolicyContact UsCalifornia Notices

The New York Times Company. 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018