A Look Back At History
Haiti, the world’s first Black Republic, the second in the Americas, has been referred to many names such as, “La Perle des Antilles, Quisqueya, Bohio, Hispaniola ect. It would be inconclusive to talk about Haiti without mentioning the Republic of France. After being a Spanish colony, beginning in 1492 with the arrival of Christopher Columbus and, as a result of the War of the Grand Alliance (1688-1697), the eastern part of Hispaniola was traded to France under the treaty of Ryswick in 1697 and renamed Saint-Domingue.
After the annihilation of the native Indians of Ayiti by the Spaniards, it became clear that a new class of laborers be introduced in the Island. As Hispaniola was in a desperate need of alternate means to improve the local economy, Bishop Bartolome de las Casas, a Dominican priest, who later became a champion in defending the rights of the Indians to exist, has suggested the importation of African laborers to work on the plantation and mine fields. It is important to note that Bishop Bartolome, early in his career, have benefited greatly from the encomienda system (a royal granting of land and serfs, Indians), especially after the conquer of Cuba by the Spaniards for his contribution to the war. This suggestion of importing slaves from Africa was a low point in his career; in fact, it was very impolitic for he was so much focused on finding ways to free the enslaved Indians that he failed to notice that righteous cannot come from two wrongs. Nicolás de Ovando, who became the first Governor of Haiti, took the suggestion and first ordered four thousand African slaves, from Europe, to be sent to Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and Jamaica at a thousand per Island. By the year 1518, the very first shipload of enslaved Africans directly from Africa arrived in the West Indies. It should be noticed that prior to 1518, the enslaved Africans were being sent to Europe.
By the late 169’s, the French had total control of Saint-Domingue. For Saint-Domingue to become the richest colony in the world, it was instrumental that the slave trade be at its peak. Dragging from Africa to Saint-Domingue, the slaves were packed like sardines in a can. This inhuman behavior became an uncompromising and profitable trade, a way of earning cash; that was the worst trade of humanity; it was a slave trade, the selling of human beings. This was the horrendous path by which Haitians, formerly Africans, arrived in Haiti. The male slaves were planter, laborers and the females were mostly used as sex objects. Wasn’t that cruel? Most of the slaves were beaten to death, raped and forced to work the land from dust till dawn. Gender did not really make a difference. The rebelling slaves suffered the most; they were killed a number of ways. One of them is what I called the “Balding Head Syrup”. This practice was done as follow: the master would force the rebelling slave to dig up a hole of his size so that the body can fit into it. The master would then order another slave to shave the head of the rebelling slave. The rebelling slave would then be forced into the hole; with a hairless head, the master would pour hot boiled syrup on it. The entire body would be immerged under ground, leaving the “Balding Head Syrup” for flies, roaches and all kinds of insects to enjoy it. When death occurred, usually one to two days later, the head would then be covered with soil. This was an atrocious way to be killed. Was this type of killings justified? Has slavery ever been justified? These are tough and important questions that we must ask ourselves.
