The Carribiean Nations: Focusing on Haiti - Essay Example

of the of the Concerned History and Political Science 25 March The Caribbean Nations When it comes to European colonization, the Caribbean deems to be classified as one of the first foothold of the European colonizers in the context of the land span popularly known as the ‘Atlantic World’. The first time the Europeans came in contact with the Caribbean was after the much celebrated journeys of Columbus at some time in the ebb end of the fifteenth century. Prior to the advent of the Europeans in the Caribbean, the region was home to a dense population comprising of millions of indigenous people (Parry, Sherlock & Maingot 6). To put it simply, the history of the European colonization in the Caribbean tends to be a saga of economic exploitation and repression. There is no denying the fact that the dynamics of the agricultural dependency of the Caribbean is closely linked to the colonization of the Caribbean by the Europeans. The Europeans to a great extent reconfigured the financial potential of the Caribbean by introducing the plantation system (Parry, Sherlock & Maingot 18). It goes without saying that the human dynamics introduced in these plantations by the Europeans also to a great extent shaped the dynamics of the social hierarchy in the Caribbean. The arrival of the Europeans in the Caribbean and the shaping of the socio-economic landscape of the Caribbean by them through conquests and invasions to a large extent diluted the essentially cohesive world of the indigenous people of the Caribbean. Before the European colonization, the Caribbean predominantly happened to be a secluded place on the globe, being home to a simple, but rich and multifaceted civilization, to a large extent insulated from the machinations rampant in the outside world. However, the advent of the Europeans in the Caribbean exposed the indigenous civilization and people to the outer world, thereby making them subservient to the trends gushing in from Europe, America and Africa. As the tentacles of the European colonization began to expand their span in the Caribbean to plunder the native wealth of the region, they also brought in their wake a system of social hierarchy that assigned a specific place and scope to an individual on the basis of one’s race and position in a well entrenched system of economic exploitation (Parry, Sherlock & Maingot 122). As it is known that with the advent of the Europeans there unfolded an era marked by a sharp decline in the indigenous population, on most of the islands comprising the Caribbean, this indeed created a problem for the European settlers, who were perpetually looking for viable sources of affordable and docile labor, so as to optimally exploit the natural resources inherent in the region (Parry, Sherlock & Maingot 17). The solution that the Europeans contrived for this death of local labor eventually translated into the import of slaves from Africa (Parry, Sherlock & Maingot 17). There is no denying the fact that the advent of first the Europeans and then the Africans in the Caribbean, wrought out an utter transformation of the societies of the Caribbean. To begin with, the Caribbean people ended up being victims to a hoard of deathly and debilitating diseases and epidemics like measles, dysentery, malaria and smallpox, introduced to these hitherto isolated lands by the Europeans and the Africans who arrived as slaves (Parry, Sherlock & Maingot 10). The social and political norms and organizations of the indigenous people were reinvented and restructured in the name of spreading the good news. Christianity emerged as the single most potent shaping influence in the socio-political framework of this part of the world (Parry, Sherlock & Maingot 130). The simple lives of the native people and the imported African slaves were stringently regimented by slavery, plantation culture and other institutions introduced by the Europeans, whose intentions were primarily commercial and profit oriented in their approach. (Parry, Sherlock & Maingot 17) The biggest factor that altered forever the socio-economic and political landscape of the Caribbean was the influx of a constant stream of immigrants, which seriously inundated the cultural and demographic culture of the Caribbean islands. One central aspect of the European colonization was a strictly regimented access to resources and power that had a great impact on the eventual shaping of the Caribbean culture. Immigration, bloodshed, importation of African slaves and the rivalry between the Western powers accorded to the Caribbean history an importance that was grossly disproportionate to the actual size and politico-economic clout of this region. Plantation dependence was one major outcome of the European colonization that made the Caribbean nations susceptible to having large pools of unskilled people primarily of indigenous and African stock, capable of working only at the plantations and not doing anything else. 2. It may seem strange and perhaps ironic to say that America is a colonial power, yet nothing is far from the truth that like other important Western powers, the United States harbored a stark colonial interest in the Caribbean since the last 200 years. It was as far back in 1880, that the naval captain Mahan put forward the argument that the United States of America needs to have a strong navy and ought to safeguard its interests in the Caribbean to ensure its future status as a super power (Tyrrell 192). During the American Civil War, the Bahamas served as a center of trade between the UK and the Southern Confederacy, intent on trading cotton in exchange for arms (Tyrrell 16). In a strategic context, the United States of America has always evinced a strong interest in consolidating its influence in the Caribbean. In 1898, being victorious in the Spanish-American war, the United States wrenched out the control of Cuba and Puerto Rico from the Spanish hands (Tyrrell 136). Not to say that Cuba was granted freedom, but Puerto Rico continued to remain an American protectorate. Citing the pretext of reigning in the anarchic forces in Haiti, the United States of America occupied Haiti from 1915 to 1934 (Rotberg 35). During this period, America put in place many puppet governments in Haiti who commanded a control over the Haitian police, military and economy. Hiding behind the mask of these puppet governments, the United States of America remained in full and absolute control of Haiti for almost 19 years. It goes without saying that though this rule was deemed to be relatively benign, yet the American control over Haiti was something that was strongly resented by both the Haitians and the Americans (Falmer 15). Primarily it was going by this popular resentment that the United States decided to remove its forces and troops from Haiti in 1934. Though the United States had succeeded in restraining lawlessness in Haiti, still the presence and control of the American forces in Haiti was something that was strongly disliked by the Haitians. The Haitians not only abhorred their constitution that was not written not by them but by the Americans, but also looked down upon the American high handedness in the context of introducing reforms in Haitian politics and economy. During its long stay in Haiti, the United States irked almost all the sections of the Haitian society (Falmer 7). The elites were angry that the foreigners had diluted their source of power by restraining corruption. The poor resented the forced labor heaped on them. The middle classes who constituted the crux of patriotic forces in Haiti disliked the Americans for being foreigners. During the U.S reign in Haiti, it was the Americans who were put in charge of public works, law and order, health, education and administration. Irrespective of the overbearing popular support for Bobo, the United States installed General Philippe Sudre Dartigueenave as the president. The American occupation of Haiti was a purely strategic decision aimed at securing American interests in the Caribbean with a scant regard for the opinion and aspirations of Haiti’s people. Thus, it is understood that the American relationship with Haiti was one of discomfort and unease and the American attempts to bring peace to Haiti on the American terms further alienated the people of Haiti. The United States’ relations with other Caribbean neighbors like Cuba were also marked by a similar lack of bonhomie. After winning the Spanish-American war, as per the Platt Amendment signed in 1901, the United States abrogated to itself the power to interfere in the economic and political affairs of Cuba, even militarily if the need be. In 1959 after the onset of the Cuban Revolution, the relationship between the two nations further deteriorated leading to many unsavory stances on the part of both the sides in the times to come. The United States did not hesitate from militarily interfering in the internal affairs of the Dominican Republic and Grenada, trying to bolster its colonial interests, as other Western powers started disentangling themselves from the region. It is understood that the approach of the United States of America in forging relations with its Caribbean neighbors has been more or less hegemonic in a historical context. In fact, in the post war period, as the other important European powers started withdrawing from the region, the United States became more vehement in consolidating its sway over the region. Works Cited Falmer, Paul. The Uses of Haiti. New York, NY: Common Courage Press, 2003. Print. Parry, JH, Sherlock, PM & Maingot, AP. A Short History of the West Indies. London: Macmillan Press, 1987. Print. Rotberg, Robert I. Haiti Renewed. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press, 1997. Print. Tyrrell, Ian. Reforming the World. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2010. Print. Read More