Haitian art, Haitian History speech

The closing of a season, an era or a cycle and the beginning of a new one always brings out with it nucleus of ideas and stimulus, dreams or imagination from within ourselves in this ever eternal present continuously renewing itself and our very being as we all share in the mystery of the miracle of life on Earth.

It is as if our consciousness itself is expending in relation to each cycle. The liquidity, the nucleus of ideas or stimulus from the expansion of our consciousness forces us to reevaluate afresh our relation with the universe from both outside ourselves and more importantly from within.

           Art in whatever form as human creativity, coming from within is in the forefront as we brace ourselves in the unfolding of the new cycle. And now I'm talking more particularly and more locally in the advent of Haitian Art.

    The 20th century saw the condensation and the overboarding, overflowing of Haitian art on the international scene. The inner perception or archetypes that lie in our subconsciousness give the universal art lover a new vision that is at once foreign and familiar. Modern man thirsty for spirituality and a more simple life. 

                                                    -------------Haitian Art and the Haitian Revolution-------------

   The openness and the spirits of modern times have made it possible for the creations of untrained artists in the European academic traditions, people they so called folk artists, outsiders ect.. to attain full maturity and be appreciated and collected around the world. Eventhou Haitian art historians may disagree I believe credits and thanks are due to Picasso and the cubist movement that bloomed at the start of the 20th century and that have challenged the old laws set down by the European renaissance of old Leonardo Da Vinci and Micheal Angello. Picasso movement opened the world cultural eyes  with the help of symbolism from African tribal art.  Art in itself is not photography or copy of nature, art is an expression of the human soul. So in a way I think Picasso have pave the way for Haitian art to arrived.

     Haitian art have arrived in a big way. Today Haitian art hold a very important place in the cultural consciousness of the world. It is a real phenomenon, a social and intellectual phenomenon. Museums from New York City to Amsterdam have it in their collections. Art critics from Pasaneda California to Paris France have writes seriously about it. Individuals from Hollywood figure like director Jonathan Deme to head of States Francois Miterand of France and the Senegal president Abounde and the late Jackie Onassis Kennedy collected it. Many many books have written on the subject, and I'm happily surprised to see myself mentioned in the ones related to the diaspora. 

         But One question remained unanswered or underanswered from all the research done on the subject. And the question is where does it come from? What is the source? Because before the 1940's Haitian art was unheard of. But today it is in a dominating position inspiring all kind of artists from all races and background. What the world witnessed in mid of 20th century was unheard of in the history of art. Never before had a so much creative artistic energy activities come from not just a group or a class of people but a whole nation, in a collective way, having one spirit and that spirit is the spirit of Haiti in full splendor, the visual arts which was just present suddenly   climaxed. The world was enchanted and remained enchanted for the movement is a continuous one. It was really something like a big bang. And from that each generation picking up from the old, having its own stars with fresh ideas and visions. Already a 5th generation is making itself felt. Young artists in their teens are rising up to be renown and take their rightful places as stars.

It must be noted that in the new world or in the Americas there exist only two artistic movements  that are highly authentic that are truly native with very little to do with outside influence from European artistic traditions. One is Mexico and the other is Haiti.  Many find Haiti's more fascinating and richer with a more broad appeal.  The Haitian folk art movement is considered greater not just  because of the ratio of artists compare to the number in the population and or because its beauty its purity, authenticity, diveristy, originality, the honesty and innocence of these artists for those really surpass that of Mexico. More valuable because of what it gives to the world. It opened a window.  For the first time a clear insight is given into the mystery of Haiti, a mystery revealed. Haiti was always considered a question mark, dark unpenetrated place. With spooky Voodoo and all. Now many Voodoo priests became artists. As a matter of fact these preists have had the major impact on the direction the art would take and that is a spiritual path. Hector Hyppolites a voodoo preist who died in 1948 remain a beacon of light in Haitian art. To buy an original these days you would need a small fortune.

We all know some aspect of the mysticism of that country the name Haiti itself speak volumes. This name had come full circle. From Haiti to Hispaniola to St Domingue ect.. many foreigners have sacked it,  over and over again ect ect ect.. somehow reclaimed to its original name Haiti. The history in uncomparable glorious dramatic epic tragic ect..... From the days of the great Caonabo and Anacaona to Christopher Columbus to Toussaint Louverture ect...

        Voodoo, Sorcelery, cannibalism the negativity Hollywood and the international press had forced on Haiti one is comparable to the most evil curses one can phanton and project not to an individual but to a  whole country.  In fact Haiti in its enfancy in the early 1800's was given a reputation of the land of the balck cannibals. Since it had extinguished slavery and colonliasm in its territory, the world at the time just could not accept the fact that a free black republic existed. So they not only ignored and scorned the young nation but roadblocks were erected on its every effort to excel.

         But Haiti in its honesty, simplicity and its true nature used its artists as ambassadors, having for subject matter their religions beleifs, legends and a vast History of colorful events have shown the world an unexpected view. They reveal that a fraternal beautiful matured spirit lives in Haiti and sends out a message of peace and love and dignity to the world.

I Joseph Cantave, a little star spinning from that big bang belongs to the third generation. So it is natural for me to think I know the origin of it all. So i will try to expose that source to you all and you can judge whether or not I found the source. 

  So  the answer as to where the phenomenon comes from.

                      After Haiti declared its independence in 1804. Haiti was almost completely isolated. Do you see how now when the former states from the Soviet blocks declare their Independence, America and other powers rush to set up diplomatic ties open up embassies and start trading in goods and cultural exchanges. None of that good stuff happened to Haiti. Every one stayed far back. The questions was loud and clear, how dare us fought and won? How dare us TO BE FREE when our whole race was under chains? Haiti responded "you have seen nothing yet". To seal our fate the first clause in our first constitution wrote " No white men shall enter Haiti with title of master or any kind of titles". Small little Haiti was to the new world what the Soviet Union was to Europe after the second world war. A real danger, slavery and colonization was the fuel that runs the period's world economy. Haiti broke away from both. The Caribbean islands were so afraid that the revolution would spread that they spread rumors that the harbors of Haiti were choked with filth and could be smelled 7 miles out at sea and all the Haitians were not humans but beasts. The real story was all the major powers of the times suffered major, heavy losses confronting the ex-slaves of Haiti and they all could do nothing but accepted defeat. England lossed more than 40.000 men in their invasion of 1794, Major General Sir  Thomas Maintland commander of the West Indies British Expeditionary forces was ordered to go evaluate the situation, after witnessing first hand Toussaint's superiority and genius on the battlefield, immediately  ordered total evacuation to save the armies  form  total annihilation.  He said even 100,000 men would not be enough. Napoleon Bonaparte alone loss more than 50,000 men including 22 generals, not counting thousands of civilians and what troop numbers the French Directory loss previous to Napoleon. In total some, France had loss its richest colony ever. The Spanish side as well felt the pain and trauma, in 1791 during the slave revolt, France in turmoil( French Revolution) and unable to anything at the time. The Spaniards felt the colony's vulnerability and  took their chances, they gathered all their forces from the Caribbean and made a bold attempt to snatched away this coveted French possession, they were beaten and repelled by the rising Toussaint Louverture and lost more then 20,000 troups in the process. The tables then turned, for they suffered a number of invasions by the blacks of Haiti and that left them in a state of constant fear and panic. Finally they were overwhelmed, taking over and occupy by Haiti. The Dominican Republic gain their independence not from Spain but from Haiti in 1844. They, the Dominicans bitterly deplore and regrets that part of their unalterable history.  These were the true facts behind the paranoia over Haiti.  In the early 1800's The country was lead by the terrible of terribles, Jean Jacques Dessaline1 the emperor of Haiti. What I do not understand even today is what exactly did the French tough was going to happen when they treacherously cowardly entrapped and then eliminated the peace maker  Toussaint Louverture? With Toussaint's military genius They probably would of in very short order extends French rule not only over the whole Caribbean Bassin, But with the help of the French Navy help Toussaint make a landing in North America and changed the course of history.  Oh no, they wanted to extinguished black freedom so they met their fate in the dreadful tornado Jean Jacques Dessaline. French dream of empire in the new world ended with Dessaline. Shorlty after the disappearing of the expeditionary army, the largest military force that ever sailed from Europe to the new world. Napoleon in 1803 gave up the fantasy of conquering norht America. Make no mistake about it, the French forces, great admirals and generals who were feared all over Europe for their expertise in assaults and storming. They were not going back to Europe, after quelling the black uprising and slavery re-established, they would of  sail north for military glories, many young officers eager to prove themselves and rise in ranks, would fortified Louisiana and launch campaigns from east and  west of the much smaller United States.  Do you see how Canada looks now? A big portion, a big part of its territoy is French. North America could of looked like that with the French part dominating. If British managed a successful landing in 1812, Napoleon would of surely penetrated and conquered with this branch of the grand army in 1802 after a similar landing.  But, regretfully sold the Louisianna Territory to Thomas Jefferson for just 15 million dollars in 1803.  828 thousand square miles. The United State was more than doubled in size after the purshase and made it possible to move further west. If the US reached from sea to shiny sea, Haitians are owed a great deal of credit and respect.

                     Dessaline  stopped the grand army cold in its tracks. And Dessaline was the complete opposite to Toussaint, he was a war maker  in the first degree, fashioned and molded by toussaint Louverture in the art of war.  But Dessalines did not share Toussaint's vision and did not beleive in negotiation. Dessalines did not know how to read or write but after the war he wanted to undo everything white.  He  had such a grudge against the landing of Christopher Columbus, he proposed to rename everything, every creeks and rivers , every village and towns back to their original Arawak names, that is how we have the name of Haiti today.  The actions of this man cannot be mention by me for reasons of decency and respect for humanity... Nonetheless he is a giant in the history of the new world. Many distinguished generals who had fought side by side with Napoleon Bonaparte in many glorious military campaigns and who's names are inscribed in the famous landmark The Arch of Triumph in Paris were executed by this ex slave after they had their large armies wipe away right under their feet also after they were trialed, judged and they were found guilty of crimes against humanity by bringing their large armies to re-install slavery on a free people that had already paid in full for that freedom in the 1791 bloody slave revolution.  Poor French soldiers, heroes of the French revolution, they were misled into invading Haiti for this impossible mission, of enslaving a people who had already broken the chains. They had no ideas of a character like Dessalines existed and was secretly waiting for them to invade and then to surprise and chock them at every corner. Poor French soldiers, they never went back home, even thou they fought valiantly to their death, no monuments were erected in their honor in France. 

                        After the great war Dessalines declared himself the only noble in Haiti, he was crowned emperor in 1805. Legend stories to Haitian children at night have it that Dessalines wasn't human at all and that he drank warm fresh white blood everyday and equally drank fresh black blood at nignt (traitors).  It also should be noted that the Haitian emperor just after two years in his high office was swept up by a fresh, potent Haitian revolutionary tornado. (literally). When he landed his very person or body and imperial costume was discarded in more than a thousand peices.  His style of governing, his will to donate all the lands to the little Haitians were not acceptable. Today Dessalines had pass into the realm of myth, he had resurfaced, he is now well entrenched in the Voodoo pantheon in the Ogoun family of gods, warrior and thunder gods.

It should also be noted that Haiti is the only country in the new world to have enjoyed royalty in its past independence history.

   ........To continue on, The world stayed away.  It wasn't  until after the civil war in the 1860's that theUs finally recognized Haitian independance. The Vatican too. Rome did also in the 1860's when the Concordat was signed. And the first Catholic priests or missionaries were send on a large scale. And it took them a very long time to convert the Haitians. A whole generation had to be bypassed to have an impact, regardless of the many violent anti superstition campaigns that were more like terror campaings where fire was set to Voodoo temples and preists executed. There is a saying now that 10% of the population is devoted to satisfy the missionaries from all corners of the globe, the rest 90% Catotlic,  but in truth Haiti remains 100% voodoo. And the Voodoo preists says that the whole world is Voodoo but just don't know it yet. Everything alive is Voodoo indeed once you understand the concept of will in motion. Beyond flesh.

To continue, Haiti was isolated for two generations.  In  this isolation eventhou haiti was hurt in the way of no developpment but also that was when the country identity was cemented. So you have almost two genrations of Haitian living on their own doing their own thing. Waht do you think happened?  It was second nature, with the maroons now fully intergrated, Voodoo was practiced to the hilt. They were enjoying their Libery Equality and Fraternity. Voodoo had settled in, in the rivers, mountains, in trees in the sky, the sun, moon and stars ect... It had transformed the Arawak spirit and renewed it. That is why it is so difficult to root out now. After a few generations alone. Haitians have embraced themselves and the land. The land and the peole became one. To some Haitians it was as if they had their own civilization and little Haiti was a super continent  And that have become part of the Haitian identity, lonely but confident, resilient and spiritually self sustaining.  The haitians no longer looked at Africa where a place they came from but looked at the old continent as a mythical place and a mythical time.  Many stories and legends were developped. And all including have shaped that identity which is very unique, authentic and distinctive as a people. The language, customs and beleifs of Haitians are very rich and they are connected to even Pre columbian times. Anacaona in full glory, half naked and yes bare chested, covered with flowers lives in the heart of every one identifies as Haitian whoever or wherevevr he or she may be.  Cacique Anacaona, born a princess (royal family) became high priestess at puberty in her teens. A living Zemi while on earth (ancestral spirit). Died martyred in her early 20's. She and her subjects were just savages to the conquistadors. To brake the Arawak spirit, they ceremoniously hung her in a grand celebratory event. These Haitian savages's crimes were just their incapability to let go or depart from their own identity (their true self). I will dedicate a page on this website to this daughter of Haiti, daughter of the Cosmic Equatorial Sun. Anacaona means "Golden Flower" in the Arawak language.

 
Now let's turn the page, let me explain things in a different angle.

  When one travels over the Caribbean over Jamaica, Cuba, Dominican Republic ect... Haiti is the only country where you will not see that the coastal line dotted with high rise hotels with volley ball tennis courts, golf courses sect...and the coast littered with yatches ect..inland criss crossed by multy lane highways. All of that the result of privatisation in fullswing. Where foreigers and bid corporations with wall street  big crazy money come and buy your country and everything on it outright.  Haiti is visually different from its neibhors. Eventhou the big corporations don't invest and built those big hotels, giant touristic city resorts ect.. I don't think the Haitians have too much problems with that. The Haitian people are very selfish in a way. I myself would like to see an aspect of Haiti stay intact. When I look at the Dominican Republic next door. I don't feel jealous. Because I'm friends with some very old Dominicans and they told me they don't feel like they have a country anymore. Foreigners have more right then them and they have no recourse. They experience racism in their own country, feel like second class citizens in their own country. And if you are suspected of stirring things, asking for rights ect. or asking to share in the profits ect.. you will get eliminated in short order, probably by local gangs or assassins paid very cheaply to take your life. And if you stir things up collectively they will claim you are threatening their interest (whatever that means)  if your own government caanot handle your collective movements then Marines with big guns witl come and burst your doors down or have airplanes drop bombs on your heads or a combination of both. For the profits made are for your citizens.  All those mega city hotels you see around the Caribbean are not for the people or enjoyed by the people. America tried to change Haiti into that direction in the invasion of 1915 but the Haitians forced them out in 1934. Poor they found Haiti poorer they left Haiti. Please do not mistake me, Haitians are very hospitsble poeople. They enjoyed very much the toutistic booms in the 60's and 70's when Eurropean, Canadians and American tourists would overflow all the hotels. In the upper middle class suburb of Canape Vert, the locals used to rent space to the young tourists. My own father use to let them stay at the guess house for free. Young Americsn and Canadians packed the littl guess house. My father enjoyed watching and criticicize them in their debauchery, he ever provide them with free liquor somtimes, local troubadours ect.. at the same time enjoying the suffering of the Americans in Vietnam on the dayly news on Tv.  The whole of Canape Vert erupted in celebration the day Saigon fell and all the chaos that ensued in the evacuation of the ambassy.

So in Haiti, so called named the poorest in the Hemisphere is unique people and a unique land. Almost all mountains, misterious mountains, full with secrets. The land have its way of revealing secrets. 

       Jacques Cousteau the great French sea explorer of the 1960s and 1970s was mapping the Carribean Bassin. He passes under Peutro Rico every thing fine, Jamaica fine. Got permission from Castro.... did his job fine. But when he arrived at the nothern shores of Haiti by Mole St Nicholas he was chocked, alarmed and chaken, for what he has found. All around the island there were thousands upon thousands of human bones laying peacefully under mud caused by landslide from deforestation, it is as if a big natural disaster have happen in that country and continue to happen, he investigated into the source of those bones and was swept away into Haitian History. Mole St Nicholas, a name given to that coastal outpost by Christopher Columbus himself. There is an under current there that lead all to this place. (Even today when the Haitian boat people leave the southeren shore of Jeremie for their destination to the US, many times the current leads them and they land there at Mole St. Nicholas. It is only afer they go inland to their great supprise and dissapointment to find out that they are not in a foreign country at all but still in Haiti their land of misery).Chritopher Columbus's caravan was pulled by the current and landed there first on his first voyage, as a matter of fact the leading flag ship named Santa Maria sunk there at Mole St Nicholas and Columbus was forced to stay...ect.. ect...full full...history...Please go and read the history....  So Haiti (that was the native name before Columbus named it Hispanola) the craddle of the new world was born in a sea of blood and suffering from the very begining. As if that was a high price paid to set it in a different course. All the world have its course in history but Haiti have set its own. The initiate know what I mean. The journey inward. Haiti have never really known peace. Maybe peace of the spirit. For blood have never cease to flow since the first conquistador set foot on it. Please don't be alarmed by any news of revolt, uprising or coup d'edat in Haiti. Even if it look quiet or peaceful there is something brewing for sure underneath the peace.  If some was to write a book about coup d'etat Haiti would probably almost fill the whole book. Haiti have been a difficult place to govern since 1492. Christopher Columbus himself suffered the first coup d'etat. The great conquistador Nicholas Ovando the executioner of the fable book queen Anacaona of Xaragua ( capital Jacmel  and from the plains of Cul,De Sac to the south penensula)  came and without warning promptly placed Christopher Columbus under arrest in 1502 for mismanagement of the colony and deported him back to Spain in chains. Just like Columbus did to the great Caonabo. When the poor Columbus arrived, he was stripped of all his powers, tittles and treasures by the Catholic king Ferdinand. And if it wasn't for queen Isabella he would of spend the rest of his life in jail. Christopher Columbus was allowed so sail again but was forbade under the penalty of death to enter Hispagnola. Nicolas Ovando would of surely executed him.. Unable to visit the the city he builted, Santo Domingo, his retirement home, the crown of his glory. He evantually went mentally illed and died mentally illed, poor (no money) and  heart broken and  tourmented in painful agony in 1506. Let me repeat, Christopher Columbus died with pain all over his body (weird strange desease) groaning and moaning night and day and with his mind totally upsidedown as if already in hell..... Yes indeed, just a small down payment for all the head and body blows, lashes, trauma, torture and genocides we Haitians (Arawaks included) suffered and continue to suffer thru the centuries. Voodoo or Karma at work?...... AH AH OH Ho.   Joseph are you ok?.........  Ok ok Sorry for this burst of emotions. Sprituality does not mix with emotion. Yes, the highest level of spirituality is beyond good or evil. The job is only to shine the light as bright as possible on matter, alway from a distance from matter. Judge, jury and executing sentences on matter is not the spiritual's job, It's a law the spiritual understands quite well.

And the light of the matter is Columbus himself is also a victim as well. Organizational sponsorship of the first order, the times, environments, knowlege or the lack of, limitations and  pedagogy ectt..had their roles and hold more guilt than Columbus. There surely is something higher at play here, If the spritual was to judge, everone would be found guilty from Columbus, the sponsors of of Columbus, conquistadors, slave owners, the machanism that allows or enable such commerce to even exist, Africans in Africa, shipping and receiving human cargo, profitors or deficitors in such a trade, and more gilty still are the consumers of food and  products that  are tinted in blood, in the final analisy  after everyone is judged the slave himself or herself would have to be judge and would surely be found guilty as well. So you see the spiritaul always have to be far far higher beyond matter and cannot judge matter.

               Returning to our story.......  In 1503  slaves were already comming to Haiti but the real trade became heavy in 1517. Nicholas Ovando was finishing what Chistopher Columbus started, he was wiping away the Arawak race clean  out of Hispagnola. The island densely populated and had well over a million living Awarwaks but there were less then a 60,000 left by 1510. by 1517 only 20.000. And it must be clear that this was the sensus taken in the towns, village, gold mines and plantations where they were servants and slaves.. But no one really knew how many of those savages took refuge in the deep jungles of Haiti where they can live free form slavery as maroons. You know, the offical texts of history will tell you only the offical numbers and official point of view. One have to use insight and deep understanding as tools to dig the truth out. Thank God, Joseph Cantave is on the Job, examining and reexamining everything...Ah Ah Ah Ho ho. Joseph you are crazy.......Yes crazy with detecting eyes and super suspicious senses. But think about it, if you are a rebel meaning "refusing to accept an establish order" when you life is threatning your first instinc would naturally be to run away as far as possible from autorities of that order.  It is agents from this order that take or conduct sensus. Do you actually think they would go in the into the thickness of the mountains, into caves, deep ravines and caverns and conduct census acrivities. By accident or on purspose their arrival in maroon territory world immediatly end their lives. That is the whole purpose of marronage, to live out of sight out of mind of the established order.. If their location in known, the establish order will send overwelming forces to kill them. It is as simple as that.

 A catholic priest name Barthelemy de las casas (a consquistador preist whose sole aim was to convert the poor Arawaks, trying to take the savage out of them or making them docile savages, keeping them from adoring their sun, their moon their trees and rivers and their Zemis) who had forsighted extinction of the natives and  was so overwlhelmed by the atrocities visited on the poor Haitians every day by his compatriot conquistadors.. He made a report to Royal Court in Spain and to the Pope, soon the slave trade was in full gear so to save the poor Awarwaks from total extinction. So how exactly Barthelmy's schemed worked out, becuase I notice unintended consequences. African slaves trade exploded in the millions all over the place and offically in all the history books the Arawaks are totally extinct in Haiti. Yes all the books. Yet major aspect of Haitian Voodoo have thier influence and identity pure and intact.  Do you really think those officals who were writing the history were on the Arawak's side?  Or did they even care? Do you see how they described the great Caonabo or any of the first Haitians? Undignify andtotally disrespectfull.  

                              A fusion was made between Africans and Arawaks  in the impenetrable mountain regoins, in the southwest Baoruco where new arrival runaway slaves were welcomed by the last Haitian Arawak Cacik, the great Guarocuya  (Cacique Henri) for the first maroons were Haitian Arawaks. Other mountain ranges as well had runaway Arawaks.  The Zemis have fully embraced their African counterparts. It is not a coincidence Haiti's name resurfaced. It most be noted that Toussaint heavily courted, cultivated a strong relationship partnership with the maroons, he armed and trained the marrons from this region and also the marroons  from the northwest of Cibao, maroons from the mountains east of  Artybonite and maroons east of the Plateau Central mountain range Massif du Nord. He trained and organized them into reliable auxiliaries, they were awesome in lethal guerrila warfare, something the grand army was not accustom to. He did not rely 100% on his own army officers. He stored and entrusted tons and tons of weapons and arminutions in these montain regions controlled by maroons The marrons regarded Papa Toussaint as a deiti. after Toussaint's death, Dessalines used them as well and urge them in their beleif that if they died in battle they would rejoined Papa Toussaint again. They were real fanatics, they were the most ferocious and died laughing on the battlefield. To read more about the maroons click on the red tab up right.

     To continue,  As Spain was getting filthy rich. Other European royals join in the grabbing and rapping. Pirate hub, boucaniers, flibustiers flocked there. Whisky treaty in 1697 between France and Spain....History history and more history.........then came 1791 and the rise of Toussaint. Toussaint Louverture himself was a great manifacturer of coups. He has given more than a dozen in less than 10 years. He peacefully deported  a gorvernor general, he forcefully deported commissioners and special agents from left to right back to France Spain and England. He tactifully fought their large armies and won sometimes without firing a single canon. He made it a point to always keep thousands of white prisoners, specially high ranking officers for negotiation purposes.  He was so generous to them some of his old prisoners wrote about him long after his death,  some spied for him in the French government. He knew about all the preparations and coming of the grand army. Twice he resigned his position of head of state to dudge or avoid revolutions only to rise again at the head of the counter revolutions in thus crushing all oppositions and all those that filled the vaccum of his absence.  1801 He took over the Spanish half of the Island under pretext of a deal made between Spain and France. A coup in disguise, the whole island was under his control. Alarm was raised among the establihed powers of the time. Jamaica, Puerto Roco, Cuba and all the Caribbean Islands were vulnerable with Toussaint around. The decision was made that Toussaint had got to go. He in turn was set up in a coup d'etat and deported to France . He was known in those days of glory as "The First Of The Black Race". The danger to the new world died with Toussaint for no other Haitian posseses his grandeur or his vision. (It must be noted Toussaint, a light to the world for all times, learned how to read and write at 40 years old).

You all know the rest of the story story.(perpetual revolution). 

   Now.....As a matter of fact if one is writing or searching about coup d'etats, Haiti is a good place to start. All imagining ways coup d'etats succeeded as if a great theatrical plays were constripted with all the usual players. . .From complotting, poisonings, public executions, assassinations, deportations, on several occasions the angry populace invaded, stormed, rushed in the white house and took care of the president, one time they found him hidding under the bed, also on two occasions the white house was blown away with president and all the living creatures with him. Such is the history of that little unknown country. Haiti deviated from its path as if under a curse after the brutal murder of its founder.

        Times never stand still. Everything get older. So are nations or people ect..  Some people after many generations in servitude or in slavery stilll have a slave mentality even if they are set free. If after many generations you are arrogant and think yourself superior you will continue to beleive that. But Haiti after the great war of independance and times in isolations revolution afer revolutions. Have also matured in a way. But the blood and suffering have never stopped. Including today. Just take the boat people phenomenon and what ever many crisis that poor coountry is under now.

  A poeple that have matured in so much pain and misery will developped a  spiritual self and a degree of humbleness, it is a spiritual law. And all that suffering then have to have an outlet or the people will become suicidal and violent and hopeless. The great spirit of Haiti would not let that happened.  If you ever visited Haiti even in the midst of the misery or a native revolution (change of president or coup d'etat), you cannot fail to come face to face with  that spirit, and be humble by it. And if you pay close attention to details in your daily activities in Haiti you will surely stumble on a mystical unforgattable experience. This place which is the poorest of the poor is a spiritual hub a gateway or intersection into the spiritual world. As for myself, Haitian in the diaspora carries Haiti in my heart not as a regular country, for Haiti has been a failed state for very long, it is now half myth  and half reality. In the mythical side Haiti have a hidden door into the beyound. All Haitian art points in that direction.   

        Haitian art in sum is a reflection of a very old but ageless spirit  reflecting upon itself. When comming face to face with itself. It forgot all its pains of the centuries milleniums and started to smile and giggle and suddenly burst out laughing harder and harder sendind echoes to the outer limits of the universe........ in conclusion Haitian art in all its splendor with all its colors, forms and mysticism are but and echo of that spiritual laughter in his continious journey to paradise that awaits him, and with many Haitian artists as servants and helpers, he send out messages to the world of his presence and remindind humanity of the superiority of the spiritual over the material. So no matter the degree of suffering, the spirits rejoice and shines. 

    Joseph Cantave  Yale University 2004