While Haiti established the second independent nation in the Western Hemisphere and was the first black country to gain independence from European colonizers, its history is not well known in the Anglophone world. The Haiti Reader introduces readers to Haiti's dynamic history and culture from the viewpoint of Haitians from all walks of life. Its dozens of selections—most of which appear here in English for the first time—are representative of Haiti's scholarly, literary, religious, visual, musical, and political cultures, and range from poems, novels, and political tracts to essays, legislation, songs, and folk tales. Spanning the centuries between precontact indigenous Haiti and the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake, the Reader covers widely known episodes in Haiti's history, such as the U.S. military occupation and the Duvalier dictatorship, as well as overlooked periods such as the decades immediately following Haiti's “second independence” in 1934. Whether examining issues of political upheaval, the environment, or modernization, The Haiti Reader provides an unparalleled look at Haiti's history, culture, and politics.

Laurent Dubois is Professor of Romance Studies and History at Duke University. 

Kaiama L. Glover is Professor of French and Africana Studies at Barnard College. 

Nadève Ménard is Professor of Literature at the École Normale Supérieure, Université d’État d’Haïti. 

Millery Polyné is Associate Professor of History at the Gallatin School of Individualized Study at New York University. 

Chantalle F. Verna is Associate Professor of History and International Relations at Florida International University.

Acknowledgments  xiii
Introduction  1
I. Foundations  7
II. The Second Generation  67
III. The Birth of Modern-Day Haiti 127
IV. Occupied Haiti (1915–1934)  177
V. Second Independence  251
VI. The Duvalier Years  307
VII. Overthrow and the Aftermath of Duvalier  389
VIII. Haiti in the New Millennium  449
Suggestions for Further Reading and Viewing  513
Acknowledgment of Copyrights and Sources  519
Index 527