Author Archives: Nikki

Discussing the Haitian Revolution and Disease

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Question: How did disease affect the outcome of the Haitian Revolution?

Answer: Though diseases are only tiny microbes they virtually shape history in many ways. When Napolean took power of France in the early 1800’s and tried to reinstate a form a slavery back on the island through his brother Leclerc, yellow fever virtually killed off much of the French army including Leclerc himself. Though the Haitians had greater numbers and used guerilla war tactics the French still had better weapons and a better-trained army. It was because of the tropical diseases that the French army had no immunity too that the Haitian were able to secure their independence from France.

The disease is even mentioned after the written part of Napolean’s plan for the island on page 178. “Little went as Bonaparte planned, however. The resistance of Louverture and his partisans was fiercer and more successful than the French expected, the war against them dragged on for many months and cost the French significant casualties. Several weeks after writing the following letters, Leclerc died of yellow fever that had taken so many of his troops.”

Because of the massive loss of troops either from disease or warfare Leclerc in his final days even begs Napolean for more troops and reduces itself to more vicious tactics. This is seen in a final letter to Napolean on page 179. “If you wish to be master of Saint-Domingue, you must send me twelve thousand men without wasting a single day….If you cannot send me the troops I have asked for, and by the time I have requested, Saint-Domingue will be forever lost to France.”

In conclusion, the reason was Napolean ultimately failed at taking back power in Haiti was that the Haitians were fierce in their resistance and the huge loss that the French army took from yellow fever. Many of the French soldiers were not immune or even accustomed to tropical diseases like yellow fever compared to native Haitians. Because of this, they became more desperate and vicious, but even then they inevitably had to cut their losses and retreat leaving Haiti to itself.

The Aftermath of Hurricane Irma and Maria in the US Virgin Islands

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With all the news about Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico in the wake of this year’s hurricane season, it’s easy to forget about the other US territories in the Carribean. The US Virgin Islands have been apart of the US since 1916 and makeup three islands St. Thomas, St John, and St Croix, all three rely heavily on tourism for their economy. Though they cannot vote in Congress they have sitting Senators and an active Governor and are under Amercian protection and control. In September the islands were hit by both Irma and Maria, Irma quickly decimating St Thomas and St John, Maria coming up from behind taking out St Croix as well and destroying anything that wasn’t damaged with the first round. These islands are not unfamiliar with storms, they are regularly struck by hurricanes but this season was different bringing the strongest storms in recent memory. This story in New York Times examines how the islands are recovering almost two months after the major storms and discusses their road to recovery.

The storm left the islands dark with no power and general infrastructure destroyed. My Nana, a resident of St Croix for more than a decade described the aftermath as “There was not a single leaf left on the island.” This can actually be visibly seen by space with the pictures below. The article states that the Federal Emergency Management Agency still quotes that 73% of the islands still had no power as of last week. Many are simply hoping that the lights will be on by Christmas, assuming their homes were still standing.

Hurricane Irma Turns Caribbean Islands Brown

This a picture of the Islands of St John and St Thomas after Hurricane Irma. St Criox is farther to the south and a few days after this was taken also looked the same as a result of Hurricane Maria.

The article itself talks about places they visited on each island checking their progress since the storm. On St Thomas they talked to a family whose apartment was completely waterlogged and without power since the storm. They tried to keep it clean and functional, but after having a baby that same month the rising mold and unsanitary conditions caused them to leave and abandon their home. The family noted even that many were less fortunate however losing entire walls and furniture being completely blown away. On St John the followed the Caneel Bay Resort who had large portions of its buildings destroyed and even decided to close its doors for the next year to work on repairs. This has caused a layoff of 300 workers who depend on the tourist and hospitality business for their livelihood. The hotel continues to try and provide what little food refrigeration it can to serve residents and emergency workers on the island. In St Croix, they followed a restaurant called Cibone in Frederiksted. They are still checking to see if the building is structurally sound enough for a complete cleanup. It is covered currently by a blue tarp covering a damaged roof like much of the island. Waterlogged houses have become hotbeds for mold and require masks for cleanup work.

The islands themselves have been largely ignored in the larger media because places like Puerto Rico are larger. But the islands still need a lot of help rebuilding power lines and infrastructure. It is currently asking for 7 billion in emergency aid from the federal government, but in the current political climate, it may be tough. These people are Amercian citizens however and often times aren’t remembered to be.

This connects to our class because the islands were once important hotbeds for sugar cane and the slave trade. They evolved with colonialism and still show the ruins and connections today. Often the problems of race and poverty still exist today as disaster strikes.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/10/us/virgin-islands-hurricanes.html

https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/view.php?id=90952

Class Notes 10/23

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Latin American History and Culture:

David covered the topic of the murder of a prominent Native rights activist in the wake of the Argentinian elections. The current ruling party the Republican Proposal is under intense criticism for not fully investigating the murder, many believing that perhaps they might have played a role in the incident or simply ruling it out as not important. This is important for the upcoming election because the opposition party is using these crimes against Native people against the current government in an attempt to draw up support for themselves. It also draws many connections from the colonial era touching on the treatment of Native people and their lands in relationship with governments.

Class Discussion:

Today we were divided into two groups and debated on the moral rights or wrongs of European colonialism in America. The first group was debating in favor of Colonialism stating that religiously the Pope was the word of God and God had given them permission and power to rule over people less than them. A quote from Aristotle, in particular, was used to say that the wise and prudent men will always rule over the more dimwitted despite the obvious physical strength. This was used in favor of enslavement because Europeans believed that they were much smarter compared to the Natives and used this as a moral justification. They also cited the natives lack of culture and science to being a savage group of people that need to be civilized, even dramatizing the Cannibal nature of them. The Spaniards felt it was their duty to save these people from themselves by teaching them Christianity and therefore salvation in the afterlife, however, they didn’t put much emphasis on this life.

In contrast, the 2nd group opposing the Spaniards moral right for colonization in America cited monks who had converted to the side favoring the natives. They mentioned how awful the Spaniards were treating the native people of this land, that what they were doing was not good and Christian. They were committing great sins by enslaving these peoples and even introducing them to the true God was not enough to justify such bad treatment.

Important Terms and Reading for Today:

Bartolome de las Casas- Spanish Dominican friar who defended the rights of Native Amercian people against the Spanish colonial rule

Juan Gines de Sepulveda- Spanish renaissance thinker with a humanist approach and a huge proponent of slavery in the New World

The New Land of the Indes- laws created by the Spanish King to prevent Exploitation and mistreatment of indigenous people

  1. Readings on Latin America and its People