Comments on: Reparations, not handouts, for Haiti

By: Max Watts

Max Watts — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 19:26:32 +0000

Congratulations on your very informative piece on Haiti and its reparation to France. My take on this issue is related to a somewhat more contemporary situation. Haiti initially did not pay the reparations out of fear of invasion ,they had already given a generous trashing to the forces of French Royalist, the Spanish and British and then the annihilation of Leclerc’s army. They paid-up because, the entire white world collaborated in pursuit of big bucks that came from cotton, sugar and tobacco and the armed robbery of human labour, dignity and generational legacy. They did it by means of usury and collective economic sanctions. Invasions only came after collective sanctions began to break the back of Haitian’s resolve, and they went ballistic with Henry Christophe seceding from the Republic to form his own little counterfeit Kingdom. We see the same situation today in Zimbabwe and Palestine —–say what! the same old parsimonious trick.

By: neal

neal — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 17:11:31 +0000

Let me see if I can decipher what exactly C. Ann ,this proud “African American U.S. citizen from New Orleans , LA here in Trinidad on a cultural arts exchange,” is attempting to say to us socially undeveloped idiots in this oil and gas laden enclave.
The black Haitian people should not expect anything form her Yankee leaders, since they did absolutely nothing of substance for her and other kinky heads folks in 2005 when the levees broke , because perhaps ,according to Hip Hop media whore Kanye West ,“George W. Bush hate black people,” yes?
I wonder why her people never got their ‘40 acres and a mule,’ as promised by so called liberator Abraham Lincoln ,for building America to what it is today after years of free labor , and who is to be blamed?
Can she explain the reasons Jew that daily land in her country are treated like royalty ,decades after the dehumanizing atrocities they experienced across Europe ended? Does she enjoy giving up most of her tax dollars to support distorted foreign policies like providing military, and housing expansionist aid to making Israel into a country with the third largest army in the world , even as it country it is about the size of New Jersey- while families of Africans slaves languish on the continent, and Haiti?
Sorry Randall Robinson of TransAmerica fame , you don’t count as you decided to throw your hands up in the air like a coward and resettle in Africa, afters butting heads for decades with greedy conglomerates ,and descendants of white racist politicians that all benefited from African exploitations.

http://authors.aalbc.com/randall_robinson.htm

I will tell you where the problem lies as to why black folks are treated as low cast, second class citizens in your own country- like you naively believe we in Sweet T&T aka Rainbow Country ,are similarly placed.
It is due to preponderance of confused , clueless,selfish , ungrateful , and neglectful black middle class so called African Americans , that are fixated in enhancing the American pro European agenda policy , while unconcerned about their unfortunate fellow brothers and sisters left behind within the US, or the vast suffering ones across the diaspora most of which are victims of a four decade Cold/ Proxy wars.
Hey, Americans of Irish , Italian , English, Romanian,Chinese , Indian , and Scandinavian extractions ,have no compunction in ensuring that the power brokers in Washington pay attention to the needs of their tribal people wheresoever they exist, but this is something Condi Rice, present US UN ambassador namesake Dr Rice, General Colin Powell,Republic head honcho Chairman David Steel , US Supreme Court Justice,Clarence Thomas , and Tiger Woods never will understand.
Irony of ironies, without the efforts of Black Power civil rights activist Trinidadian Stokley Carmichael , many more of your people would still be eating crumbs , and wallowing in squalor and neglect in America, but you won’t know that because phonies like pseudo African intellectual Professor Gates , won’t let you in on such secret. Instead guys like him , Director Spike Lee , Reverent Jackson, Sharpton , and the hundreds of entertainment and business elites ,that choose to pimp the black community when ever they can , then continue to ‘bojangle for dollars,’ from guilt ridden white crooked liberal .
On second thought , I wonder if by writing this extensive response to you , I am not really waisting my time or in essence “ casting pearls before swine?”
We forgive your early naivety for enquiring and expecting a coherent answer from some yuppi , bourgeois ,Trini elite orgy loving , carefree UWI students, about poverty or anything of relevance in this our country, but what is your excuse for such borderline illiterate conclusions today?
Your country has over two centuries to get their twisted concept of democracy right, yet most of it’s people that cannot accept the fact that those of a different pigmentation and or class, are still far removed from the promise land , as the leaders attempt to be global policemen , and selective humanitarian saviors, and emancipators.
In contrast , we in baby America after only four decades are trying to make strides , with room for improvements, amidst stupid unfortunate distractions ,and sometimes misguided elite leadership.
‘Keep hope alive,’ I echo from the man who through jealousy , wanted to castrate Uncle Obama for stealing his limelight and thunder! Join the ranks of global caring progressive , and dump the ego inflated mindset of most of your clueless fellow nationals when abroad , and you would be surprise as to how you can appreciate the world outside good old Capitalist America.
I wish you well.

By: C. Ann

C. Ann — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 12:01:00 +0000

I am an African-American U.S. citizen from New Orleans, LA here in Trinidad & Tobago on a cultural arts exchange. The idea that the U.S. will pay reparations to any people of African decent is far fetched at best. I would love to see it happen and am an advocate for it but I fear it is akin to dreaming. I lived through losing every possession I owned when the levees of my city failed in 2005 and I can tell you I didn’t see a dime of money raised.

I appreciate the author for asking and answering the question as to how the Haitian people came to live on the hillsides. When I arrived here in Trinidad, I asked our liaisons, two UWI students, about poverty on this island. I was told that there was no impoverished people here and that those who may not have good housing are lazy and criminals and have luxury items like large televisions so they can’t be ‘really that poor.’ Being naive and frankly not having done enough homework, I bought into the notions presented by the students. Then something enlightening happened. I saw the squalid conditions in which some of your own citizenry live. I was then told that “those people” are not Trinis but are mostly from Guyana. The U.S. has a tremendous amount of cleaning up to do both domestically and internationally. I said all that to say that Trinidad and Tobago has its own issues and should first concentrate on the new Caste system here and the lack of compassion shown for the poor.

I won’t be back since I’ve been made to feel like a “new untouchable.”

By: Jay Nurse- Toronto

Jay Nurse- Toronto — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 03:35:39 +0000

Truly, we all need strong remedial history lessons. Many thanks
for bridging this knowledge to us and all future learners.

We are asking: Who’s is the Who in the Canadian relationship with USA in Haiti? Canadians have so for raised way in excess of $145 M and still continuing.

Canada is embedded with the USA in Haiti. Reparations not Handouts. Thanks!