When Haiti Was Young

Haiti has never been simple. While it's the only nation in the Western Hemisphere to boast a successful slave rebellion (during the Haitian Revolution of the late 18th century), the freedom wrested from colonial rule hardly brought the full blessings of liberty to the island nation's residents. For much of its history, Haiti has consistently been among the world's poorest countries, and today it is, by all measures, the poorest country in the Americas. (Like so many places in the Caribbean, it's also a land of rare, intense natural beauty.)

Politically, the country has had its share of drama -- little of it positive. While (at least nominally) a republic, the country has frequently been ruled by the worst possible examples of the classic, corrupt "strongman" stereotype -- with the most famous among them, perhaps, being François "Papa Doc" Duvalier. From his quite-likely rigged election as president in 1957 through his death in 1971, Duvalier ruled Haiti with a brutality notable even among the many other brutally repressive regimes blighting the Americas at the time. In 1964, in a referendum asking whether Papa Doc should be made "President for Life," nearly 3 million Haitians (reportedly) voted "yes," while 3,000 voted "no." For the next several years, life in Haiti grew, if possible, even more hellish for Duvalier's opponents. Thousands were murdered; thousands more fled. Papa Doc, meanwhile, maintained that he had been chosen by God to lead.

In January, 2010, a massive earthquake devastated the country, killing tens of thousands (with some estimates closer to 200,000), and leaving millions more homeless. As of this writing, relief agencies are struggling to cope with the quake's apocalypitc aftermath, and Haitians are again facing a future that seems far from bright.