By Akbar Muhammad
Not long ago, I was asked by a Haitian brother "why is it that with all of your travels, you have never visited Haiti?" I explained that it was largely due to how Haiti was positioned in the media. The media can do some good but the media can also damage how you view situations, circumstances and individuals. Based on the way Haiti was portrayed by the media, I never had the desire to visit.
This month, I finally made the trip to Haiti and although I have traveled all over the world, it was one of the most memorable journeys I have ever taken. This trip marked my 140th country visited. It was an unbelievable experience because it reminded me of my first journey to Ghana's slave dungeons at Cape Coast in 1989. The experience in Haiti gave me a new appreciation and perspective on the path we took from enslaved Africans to free black people in the so called New World.
While in Haiti, I visited the historic port city of Cap-Haitian and the Citadelle La Ferrière, a massive and impregnable fortress dominating the northern plains of Haiti from a 3,000-foot peak was built by King Henri Christophe. These Haitian sites are tremendous testaments to the strength of black people to be liberated from their colonial masters just as the slave dungeons in Ghana serve as monuments to the enslavement of our people.
While there, I also learned of an interesting history about one of Haiti's early leaders who started the Haitian resistance against the colonial masters that very few Africans in the Diaspora know about. A man named Makhandal, started a revolt against the French slave owners in 1751. He prophesized to and promised his followers that one day they will rule the land of their suffering and enslavement. 40 years later, on August 14, 1791another man, Boukman having rebuilt Makhandal's movement, produced what became known as the Haitian Revolution. Then, the next leader became Toussaint L'ouverture.
Toussaint L'ouverture is widely known and accepted even as a French General but Makhandal and Bookman are not. Both of Makhandal and Bookman were Muslims. The suppression of Muslims in Haiti is little known but these two Muslim brothers were the catalysts of the movement towards the first and only successful black revolt in recent world history where enslaved Africans united to outsmart, to defeat remove their masters and claim their land as promised by Makhandal by declaring their sovereignty as the first independent black republic on January 1, 1804.
It is in that context that our delegation arrived in Port-au-Prince, Haiti post the notorious January 12, 2010 earthquake on a fact finding mission relative to the structural and social damages the abject conditions seven (7) months later. However we could not leave Haiti without visiting the Citadel. The journey is not easy by any means; located up the north coast of the country, the Citadel can only be reached by foot or horseback.
The Citadel is a large fortress, set atop a majestic hill and was constructed to keep the French from re-taking control of the island. This project was commissioned by King Henri Christophe, a leader of the Haitian Revolution, and is a testimony to the strength and ingenuity of the black man. I doubt the history recited to us by the Citadel tour guides who said French architects designed the structure, shaped like an enormous ship located on a high mountain. After King Henri Christophe began building the Citadelle in 1805, from 1810 to 1813, he erected a Palace called Sans Souci (translated Without Worry). Next to that Palace is church at the foot of the mountain that you encounter before you ascend toward the Citadel. With the massive dome and arched windows, the church resembles a large Mosque.
The members of our delegation were: Brother Rasin Ganga, Brother Joseph Makhandal, Brother Fuad El-Ghahuagi of the World Islamic Call Society, Sister Hadja Habibah Shakir from the Atlanta Masjid, our videographer, Opiyo Okeyo from Kenya, and Brian Muhammad, a contributor and writer for The Final Call newspaper. I am sure the delegation of seven was touched by what they witnessed on Haiti's northern coast in Cap-Haitian.
In the southern coast, tears filled the eyes of the group, looking at the earthquake damage that has yet to be cleared, thousands of tents and Haitians who reside in them. In this particular journey, we met the Muslim community and discussed the history and future of Islam in Haiti. Many of the brothers on this trip had known that there was a growing Muslim community in Haiti. Members of the Nation of Islam came to Haiti and brought the teachings there. Minister Louis Farrakhan's recorded messages translated into Creole by Brother Rasin made this possible using his own resources to spread this message in Haiti.
The nine (9) million plus people of Haiti are proud people who suffered through many tragedies and those of us who are historians see parallels between the January 12 quake to the past. Almost simultaneously, when Makhandal started the revolution in 1751 there were a series of earthquakes and some interpreted them as signaling a new beginning which later gave birth to the likes of Bookman, Toussaint L'ouverture, and Dessalines. All of them struggled against the French and it culminated into Christophe who became the first king of Haiti. During that time there emerged a northern and southern kingdom of Haiti and that lasted until the death of Christophe. However, the division was deeply rooted among the haves, the mulattos, and the have nots, the blacks.
What we experienced in Haiti shows that even though Haiti captured the world's attention with the earthquake, Haiti still needs the help of the outside world - not that they are beggars, not that they are waiting for someone to help them but they are a people who have a level of resilience and all they need is the push and the concern. Could the January 12th, 2010 earthquake signal a new beginning for the Haitian people who have suffered for so long?
Amidst Haiti's humanitarian concerns, however, there are important political changes occurring in the country. While we were present in Haiti, Wyclef Jean, the world famous humanitarian and entertainer and Haiti's most famous son, came to Haiti to declare that he will run for president. So, Haiti has again attracted the attention of the world while there is still suffering in Haiti. Any organization, group, religious group, or political group that can help Haiti in this hour needs to step forward. The Nongovernmental Organizations (NGO's) must be more engaged with the government and find a way to peacefully coexist and cooperate with the government in the best way to serve the people of Haiti.
For comments, contact Akbar Muhammad at aakbar@yahoo.com
