Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of The Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Haiti is the third largest country in the Caribbean, and with an estimated population of 11.4 million, is the most populous Caribbean country.0 The capital and largest city is Port-au-Prince.
The first century of independence was characterized by political instability, international isolation, crippling debt payments to France, and a costly war with neighboring Dominican Republic. Political volatility and foreign economic influence prompted a U.S. occupation from 1915 to 1934. A series of unstable presidencies gave way to nearly three decades of dictatorship under the Duvalier family (1957–1986), which brought state-sanctioned violence, corruption, and economic stagnation. Following a coup d'état in 2004, the United Nations intervened to stabilize the country. In 2010, Haiti suffered a catastrophic earthquake, followed by a deadly cholera outbreak. With its deteriorating economic situation, Haiti has experienced a socioeconomic and political crisis marked by riots and protests, widespread hunger, and increased gang activity. As of May 2024, the country has had no remaining elected government officials and has been described as a failed state. (Full article...)
The Baháʼí Faith in Haiti began in 1916 when ʻAbdu'l-Bahá, the head of the religion, cited Haiti as one of the island countries of the Caribbean where Baháʼís should establish a religious community. The first Baháʼí to visit the island was Mrs. Harriet Gibbs Marshall, from 1922–1928. Another early Baháʼí to visit Haiti was Leonora Armstrong in 1927. After that, others visited Haiti, and by January 1937 Louis George Gregory visited the island and cited the presence of a small community of Baháʼís. The first long term pioneers, Ruth and Ellsworth Blackwell, arrived in 1940. Following their arrival the first Baháʼí Local Spiritual Assembly of Haiti was formed in 1942 in Port-au-Prince. From 1951 the Haitian Baháʼís participated in regional organizations of the religion until 1961 when Haitian Baháʼís elected their own National Spiritual Assembly and soon took on goals reaching out into neighboring islands. The Association of Religion Data Archives (relying mostly on the World Christian Encyclopedia) estimated some 23,000 Baháʼís in Haiti in 2005, and about the same in 2010. (Full article...)
...that in 2004, Hurricane Jeanne hit the coastal city of Gonaïves, where it affected about 80,000 of the city's 100,000 residents. Official reports counted 3,006 people dead, with 2,826 of those in Gonaïves alone.
...that former President of HaitiJean-Claude Duvalier, also known as "Baby Doc" was exiled to France after his disposition in 1986. He lost most of his wealth due to his divorce from his wife Michèle, But died October 4, 2014, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti due to a heart attack at the age of 63.
The following are images from various Haiti-related articles on Wikipedia.
Image 1Staff of the German legation and the Hamburg-Amerika Line agency at Port-au-Prince, Haiti in 1900. The agency was involved in the staffing and management of the legation. German nationals were comparatively numerous in Haiti and heavily involved in the Haitian economy until World War I. (from History of Haiti)
Image 50"Burning of the Plaine du Cap – Massacre of whites by the blacks". On 22 August 1791, slaves set fire to plantations, torched cities, and massacred the white population. (from History of Haiti)
Image 51Market street in Port-au-Prince, 1996 (from History of Haiti)
Image 52U.S. Marines patrol the streets of Port-au-Prince on 9 March 2004 (from History of Haiti)
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