Why Haiti’s history matters in today’s immigration debate

For more on the relationship between the United States and Haiti, we are now joined by Doctor Delphine Gras, an associate professor of language and literature at Fgcu. And I appreciate you so much taking the time out of your schedule to join us and tell us a little bit about what's going on with the relationship between Haiti and the United States and TPS. But first, I'd like to talk about your background and your your connection to Haiti. Yes. So thank you for having me here. I think this is a really important topic. I am not, of Haitian descent. I'm actually, French, originally born and raised. And what I didn't know until much later in my life is the deep connection, actually between France and Haiti, because it tends to be, swept under the rug. And so when we talk about slavery, we usually point the finger at the United States. And so it's only years later in my education that I found out that not only there was a long history between France and Haiti, but that we actually had, contributed to the very situation that they find themselves in right now by, forcing people into slavery by exploiting the people, the islands, and then forcing them, into a debt that has repercussions all the way into the present day. Now, can you take us back and explain? They had the most successful revolution, arguably, in world history. Can you talk a little bit about the Haitian Revolution? Yes, absolutely. And so, colonialism and slavery, has been brutal throughout the world. But the way that it played out in Haiti was more brutal than anywhere else, throughout the Americas. And part of it was because the, the main concern was to make as much profit as possible, not caring about the land or the people, that were, used to exploit the land. And so, through that, over exploitation of the land and the people, the soil was drained of its resources. Now it's, has a deficiency in nutrients. And so Haitians have been fighting for independence all along, but it was a very brutal regime. And so it took several decades from what came on and of the 18th century, to finally 1804 independence was declared. But none of the colonial powers at the time want to recognize, the independence of Haiti, because there is this fear that if this independence is recognized, then everywhere else throughout the Americas can see that rebelling against slavery can work. And so you end up having an embargo, from most colonial powers, and Haiti, which establishes the Second Republic, in the hemisphere, first black led, rebellion leading to the creation of a republic. Ends up paying the price because they're isolated. And then decades later, almost 40 years after their independence, they're forced to sign a treaty, according to which, they agree. Right. But they're forced to, a debt to the French government, in the amount of 150 million francs of the time, which would amount to billions in today's currency. And so, all the way into the 20th century, Haiti has had to use, different methods that, in a way, uphold, traditions that had been used during quantization, because that's the only way to repay France such a huge amount of money. They are currently paying this, so they paid it all the way in the 20th century. They're done paying the debt, but all the way until the beginning of the 20th century, up to 80% of Haiti's budget was devoted to repaying debt, debt, and and it also, continued the overexploitation of the land and the people, because that was the only way to be able to repay such an amount that you are an expert in Caribbean literature and you have contributed to multiple books. What are you working on currently? So currently I'm working on a book that focuses on, women of color throughout the Americas, that try to redefine resistance and try to find ways to address those erased histories, like the history of Haiti and to shed light on the fact that, what is happening right now is connected to years of history. And so in the Haitian context, at least, Danticat is an absolute, delight to read, but also someone who really sheds light on the complexity of Haitian people and the complex history of Haiti itself. We were discussing earlier, Haiti in 2010 being devastated by an earthquake. And it it has just destroyed their island nation. Many of those Haitians immigrated to the United States. Why do you think they chose to come to our country? So again, there's a long history there. Beginning of the 20th century, the US actually occupied the island for three decades. And so there is that connection of the US going to Haiti, before Haiti going here. Although you did have Haitians that emigrated with the French to New Orleans. So if you enjoy your vinegar and New Orleans food, there is the Haitian people say French, but it's really Haitian French influence there. She look at the creation of Chicago. There is also Haitian influence there. So there had been some smaller waves of emigration. But throughout the Duvalier dictatorships, I'm going back a little bit in time. But throughout the Duvalier dictatorship, you had thousands and thousands and thousands of, Haitians that tried to come to the United States. But they were denied entry. Just for example, within the decade, in the 80s, you had more than 20,000 people that tried to get asylum, status in the United States. 11 managed to get that status. And all along, they were denied, asylum because they were considered economic migrants. And so understanding how the underdevelopment of Haiti has historical roots helps us see that it is more than just an economic problem. And so when the disaster of 2010 happens, Paul Farmer, who was a doctor who went, to help there, explained that there is no such thing as a natural disaster because it hit so hard because there had been centuries of destroying the land and infrastructure of of the country. And so you had 1 million people that were displaced. And so obviously the United States had ties from its previous history. You had people that had family members there. We're also very close to Haiti. And then in terms of the climate is a fairly similar climate. Right. And if you want to be able to go back, which was the goal for most people, Florida is is really, at first seemed like it was the, the best destination and after that earthquake, the U.S. government extended TPS to Haitians. And that allowed them to come to our country to work and to live for about 18 months. 16 years later, the country is still rebuilding. How does TPS, how has TPS helped Haitians? Right. And so TPS is temporary protected status. And so only if your country qualifies. So if there is some, extraordinary situation happening in the country, if there is, military violence, do you qualify for TPS? And so TPS, obviously at the time of such a destructive earthquake, they they checked all the boxes. And so that's how they were able to come. And obviously, when you suddenly have, people that have no place to live, they have benefited from being here, but they've also contributed significantly to our life in Florida. And I think that's the part that people sometimes forget is how valuable they have been to the development, of our state. I know the latest studies show that over half of the nation's Haitian population lives in the Sunshine State. Many of these Haitians work in health care. You mentioned they are nurses. They are, thriving in hospitality, agriculture. They hold many jobs here in the state of Florida. If TPS is taken away, how does that impact Southwest Florida and the state as a whole? Yeah. So I'm getting a little emotional because it affects everybody. We're talking about our neighbors. We're talking about our students. We're talking about our colleagues. Like I said, I'm not Haitian myself, but there are a lot of other people who could speak to that. On campus, we have, a Haitian student organization. We have many very talented students and faculty as well as staff throughout the university. But if you consider the fact, for instance, that about 22% of our workforce in the state of Florida are immigrants, and that a quarter of our nurses like, how do you do if you don't have nurses? A quarter of our nurses are immigrants. About half of our health aides are also immigrants. And obviously, right, the service industry, the construction industry, they have contributed so much to our economy, to our lifestyle, our lifestyle. And, and they've been able to do so without any way to move forward. And that's the part that people don't understand is if you have TPS, you do not have access to citizenship nor residency. So you're always in that temporary status. So it's not like they have not done anything the right way is that there is no way out of TPS. It's either you have TPS or you don't have it. And and so what that means is right now, if you take it away, you end up having no home, no status, even though you might have spend your entire life in the state of Florida. You mentioned you have some university students that have dealt with this, that has that have left campus. Yes. I've had students living in a very middle of the semester for fear of what might happen. And then it affects the TPS holders, but also people who are not TPS holders, but are afraid that they might be mistaken for, someone who has TPS. And so it creates this sense of fear among our students, among our loved ones, among our neighbors. Of of an uncertainty of where to go next. Because the TPS, if you if you look at the categories of what makes it so that you qualify. One of them is military violence. And so right now, we were considering possibly having some sort of use of force to stabilize the situation in Haiti. And yet we're saying, oh, but you no longer need TPS. If we're we think that there needs to be some sort of action. How can you send people back to the country that at this point, it's not that they don't have the potential of doing it, but at this point, they don't have the means to welcome so many people in the economy that is already very unstable. How how do you feel about the narrative surrounding Haitian immigrants today in our country? Yes. I think there's so much misinformation. I think we forget that we're talking about people, that are just like you and me. There's a criminalization of poverty, and a stigmatization of poverty, as if. Right. And a lot of people use the earthquake as if is years zero of Haiti. But Haiti used to be the pearl of the West Indies. Haiti used to bring in more money than all 13 colonies combined. And so they're in the situation they're in today because of a lot of global factors, not because of their own doing. And there's this phrase, the poorest country of in the Western Hemisphere, and it makes it so that it normalizes whatever happens to Haitian and Haitian American. But it wasn't always that way. And they are so much more than just people who live under vulnerable conditions. Thank you so much for sharing your expertise and your perspective. It's so important. Thank you for having me. Thank you, Doctor Grau, for joining us today.