Push Pin pointing at Port-au-Prince, Haiti (andriano_cz - stock.adobe.com)
Why is Haiti going through such a deadly crisis? Haiti is a Caribbean country near Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea. It was the first African American country to gain independence from France in 1804. So why is the country falling apart so suddenly? Ever since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, there have been countless gang attacks; mostly in Port Au Prince, the capital of Haiti. The New York Times says “Haiti, a Caribbean nation with a long history of upheaval, is enduring one of its worst periods of chaos.” Countless lives have perished, many are left homeless, and the people don’t have enough money to buy the supplies needed for their family’s survival.
As a French-Haitian American girl with many relatives in Haiti, it is stressful to think about the insecurity of my family members, especially my grandfather. My parents are doing everything they can to schedule a flight for him to come to Germany, but it’s not always that easy. Because of the insecurity of transportation services, we don’t want to rush into anything so that he doesn’t get kidnapped, injured, or worse. Many of my aunts and uncles live in Haiti, and my parents and older siblings used to live there, too. Back then, they were always protected and safe, so they had nothing to worry about. Although most of my family members have lived in Haiti, I never had the chance to go to this country as my parents wanted to protect my innocence as well. As much as I would like to see my home country and learn about my culture, I understand that it is dangerous right now and my family and I are blessed to be in a gated community. Fortunately, my grandmother lives in New York with one of my aunts and a few of my cousins, so I always have one less thing to worry about.
Haiti has been going into a humanitarian, security and political crisis ever since the assassination of the president in 2021. Because many criminal gangs have been raiding the city, they are now in control of all transportation services, such as airports and ports. There is no social security, food is scarce and many people are risking their lives trying to flee the country. The Encyclopedia Britannica says, “There is no social security or personal income tax in this precarious world, and many children are paid near-starvation wages to perform menial tasks.” Most of these gangs released other gang members from prison. They are so desperate to release their gang members that they don’t even realize they are setting other prisoners loose. Unfortunately, their unawareness released over 3,000 prisoners. There are a lot of gangs destroying Haiti’s environment, mostly setting things like cars on fire. Some of the gangs are going even further by dressing as police officers, knocking on people’s doors and dragging them out to brutally murder them. According to the UN News “While the situation in Haiti has long been characterized by lawlessness, with powerful gangs controlling much of the capital, Port-au-Prince, the months of January and February 2024 have been the most violent in the last two years, with over 2,500 people killed, kidnapped or injured since the start of the year.”
Port-au-Prince, Haiti (Adobe Stock)
The insecurity in Haiti started in 1990 when Jean Bertrand Aristide was president. This got much worse after the incident of Jovenel Moise in 2021 because gangs wanted to seize power for certain people, such as politicians. Now, many transportation services have declined, such as airports and seaports. It is tough to flee the country, but fortunately, over 350,000 people were able to get away. Some people are trying to get away by driving, which is a big risk since gangs are known for burning cars down, especially with people in them. Others are taking even bigger risks and swimming across bodies of water to get anywhere but Haiti. Haitians are trying to do everything they can to get their children away from this deadly situation. Parents are shielding the little kids’ eyes as they try to escape, attempting to protect the little innocence they have left.
In conclusion, Haiti is going through a deadly situation. Gangs have been terrorizing the people’s houses and threatening people ever since the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in 2021. They want to seize power for themselves or unknown people high up in the government. Haiti’s gangs are more powerful than ever, and in addition to this tragedy, many businesses are being shut down and most kids aren’t getting the education they deserve because of the state of the country.
