The relationship between the Dominican Republic and Haiti has been a source of tension and conflict of its residents for a number of decades. Ever since Haiti gained its independence, the country has been subject to injustice and discrimination from all sides. The issues between the two territories stem mainly from their shared history and the racial identity of their people. In my essay, I will be addressing the ongoing racial tension between Dominican and Haitians in the Dominican Republic. I will point out some positive and negative results from both sides. I will address how Haitians and Dominicans could peacefully live together without major tension.
To start off, to understand the origins of the current struggles, one needs to know the history of Haiti and Dominican Republic’s relations. Ever since its establishment, the Dominican Republic had a special relationship with African slaves. Having less of a divide between races than in other places produced a unique situation where the black population was separated from their native history and culture. Dominican blacks began to see themselves as “Indio”, a special term for brown people of various descent (Sagás). Pledging loyalty to Italy, the Africans of the republic constructed a separate identity from their original one and did not consider themselves to be a part of the black community. A part of the population, primarily consisting of black slaves, gave rise to a revolution that resulted in the formation of the Republic of Haiti, which became separate from the Dominican Republic (Sagás).
Haiti, contrary to Dominica, embraced the black culture with its tradition and variety, including song, dance, and folklore. The Dominican government saw Haitians as inferior, distancing themselves from Haiti, and even declaring their independence in 1844. Dominican also participated in the extermination of Haiti’s population, including the infamous Haitian massacre of 1937(Sagás). The racial issues between the countries are the result of forming a different understanding of black identity due to the influence of racism and violence.
Nowadays, the tense relations between the two countries are more apparent than ever. The most pressing issue for them is the problem with illegal immigrants. Recently, in 2013, the Dominican government revoked the citizenship of Haitian migrants, which applies to anyone born after 1929, leaving entire generations of people in a vulnerable state. As stated by Peter Granitz, “The program centers on round-ups and deportations that have triggered concerns about a slow-growing border migration crisis in the poorest country in the Americas” (Granitz). The people affected by this ruling cannot access the education or healthcare services, and face work discrimination (Gibson). Many of the immigrants also tried to flee for Haiti, with both the Dominican and Haitian officials refusing to offer any support to their cause (Ahmed).
This chain of events caused a major uproar in the community, with many supporters of immigrants speaking out. In July of 2015, many thousands of Haitians marched in protest to show their solidarity to the undocumented residents who are denied their rights, with the Dominican government consciously downplaying the issue (“Haitians Protest Over Dominican Republic deportations”). A parade in support of Dominican people was also held in New-York in 2016, with the goal of spreading awareness and help the families affected by the court decision (American Jewish World Service). Such acts of activism are aimed at making the government stop the systematic racist injustice towards immigrants.
All in all, both countries still have a long way ahead of them to mend their relationship and guarantee the prosperity of their people. With many individuals and organizations showing their stance on immigration issues, the governments are continuing negotiations on how to resolve the current crisis (“Dominican Republic and Haiti Resume Immigration Talks”). Overall, the difference in the racial identity of these countries presents its historical challenges to reaching a mutual understanding. One of the keys is that Dominicans parents have to start teaching their children to love all mankind included Haitians. Many Dominican parents have been raising their children to hate Haitians while many Haitian parents raised their children not to trust Dominicans. Somehow, both sides would have to learn to protect teach their children to be kind to all men and women.
Works Cited
Angela Cave, “Parading for Equality: Haitian-Dominican Activists Make a Statement at the Dominican Day Parade,” American Jewish World Service,” 2016, Web.
Azam Ahmed, “Forced to Flee the Dominican Republic for Haiti, Migrants Land in Limbo,” The New York Times, 2015, Web.
Carrie Gibson, “The Dominican Republic and Haiti: one island was riven by an unresolved past,” the guardian, 2013, Web.
Dominican Republic and Haiti Resume Immigration Talks. Americas Quarterly, 2014, Web.
Ernesto Sagás, “A Case of Mistaken Identity: Antihaitianismo in Dominican Culture,” Webster University, Web.
Haitians protest over Dominican Republic deportations. Aljazeera, 2015, Web.
Peter Granitz, “Haiti border crisis grows as the Dominican Republic expels ‘migrants’,” Reuters, 2015, Web.