What was your reaction to seeing those images of Border Patrol agents with whips? It might have looked like a scene out of a 19th century pre-civil war period piece, but somehow it’s actually the U.S.’ policy towards black migrants.
This week, Border Patrol used whips and prods against defenseless and destitute Haitian immigrants. Over 14,000 Haitians are seeking refuge in the U.S. after fleeing a country that was dealing with another massive earthquake, recent assassination of its president Jovenel Moïse, and on top of that, Covid-19.
U.S. policy towards Haiti has always been dominated by cruelty disguised as aid. As Haiti emerged from the ashes of French Colonial Saint-Domingue, the United States immediately adopted an extremely hostile posture towards the only successful slave revolt in history. Driven by the fear of the Southern plantation owning elite, the U.S. government almost immediately instituted crippling sanctions against the country which hampered its ability to develop in its immediate post colonial period. U.S. policy throughout the rest of Haiti’s history has been dominated by neo-colonial exploitation and outright military and political intervention. Haiti is what it is today in large part due to the policies of this “freedom loving” country, and as horrifying as these images are, it’s an accurate portrayal of the slow and direct violence the U.S. has been inflicting against the Haitian people for literal centuries.
Jena Friedman is a writer and comedian with an upcoming show on AMC+ called “Indefensible with Jena Friedman.” You’ve seen on Conan, The Late Show with Steven Colbert, and in the film Palm Springs, and she’s written for The Late Show with David Letterman, The Conners, and Borat 2. Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/JenaFriedman
Recorded September 21, 2021
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