As we embark on yet another Black history month, let’s take a moment to reflect on the contributions so many black individuals made and the road they essentially paved for us; more specifically let’s understand Haiti’s history. Haiti was one of the first nations to ban slavery and one of the wealthiest colonies in the Americas. Toussaint Louverture and Jean Jacques Dessalines were key figures to this established freedom. Although one can argue that their leadership skills were brutal and aggressive, they were Haiti’s founding Fathers. They created a roadmap for many enslaved individuals around the globe.
Toussaint Louverture was born in 1743, as François Dominique Toussaint. His father was an African prisoner of war who was sold into slavery in Saint-Dominque (Haiti). Saint-Domingue was valued by France as it was wealthy due to the labor of many enslaved people, farming primarily sugarcane and coffee. As a child, Toussaint was more privileged than other (black) slave children as he learned to read and write French and creole among other languages. On August 22, 1791, slaves rebelled in the French colony of Saint-Domingue (Haiti). Inspired by the French Revolution, and angered by generations of abuse, slaves began slaughtering whites with impunity. Toussaint was uninterested at first as he was nearly fifty years-old and married with a family, however the rebellion expanded and eventually migrated to where Toussaint lived. He eventually joined the rebellion.
Toussaint Louverture Jean Jacques Dessalines
Jean Jacques Dessalines was born in 1758. He was brought to Saint-Domingue (Haiti) as a slave. Born to Congolese parents, Dessalines was originally given the name Duclos, after the plantation’s owner. he worked as a servant for a black master until 1791, when he joined the slave rebellion that broke out in the colony amid the turmoil caused by the French Revolution. He later adopted the surname Dessalines after his black master who purchased him and from whom he escaped. Unlike Toussaint, Dessalines was treated harshly as a slave and violence became a way of life that marked him throughout his military and brief political career contributing both to his success on the battlefield and to his eventual downfall. Unable to read or write, Dessalines was a quick learner in observance of Toussaint, eventually earning the nickname “the Tiger” for his fierce battling style. Dessalines’s military skill and leadership was vital to Toussaint’s success in capturing the Spanish-controlled eastern half of the island, and in return, Toussaint made him governor of the south. In the decade that followed, he distinguished himself as a lieutenant of the black leader Toussaint Louverture. When Toussaint was abducted in 1802 by a French expedition sent by Napoleon Bonaparte to reconquer the colony, Dessalines at first submitted to the new regime. In 1803, however, when Napoleon declared his intention to reintroduce slavery, that all changed, battle ensued.
The former slaves were able to achieve freedom and equality by political and military force, when they defeated the French, the British, and the Spanish. Haitians defied all odds and fought courageously for their freedom; it was undoubtedly no easy task. Jean-Jacques Dessalines led the revolutionary army to victory. On Jan. 1, 1804, Dessalines declared Haitian independence, and recognized Haiti as the country that enabled them to become free and where they can live in prosperity. The Haitian Revolution was a complex series of conflicts and alliances between different countries, populations, classes and political interests. The Haitian Revolution and the actions of Toussaint Louverture led to the establishment of the first independent [freed] state in Latin America, challenging the European colonial order. The Haitian Revolution inspired other national and Creole revolutions across Latin America.