14077: Saint-Vil: White man's burden theme in Haiti "mainstream" reporting (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Jean Saint-Vil <jafrikayiti@hotmail.com>


As we become more and more aware of the tremendous power resting in the hands
of foreign “news people” who continue to cook up stories about Haiti however
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As we continue to notice how these “stories” full of errors, omissions and
outright lies as they too often are, always manage to conveniently discard or
whitewash all U.S., French, Canadian, EU complicity in the violence which is
engulfing Haiti but instead present the story in a way which supports the basic
myth of “the white man’s burden”.



It was refreshing to fall on this frank no non-sense exchange between a
well-articulated Haitian woman and a rather straight talking prototype of the
white man who happens to still hold inappropriate and uncontrolled influence
over Haitian affairs.



As, on a daily basis, I read on this list the almost comical exchanges between
foreign journalists and activists who try to downplay misrepresentation of
Haitian reality in their reporting, I ask myself do they realise how incredibly
irresponsible they are being with the undeserved power they hold in their
hands?



What do these “reporters” think about Marguerite Laurent’s assessment that:



“Haitian fratricide doesn’t fuel itself. White-US racism and governmental
policies animates it, maintains it, keeps it running and stands guard against
the Haitian women or men who tries to redress our very own pathologies.”



Then, I ask them, why is it that this historically well-grounded aspect of
Haiti’s relationship with white-dominated nations never show up in their
reports? It certainly deserves more ink than weird allegations of Osama Ben
Laden sympathy among Haitian masses. It is all over the place in Carnival
songs, it is in street demonstrations before U.S. embassies, it is in the
history books, on the lips of Haitian officials, including the Haitian
President - as recently as this past month, it is on the web....yet it is
consitently bypassed? Who declared this subject taboo and why?



What do our reporters think about Marguerite’s conclusion that:



“it’s us HAITIANS who are burdened by US false generosity, benevolence, and the
white man’s “I’ve-got-to-be-a-hero-complex.”



Do they recognize any truth in this comment? Are they too close to the reality
being described to analyze it? Are they in conflict of interest?



Let us leave the superficial reports alone for a moments

. Let us get to the real deal. Can we handle the truth people?



In any case, I highly recommend to members of this list that they take a look
at this very telling exchange between Marguerite Laurent and STU (self-claimed
former white American mercenary gone to Haiti to uproot Duvalier). It can be
found in the “let’s talk” section of www.windowsonhaiti.com - in responses to
the article title “To the little girl in the yellow Sunday dress”.



Jafrikayiti

“Lafimen (laverite) pa eseye toufe l, pou se pa limenm ki toufe ou !”
(try not to choke the smoke, so you don't end up being the one choked)



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