Le glissement de la nation, 1939

Description

New edition of work originally published in 1939 by Sténio Vincent (1874-1959), President of Haiti from 1930 to 1941. He was chosen by a national assembly (first time since 1918). He ran a nationalist campaign based on his fierce opposition to the American occupation of the Haiti. After US Marines left in 1934, Vincent turned to a more authoritarian leadership style persecuting and imprisoning leading dissidents such as Jacques Roumain and Max Hudicourt. He later became "one of the staunchest pro-Americans in the hemisphere." In October 1937 troops and police from the Dominican Republic massacred thousands of Haitian laborers on the border. As reports of the slaughter swiftly reached Port-au-Prince, Vincent restricted local press coverage for fear of riots and since he had enjoyed a cooperative relationship with and financial support from the government of Dominican President Rafael Trujillo. The news could not be contained, however, and protests broke out. With mounting opposition, Vincent did not run for re-election in 1941.