Haiti and the Dominican Republic: An Island-wide History

The island of Hispaniola—collectively comprising the nations of Haiti and the Dominican Republic—established the second independent space in the Western Hemisphere and was the first Black and Afro-Latino colony to gain self-rule from European colonization and abolish slavery. This course introduces students to the island's dynamic history, culture, and politics, from precontact indigenous Ayiti, to the first site of colonization in the Americas, to the island-wide struggle against slavery known as the Haitian Revolution, to episodes of U.S. occupation and dictatorship in the 20th century, all the way to the 2010 earthquake and 2013 Haitian-Dominican immigration crisis.