Black Internationalism and the Colonial Challenges Facing Haiti and Venezuela

Jeanette Charles - Haiti Action Committee

Solidarity as defined by President Aristide takes root in the African philosophy of Ubuntu, Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu: “a person is a person through other human beings. A person becomes a person through the community. A person is a person when she/he treats others well….Ubuntu is the source of all philosophy grounded in solidarity, cooperation, unity, respect, dignity, justice, liberty and love of the other.” – Jean-Bertrand Aristide, Haïti-Haitii?: Philosophical Reflections for Mental Decolonization.

“Haiti has no debt with Venezuela, just the opposite: Venezuela has a historical debt with that nation, with that people for whom we feel not pity but rather admiration, and we share their faith, their hope.” – Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez upon absolving Haiti of all financial debt in the wake of the 2010 earthquake.

After 35 years of incarceration, political prisoner and freedom fighter Oscar López Rivera was released in 2017. One of his revolutionary lessons urges us to recognize that “colonialism is the problem” we continue to face today. While he specifically referred to Puerto Rico and its colonial status, his reflection is applicable to anywhere in the world devastated by exploitation, occupation, and invasion at the hands of European colonialism and US imperialism. As such, we can examine the current and historical challenges facing both Venezuela and Haiti, as well as their complicated relationship, as cases that expose the open wounds and lasting effects of colonialism and counter-revolutionary attacks against revolutionary processes committed to liberation and the reconfiguration of global power.

Deforestation Triggered Mass Extinction of Endemic Animal Species in Haiti

Temple University College of Science and Technology

The loss of more than 99% of primary, virgin forests in Haiti is triggering an ongoing mass extinction of reptiles, amphibians, and other species. This deforestation is the main threat to species globally, more than disease, climate change or invasive species.
Virgin primary forest on Haiti’s Massif de la Hotte near Macaya Peak. Credit: Claudio Contreras

Trump’s Economic Sanctions Have Cost Venezuela About $6bn Since August 2017

Joe Emersberger - Venezuelanalysis

The following piece by Canadian political analyst Joe Emersberger was written in response to a recent articleby Torino Capital Chief Economist Francisco Rodriguez. 

Rodriguez is well-known as an outspoken critic of the Maduro government, but in his recent article he recognizes that Washington’s “misguided” sanctions are exacerbating falling oil production in Venezuela and as such, pejoratively affecting general living standards.