How HAITI Helped Create the United States of America

Jean Jacques Dessalines

Many times you hear about George Washington and the forefathers of the American Revolution but rarely do you hear about sweats of the Haitian slaves who helped finance the American war of Independence.

Who would've thought that a 7.0 magnitude earthquake would bring this topic back to the surface?

Did Haiti help create the United States of America?

Here are some excerpts from the New York Times article:

"The United States owes a debt for its founding to what is now Haiti..."

"...the prosperous French colony [Haiti] was a vital transit hub for munitions and an economic engine behind French loans to the American cause."

"The United States might never have come into existence were it not for Saint Domingue, Haiti's French predecessor"

"France supported the American Revolution in part to protect its island jewel [Haiti] from a British takeover"

It was the "vast sums pouring into France from Saint Domingue [Haiti] at exactly the same time [The American Revolution that] made foreign aid to the New World [The United States] a distinctly more attractive option... "

"...the entire enterprise rested on the backs of the men and women whose labor powered it [The Haitian People]"

One interesting comment about the article is that of JL which states:

"Let's not forget that the Haitian revolution led directly to France selling the Louisiana Territories to the US - a favor we returned by embargoing the newly independent nation [Haiti]. So we have a double, no triple debt to Haiti."

Question:

How much does the United States really owe to Haiti?

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