The Role Of Voodoo In Haiti

Approximately 90 percent of Haitians are Catholic and 10 % are Protestant (Jacobson, 2003). Within the Haitian-American community, however, Voodoo exists side by side with Christian faiths. Jacobson goes on to explain that “many Haitians see no contradiction in calling themselves Christians while engaging in Voodoo practices” (2003). In Haiti, Catholicism is highly ritualistic and religious practices combine the ancient rituals of African-based cultures with Western-based faith practices. Jacobson explains that “Voodoo cosmology is made up of a large numbers of supernatural spirits…these spirits are believed to have great influence on human beings and for that reason, they must be respected” (2003).

The Haitian Revolution was one of the most important slave revolts in Latin American history. It started a succession of other revolutionary wars in Latin America and ended both colonialism and imperialism in the Americas. The Haitian Revolution affected people from all social castes in Haiti including the indigenous natives, mestizos, mulattos and the Afro-Latin. The idea of starting a rebellion against France began with the colony’s white elite class seeking a capitalist market. These elites in the richest mining and plantation economies felt that the European governments were limiting their growth and restricting free trades. However, the Afro-Latin, mestizos and mulattos turned the Haitian Revolution into a war for equality and built a new state. The Haitian Revolution, with the support of it large slave population and lower class citizens, eliminated slavery and founded the Republic of Haiti. Tin this essay I will discuss how mestizos, mulattos and the Afro-Latin Americans population in Haiti participate in the fight for independence and how they creation of new republics.

Today whenever you look on the television, mainstream media showcases Haitians in a negative light, resulting to misleading stereotypes and accusations of Haiti and Haitians in general. They always appear to have skin dark as night or that Haitians are the great whisperers of voodoo and dark magic. Majority of their government is corrupt and unjust due to the unfairness of money distributed in the country and poverty rising every year. Most hurtful of them all, is Haitians are poor and live in shacks made out of aluminum sheets and tires held together by the AIDS virus. Even after the unfortunate earthquake that Haiti had encountered in 2010, people were still condemned Haitians and their country, but now with sympathy in their eyes. All

The word voodoo means spirit in the West African. It is a religion practiced by much Haitian living in Haiti as well as the Diaspora. For the majority of Haitians, it is a symbol of solidarity of how they stood up and fought for their rights and freedom. For others, it is a painful source of reminder of how their ancestors were cruelly and unjustly treated by the Europeans.Even though the slaves were forced to convert to the Roman Catholic Christianity by missionaries, they continue to practice their faith. As a result, the voodoo is born out of the intermingling of beliefs and practices of African culture and the Catholicism. Nowadays the voodoo plays important role in different integrals politically and socially.In 1676, when the French colonized this Island, they possessed vast land, fields, pastures and garden. They needed cheap labor for the grueling work, especially in those sugars plantations. The slave system has already existed in the 16th century.

Voodoo is an old religion that finds its roots in west Africa. Remnants of its physical history can be found throughout the West African Coast where major slave trading markets were located. An Example of this are locations contain trees of forgetting in which slaves were “Zombified” by administering herbs to make them more compliant. Today these historical sites draw tourist learning about the horrors of the slave trade Voodoo beliefs originated from African animist religions that predate Islam and Christian influences and were not understood by the European slave owners who forbid its practice. It created a fear in the Europeans and is misunderstood even today. Its travel to the Caribbean, Haiti and America had a lasting impact and is still practiced.

Do you know about a country in the western hemisphere that had revolutions for slave freedom, was discovered by Christopher Columbus, makes trades with the U.S.A, and has a primary religion that is voodoo? Well if you don’t that country is Haiti. Well Haiti has a very interesting and sad background, wars, hunger, natural disasters, and many more things. You will learn more if you read this.

The Haitians that practice Voodoo associate with the Jews because when the Haitians were African slaves, the Europeans expressly considered both Jews and Africans to be devil worshippers.

The culture of Haiti is a various mix of African and European elements due to the French colonization of Saint Dominguez. I chose to research this culture for two reason one reason being that I have a friend who is Haitian and I never understood why she did what she did, or even her mother. The second reason is because many people in Haiti is associated with voodoo, and that’s something I personally wouldn’t get to involved with due to my religious views. Throughout this essay we will see in detail the differences in culture from ours to theirs. We will learn about their primary language, religion, their different values and beliefs and last but not least their social practices. While reading on Haiti I started to appreciate their culture more due to the fact that know.

It has been almost 6 months now that my girlfriend and I came back from a trip to New Orleans. This is a town rich in history, amazing food, the locals were some of the friendliest people and the music of the city truly seemed to act as a heartbeat that gave the city life. However, something that truly caught my eye, were all the voodoo shops. One of their oldest cemeteries is home to the tomb of the “Voodoo Queen” Marie Laveau. Unfortunately when we went, they weren’t giving tours. When most in modern society most hear the word Voodoo; they probably think about what they’ve seen on movies… witch doctors, dolls that are used to curse Indiana Jones in the Temple of Doom or evil possession of people’s bodies through spirits. However, that really isn’t the case, for a religion that a lot of people really don’t know a lot about, the religion of Voodoo or Vodun. “The name was derived from the god Vodun of the West African Yoruba people who lived in 18th and 19th century Dahomey.” The African people were shipped as slaves to Haiti and other islands. Slaves practiced this religion but were also forced by the masters who owned them to practice Christianity. Which if you fast-forward to modern times, you will see that most adults in Haiti and some cities in the Southern States of North America not only still practice Voodoo but are also Roman Catholic.

What does the average American really know about the country, Haiti? Is the lifestyle all black magic, spells, and séances? Is this media portrayal of Voodoo the only way of life and what is Voodoo, any way? These questions come to mind when someone wants to know the truth about Haitian culture and life in Haiti. Haitian culture consists of deep rooted religious beliefs, music, and Haitian cuisine.

Many Haitians also still practice their native religion of voudou (“voodoo” in the west). So, while it is clear that European religions have persisted since the time of colonization, it is interesting that Haitians have also maintained their native beliefs. Some estimates of Haitians that practice voudou are as high as 90 percent.

     The Voodoo religion is one of the most, if not the most misconceived religions of our time. Often when Voodoo is mentioned, it is related to evil, black magic, devious sorcery, cannibalism, and harm. Although the Voodoo religion appears to the outsider as an illusion or falsehood, it has been an instrumental political force because it has helped the Haitians resist domination and form an identity of their own. Since the end of the 17th century, Haitian Voodoo has overcome every challenge it has been faced with and has endured. The religion is based on a polytheistic belief system and represents a significant portion of Haiti’s 8.3 million people. The engaging religion plays an important role in both the family

The Haitian Revolution is based on the political purpose that France had when they fought to possess Saint-Domingue (now called Haiti). France, like other empires at the time, was trying to extend its wealth and power. Therefore, possessing Haiti, having a lot of gold, sugar, coffee, indigo and others were one way to be strong and powerful. Being driven by the profits that Haiti were emanating, African slaves were continuously brought to Haiti, first to replace the Aboriginals that had died previously, but also to increase their profits. This led to the slaves outnumbering the French colonizers. Later on, the free people of color were demanding more right to the French government and after their refusal, the slaves and the free people of color revolted which led to the Haitian revolution (Simpsons 1942, 487). The French colonizers were already struggling about the equality between themselves because there was a hierarchy present within the White community. Moreover, what created a reaction to help slaves to revolt was the “religious ceremony performed at Bois Caïman by the Maroon voodoo priest Dutty Boukman, which was attended by representative slaves from several plantations” (Laguerre 1989, 1). Boukman called the help of the spirits to revolt against the white colonists. The revolution of Haiti in 1804 was a social and political uprising in the French Colony of Saint-Domingue. Voodoo rapidly became Haiti’s way out of slavery, as it helped them reunite together and gain the

Haiti was ranked 145 out of 169 countries on the UN Human Development Index, the lowest ranked country in the Western Hemisphere. More than 70% of Haiti’s population lives on less than $2 a day. Haiti has a population of 9.893.945 people, 95% of the population is black and 5% is mulatto and white, with a median age of 21.9 years old. The religious makeup of the country consists of 80% Roman

I'm sure before I talked about voodoo, you expected something totally different. I, myself, thought voodoo was actually all about black magic and evil spirits. However, voodoo is not actually negative. When the early Haitian slaves came over to different parts of the world, they also brought over their faith. However, because they were black and their religion was not recognized, it was prejudged as evil. The priests were known as witchdoctors, the Loa were thought to be evil when in reality, the