Inside the Kingdom of Hayti, ‘the Wakanda of the Western Hemisphere’

[Disir]

Marvel’s blockbuster “Black Panther,” which recently became the first superhero drama to be nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award, takes place in the secret African Kingdom of Wakanda. The Black Panther, also known as T’Challa, rules over this imaginary empire – a refuge from the colonialists and capitalists who have historically impoverished the real continent of Africa.

But fans of the box-office hit might not realize that they don’t need to look to the make-believe world of the Black Panther to find a modern-day black kingdom that aspired to be a safe haven from racism and inequality.

The fictional kingdom has a real-life corollary in the historic Kingdom of Hayti, which existed as a sort of Wakanda of the Western Hemisphere from 1811 to 1820.

The Haitian Revolution led to the creation of the first free black state in the Americas. But the world was hardly expecting a former enslaved man named Henry Christophe to make himself the king of it.

Media accounts from the era, some of which I’ve collected in a digital archive, serve as a window into a brief period of time when the kingdom stood as a beacon of black freedom in a world of slavery. Yet, like Wakanda, the Kingdom of Hayti wasn’t a utopia for everyone.

A new kind of kingdom
Inside the Kingdom of Hayti, 'the Wakanda of the Western Hemisphere'

An interesting article on Haiti. That digital archive is kind of cool but the majority of it is in French.

 

[Marion Morrison]

Marvel’s blockbuster “Black Panther,” which recently became the first superhero drama to be nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award, takes place in the secret African Kingdom of Wakanda. The Black Panther, also known as T’Challa, rules over this imaginary empire – a refuge from the colonialists and capitalists who have historically impoverished the real continent of Africa.

But fans of the box-office hit might not realize that they don’t need to look to the make-believe world of the Black Panther to find a modern-day black kingdom that aspired to be a safe haven from racism and inequality.

The fictional kingdom has a real-life corollary in the historic Kingdom of Hayti, which existed as a sort of Wakanda of the Western Hemisphere from 1811 to 1820.

The Haitian Revolution led to the creation of the first free black state in the Americas. But the world was hardly expecting a former enslaved man named Henry Christophe to make himself the king of it.

Media accounts from the era, some of which I’ve collected in a digital archive, serve as a window into a brief period of time when the kingdom stood as a beacon of black freedom in a world of slavery. Yet, like Wakanda, the Kingdom of Hayti wasn’t a utopia for everyone.

A new kind of kingdom
Inside the Kingdom of Hayti, 'the Wakanda of the Western Hemisphere'

An interesting article on Haiti. That digital archive is kind of cool but the majority of it is in French.

Haitians made a deal with the Devil to overthrow their oppressors, and are still paying for it.

Haiti is the ultimate shithole.

 

[Disir]

Marvel’s blockbuster “Black Panther,” which recently became the first superhero drama to be nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award, takes place in the secret African Kingdom of Wakanda. The Black Panther, also known as T’Challa, rules over this imaginary empire – a refuge from the colonialists and capitalists who have historically impoverished the real continent of Africa.

But fans of the box-office hit might not realize that they don’t need to look to the make-believe world of the Black Panther to find a modern-day black kingdom that aspired to be a safe haven from racism and inequality.

The fictional kingdom has a real-life corollary in the historic Kingdom of Hayti, which existed as a sort of Wakanda of the Western Hemisphere from 1811 to 1820.

The Haitian Revolution led to the creation of the first free black state in the Americas. But the world was hardly expecting a former enslaved man named Henry Christophe to make himself the king of it.

Media accounts from the era, some of which I’ve collected in a digital archive, serve as a window into a brief period of time when the kingdom stood as a beacon of black freedom in a world of slavery. Yet, like Wakanda, the Kingdom of Hayti wasn’t a utopia for everyone.

A new kind of kingdom
Inside the Kingdom of Hayti, 'the Wakanda of the Western Hemisphere'

An interesting article on Haiti. That digital archive is kind of cool but the majority of it is in French.

Haitians made a deal with the Devil to overthrow their oppressors, and are still paying for it.

Haiti is the ultimate shithole.

It would be less of a shithole if the powers that be stopped exploiting the hell out of it. Rigging the elections and things of that nature.

 

[Marion Morrison]

Marvel’s blockbuster “Black Panther,” which recently became the first superhero drama to be nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award, takes place in the secret African Kingdom of Wakanda. The Black Panther, also known as T’Challa, rules over this imaginary empire – a refuge from the colonialists and capitalists who have historically impoverished the real continent of Africa.

But fans of the box-office hit might not realize that they don’t need to look to the make-believe world of the Black Panther to find a modern-day black kingdom that aspired to be a safe haven from racism and inequality.

The fictional kingdom has a real-life corollary in the historic Kingdom of Hayti, which existed as a sort of Wakanda of the Western Hemisphere from 1811 to 1820.

The Haitian Revolution led to the creation of the first free black state in the Americas. But the world was hardly expecting a former enslaved man named Henry Christophe to make himself the king of it.

Media accounts from the era, some of which I’ve collected in a digital archive, serve as a window into a brief period of time when the kingdom stood as a beacon of black freedom in a world of slavery. Yet, like Wakanda, the Kingdom of Hayti wasn’t a utopia for everyone.

A new kind of kingdom
Inside the Kingdom of Hayti, 'the Wakanda of the Western Hemisphere'

An interesting article on Haiti. That digital archive is kind of cool but the majority of it is in French.

Haitians made a deal with the Devil to overthrow their oppressors, and are still paying for it.

Haiti is the ultimate shithole.

It would be less of a shithole if the powers that be stopped exploiting the hell out of it. Rigging the elections and things of that nature.

That may be true. Haiti has been badly exploited.

Bill and Hillary exploited Haiti.

Sugar Companies exploited Haiti.

Would not be surprised if Georgia-Pacific did, too.

 

[Sunni Man]

Black people seem incapable of ruling themselves and need white people to organize and lead them.

Almost every black majority country in Africa is ruled by a corrupt dictator who steals the wealth, while the citizens live in poverty. ...

 

[Disir]

Black people seem incapable of ruling themselves and need white people to organize and lead them.

Almost every black majority country in Africa is ruled by a corrupt dictator who steals the wealth, while the citizens live in poverty. ...

That's like saying the countries in the Middle East need a western superpower to oversee things. It's real easy to do a regime change by picking one disenfranchised group and letting them sell their soul to the highest bidder to obtain power in exchange for exploiting their resources.

 

[Marion Morrison]

Black people seem incapable of ruling themselves and need white people to organize and lead them.

Almost every black majority country in Africa is ruled by a corrupt dictator who steals the wealth, while the citizens live in poverty. ...

That's like saying the countries in the Middle East need a western superpower to oversee things. It's real easy to do a regime change by picking one disenfranchised group and letting them sell their soul to the highest bidder to obtain power.

Let's revisit this in 1 year and discuss South Africa.

 

[Sunni Man]

That's like saying the countries in the Middle East need a western superpower to oversee things. It's real easy to do a regime change by picking one disenfranchised group and letting them sell their soul to the highest bidder to obtain power in exchange for exploiting their resources.

Difference is the ME countries have western nations using military force to impose their will over the region and its people.

Whereas, the black African countries have shed their white colonial overlords, only to discover they have no idea how to successfully organize and run a country. ...