Haiti’s political and economic problems are of course rooted in its exploitative treatment by the US going back decades and more (How US aid failed Haiti, The long read, 11 October). However, since 1990, in both elections and in huge popular demonstrations, Haitians have expressed their desire to be led by Jean-Bertrand Aristide – a sensible, conscientious humanitarian, and democratic reformer and a supporter of the liberation theology movement. He has been overthrown as leader and exiled twice by pro-US local elites because the US fears his influence might initiate a regional domino effect; this explains why Aristide continues to be demeaned by conservative sources in the US. Jacob Kushner’s article attributes Haiti’s woes more prominently to the philanthropy of Bill and Hilary Clinton than even the country’s disastrous 2010 earthquake. More remarkably, the article is without a single mention of Jean-Bertrand Aristide [see footnote].
Dr Kevin Bannon
London
• This footnote was added on 16 October 2019: while the name of Jean-Bertrand Aristide did not appear in the article mentioned in the letter above, the article did refer to the ousting of Aristide by military coup in 1991 and his reinstatement in 1994 by the US under Bill Clinton.
