The Big Truck That Went By: How the World Came to Save Haiti and Left Behind a Disaster

Pétionville, a wealthy suburb of Port-au-Prince, represents the stark divide between Haiti's haves and have-nots. Successful businessmen, politicians, and diplomats reside in the suburb south of the capital while the vast majority of Haitians eke out a living in the densely packed inner city or the outlying slums. Like any exclusive, gated community, Pétionville is a bubble shielding its residents from the destitution of the rest of the city. Not surprisingly, in the wake of the earthquake, much of the disaster relief focused on high-end businesses and hotels while the neediest areas were neglected. In an effort to engender positive media coverage for the outside world, relief agencies strove to create a narrative favorable to the diplomats since they were the ones responsible for foreign assistance. 

The native language of Haiti, Kreyòl is a hybrid of French and the native languages of the former Africans enslaved by the French colonizers. Kreyòl is a symbol of Haiti's past as a slave colony and a testament to those slaves who strove to maintain a connection to their native land. Languages are identity markers, and Haiti's native tongue is an ever-present reminder of the country's dual history: a European colony under the brutal control of people who placed profit over human life; and also a country that threw off its shackles and became the first former slave colony to gain independence.

The Camp Corail development represents the promise and the challenges facing post-quake Haiti. The intentions behind it are earnest—to create a permanent housing development in place of the temporary and unsanitary settlement camps—but its implementation is marred by the usual corruption and political infighting. The site, whose ownership is a clear conflict of interest, has problems from the start, but the potential for profit obscures all else. Ultimately, the site is abandoned. The lure of industry and jobs allows those in charge to pass the buck, hoping beyond realistic hope that somehow everything will work out in the end.