Getting Haiti Out of the Crisis

Jerry Tardieu is a congressman for the district of Petion-Ville, Haiti, and is the minority leader of the Haitian lower Chamber. His legislative agenda includes a legal battle for the Haitian diaspora to play a greater role in the country’s political affairs. Before being elected, Tardieu was an entrepreneur involved in Haiti’s economic, social, academic, and political life. He has served as the CEO of numerous Haitian enterprises operating in various sectors ranging from the leather industry to real estate and hospitality fields. He previously authored several books on Haiti including Haiti: l’Avenir en Face/Haiti: Facing the Future; Investir et s’Investir en Haïti: Un Acte de Foi/Investing in Haiti: An Act of Faith, a bestseller in Haiti. In Dans l’enfer du parlement/In the Hell of Parliament, Tardieu recounts his experience representing Pétion-Ville in the last legislature while offering information about critical issues and strategies for taking informed action. Dans l’enfer is a how-to book aimed at those interested in active politics who want to bring positive change to Haiti.

Rose Bleus is the assistant principal at Paul L. Dunbar K-8 Center. She has been an educator at Miami-Dade County Public Schools for more than 14 years. She is also the director of Sosyete Koukouy of Miami, an organization dedicated to preserving Haitian culture in the United States through education, arts, and cultural presentations.

Victor “Master Ben” Benoît is a co-founder of the Collège Jean Price-Mars, where he still teaches history and social science. He is also a social democrat activist, the founder of various political parties and civic movements, and the former Minister of National Education and Social Affairs for Haiti. He has devoted his life to fighting against dictatorship and social exclusion to promote a democratic system based on social justice. In Batailles électorales et crises politiques en Haïti (1807-1957)/Electoral Battles and Political Crises in Haiti (1807-1957)(C3Editions), he traces the political and social vulnerability of a country in the chokehold of political crises and electoral battles, starting with its independence in 1804 and ending with President François “Papa Doc” Duvalier’s ascent to power in 1957. Benoît examines the critical barriers to effective governance in Haiti, including infighting, lack of electoral accountability, class resentments, and ideological conflicts. He establishes a connection between the electoral battles and the political crises and presents poor governance as the first explanatory factor for a dysfunctional Haitian society.