"Empire's Laboratory": How 2004 U.S.-Backed Coup Destabilized Haiti & Led to Current Crisis

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Caribbean leaders are holding an emergency meeting in Jamaica today to discuss the crisis in Haiti, where armed groups are calling for the resignation of unelected Prime Minister Ariel Henry. Haiti is under a state of emergency, with tens of thousands displaced amid the fighting, and United Nations officials warn the country's health system is nearing collapse. Ariel Henry was appointed prime minister after the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, but he is currently stranded outside the country after a trip to Kenya, where he was seeking a U.N.-backed security force to help him maintain power. For more, we speak with Haitian American scholar Jemima Pierre, who says the unrest in Haiti today can be traced to decisions made two decades ago by the United States and other outside powers. "The root of this crisis is not last week, it's not this week, it's not even Ariel Henry. But we have to go back to 2004 with the coup-d'état," says Pierre. She adds that because successive security plans have been sanctioned by the United Nations Security Council, "the whole world is participating in the occupation of Haiti unwittingly."

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