This month, we remember Jean-Jacques Dessalines, an imperfect man but a hero who deserves our admiration and honor. Hero of the Haitian Revolution and first at the helm of the world’s first Black Republic, Dessalines was assassinated 211 years ago on October 17, 1806, leaving the work of building the new nation unfinished.
We at the Haitian Institute of Atlanta call upon all Haitians to join us in taking up the burden of Dessalines’ sacrifice. Let this be a time of research, reflection, and action in the form of a renewed commitment to the ideals of the world’s first successful slave revolt. What are you willing to sacrifice for a prosperous and just Haiti?
Here is a helpful article by Dr. Julia Gaffield of Georgia State University to help us remember this formerly enslaved man who shed his blood and ushered in the most radical approach to freedom the modern world has ever seen.
Papa Desalin, nou di w mèsi. Ede n konprann sakrifis ou te fè pou nou. Bann kouraj pou n swiv egzanp ou!