Introduction
The Haitian Revolution that started in 1791 is the largest and the most fruitful known revolution ever done by black slaves against their masters. The slaves were brutally tortured and forced to work on the sugarcane and coffee plantations of the white masters. The slaves had to work day and night in the farms under brutal supervision, where the whites showed no respect and expected more from the slaves. It was not long before Toussaint Louverture, a black freedom fighter, led an “army” of slaves to demonstrate for their rights. The revolution became successful, and the black slaves were granted freedom and given equal rights with the whites.
The revolution brought changes not only to the blacks that were involved in the slavery but also long term changes. The generations that followed gained respect and realized their economic and social growth free from forced work. The Haitians gained international recognition and respect from their ally countries. The revolution worked because there was unity and vocal leaders who were brave enough and with better ideas to motivate the masses.
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Reflections and Relation of the Haitian Revolution to the Studies
Revolution is a process that is realized when charismatic leaders mobilize the masses to stand up for their rights and fight for freedom. It is only these people who are bestowed with exceptional capabilities which can provide leadership and act as unifying factor. Those who demonstrated this leadership quality include Toussaint, Lenin, Rafael Correa and Evo Morales among others. Such leaders do not emerge just on mere calm situations, but they are products of social situations that face the society which seems helpless and cannot stand on its own. Not all the revolutions have ended successfully. In some cases, revolutions occur without the charismatic leaders and ends due to lack of a leader that can unify them. The example of the revolution that failed is the Mexican Revolution of 1968.
The mobilization of masses for the purpose of self-defense is the major driving force for taking power in any revolution. The Haitian revolution was successful because Toussaint was able to mobilize the black revolutionary army. The army that he managed to command gave him a position of power and international recognition by other countries such as France and the society.
The democratic values have been shaped by the movements that are formed as a result of the colonized population opposing the domination. In the mid-1970s, there was a tendency in Black Nationalist thought to dismiss Western values profoundly and to change to African qualities for an excellent and scholarly foundation, and this radical dismissal has been an auxiliary inclination in the Third World developments. The overwhelming tendency has been the assignment of Western democratic values, changing them to adjust to the colonial situations. This has been reflected in the San Domingo, where the slave uprisings were animated by the French Revolution, and where Toussaint would build up a dream for the future improvement of the country on an establishment of Jacobin democratic values.
Bibliography
Ruffkock. 2012. "PBS Egalite For All: Toussaint Louverture And The Haitian Revolution (2009)". Youtube . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOGVgQYX6SU#action=share.
