Parsley Massacre
Encyclopedia
In October 1937, Dominican
President Rafael Trujillo ordered the execution of the Haitian population living in the borderlands with Haiti
. The violence resulted in the killing of 20,000On October 2, 1937, Trujillo had ordered 20,000 Haitian cane workers executed because they could not roll the "R" in perejil the Spanish word for parsley. pg 182anyone of African descent found incapable of pronouncing correctly, that is, to the complete satisfaction of the sadistic examiners, became a condemned individual. This holocaust is recorded as having a death toll reaching thirty thousand innocent souls, Haitians as well as Dominicans. Haitian civilians during approximately five days. This later became known as the Parsley Massacre from the shibboleth
that Trujillo had his soldiers apply to determine whether or not those living on the border were native Dominicans who spoke Spanish fluently. Soldiers would hold up a sprig of parsley
, ask "What is this?", and assume that those who could not pronounce the Spanish word perejil were Haitian; both French and Haitian Creole realize the r as an uvular approximant and their speakers can have great difficulties with the alveolar tap
or trill
of Spanish. In the Dominican Republic
, the massacre
is known as El Corte ("the cutting").
, had made his intentions for the Haitian community clear in a short speech given at a dance held in his honor on 2 October 1937 in Dajabón, stating:Trujillo’s actions were reportedly in response to information regarding Haitians stealing cattle and crops from Dominican residents of the borderlands; therefore, the annihilation of an estimated 20,000 living within the Dominican border was clearly a direct order of Trujillo. For approximately five days, from 2 October 1937 to 8 October 1937, Haitians were killed with guns, machetes, clubs and knives by Dominican troops, civilians and local political authorities or “alcaldes pedáneos”, some while trying to flee to Haiti
by crossing the Rio Artibonito, which has often been the site of bloody conflict between the two nations. Language is the only differentiating feature, and Dominican troops used the Haitians' inability to pronouncethe trilled Spanish "r" in perejil,the word for parsley as the main reason for killing them.
The Dominican Republic
, the former Spanish colony of Santo Domingo, resides on the eastern portion of the island of Hispaniola
and occupies two-thirds of the island's land while having just five-million inhabitants. In contrast, Haiti, the former French colony of Saint Domingue
, residing on the western portion of the island, occupies the remaining one-third of the landmass, and is very heavily settled with an estimated “500 persons per square mile.” This has resulted in many Haitians being forced to settle lands that were “too mountainous, too eroded or too dry for rewarding farm production”. However, instead of staying on lands incapable of supporting them, many Haitians began to migrate onto Dominican soil where land hunger was low. While Haitians benefited by gaining farm land, Dominicans in the borderlands subsisted mostly on agriculture, and benefited from the ease of exchange of goods with Haitian markets. Due to inadequate roadways connecting the borderlands to major cities, “communication with Dominican markets was so limited that the small commercial surplus of the frontier slowly moved toward Haiti”.
This posed a possible threat to Trujillo’s regime, because of long-standing border disputes between the two nations: if large numbers of Haitian immigrants began to occupy the less densely populated Dominican borderlands, the Haitian government could have made a case for claiming part of the Dominican Republic's land. Additionally, loose borders allowed contraband to pass freely and without taxes between nations, thus depriving the Dominican Republic of tariff revenue. Furthermore, the Dominican government saw the loose borderlands as a liability — in terms of the formation of revolutionary groups which could flee across the border with ease, while at the same time amassing both weapons and followers.
sources that "bullets from Krag
rifles were found in Haitian bodies, and only Dominican soldiers had access to this type of rifle”. Therefore, the Haitian Massacre, which is still referred to as el corte (the cutting) by Dominicans and as kouto-a (the knife) by Haitians, was 'a calculated action on the part of Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo to homogenize the furthest stretches of the country in order to bring the region into the social, political and economic fold', and rid his "republic" of Haitians.
Thereafter, Trujillo began to develop the borderlands to link them more closely with urban areas. These areas were modernized with the addition of modern hospitals, schools, political headquarters, military barracks and housing projects, as well as a highway to connect the borderlands to major cities. Additionally, after 1937, quotas restricted the number of Haitians permitted to enter the Dominican Republic
, and a strict and often discriminatory border policy was enacted; Haitians continued to be deported and killed in southern frontier regions, while refugees died of exposure, malaria and influenza.
Of the tens of thousands of ethnic Haitians who were killed, a majority were born in the Dominican Republic and belonged to well-established Haitian communities within the borderlands, thus making them citizens.
In the end, American President Franklin D. Roosevelt
, and Haitian President Sténio Vincent
sought reparations of $750,000, of which only $525,000 (US$ in ) were ever paid: 30 dollars per victim, of which only 2 cents were given to survivors, due to corruption in the Haitian bureaucracy.
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
President Rafael Trujillo ordered the execution of the Haitian population living in the borderlands with Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
. The violence resulted in the killing of 20,000On October 2, 1937, Trujillo had ordered 20,000 Haitian cane workers executed because they could not roll the "R" in perejil the Spanish word for parsley. pg 182anyone of African descent found incapable of pronouncing correctly, that is, to the complete satisfaction of the sadistic examiners, became a condemned individual. This holocaust is recorded as having a death toll reaching thirty thousand innocent souls, Haitians as well as Dominicans. Haitian civilians during approximately five days. This later became known as the Parsley Massacre from the shibboleth
Shibboleth
A shibboleth is a custom, principle, or belief distinguishing a particular class or group of people, especially a long-standing one regarded as outmoded or no longer important...
that Trujillo had his soldiers apply to determine whether or not those living on the border were native Dominicans who spoke Spanish fluently. Soldiers would hold up a sprig of parsley
Parsley
Parsley is a species of Petroselinum in the family Apiaceae, native to the central Mediterranean region , naturalized elsewhere in Europe, and widely cultivated as an herb, a spice and a vegetable.- Description :Garden parsley is a bright green hairless biennial herbaceous plant in temperate...
, ask "What is this?", and assume that those who could not pronounce the Spanish word perejil were Haitian; both French and Haitian Creole realize the r as an uvular approximant and their speakers can have great difficulties with the alveolar tap
Alveolar tap
The alveolar flap or tap is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents dental, alveolar, and postalveolar flaps is .-Definition:...
or trill
Alveolar trill
The alveolar trill is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents dental, alveolar, and postalveolar trills is , and the equivalent X-SAMPA symbol is r. It is commonly called the rolled R, rolling R, or trilled R...
of Spanish. In the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
, the massacre
Massacre
A massacre is an event with a heavy death toll.Massacre may also refer to:-Entertainment:*Massacre , a DC Comics villain*Massacre , a 1932 drama film starring Richard Barthelmess*Massacre, a 1956 Western starring Dane Clark...
is known as El Corte ("the cutting").
Events
Trujillo, a proponent of antihaitianismoAntihaitianismo
Antihaitianismo is a racist bias against Haitians and descendants of Haitians by Dominicans.- Description :Antihaitianismo can be traced back to a policy of racial segregation instituted by the Spaniards in the colony of Captaincy General of Santo Domingo .Human Rights Watch has stated in their...
, had made his intentions for the Haitian community clear in a short speech given at a dance held in his honor on 2 October 1937 in Dajabón, stating:Trujillo’s actions were reportedly in response to information regarding Haitians stealing cattle and crops from Dominican residents of the borderlands; therefore, the annihilation of an estimated 20,000 living within the Dominican border was clearly a direct order of Trujillo. For approximately five days, from 2 October 1937 to 8 October 1937, Haitians were killed with guns, machetes, clubs and knives by Dominican troops, civilians and local political authorities or “alcaldes pedáneos”, some while trying to flee to Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
by crossing the Rio Artibonito, which has often been the site of bloody conflict between the two nations. Language is the only differentiating feature, and Dominican troops used the Haitians' inability to pronouncethe trilled Spanish "r" in perejil,the word for parsley as the main reason for killing them.
Contributing factors
The Dominican Republic
History of the Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic occupies the eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antilles.Successive waves of Arawak migrants, moving northward from the Orinoco delta in South America, settled the islands of the Caribbean. Around AD 600, the Taíno Indians, an Arawak culture,...
, the former Spanish colony of Santo Domingo, resides on the eastern portion of the island of Hispaniola
Hispaniola
Hispaniola is a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The island is located between the islands of Cuba to the west and Puerto Rico to the east, within the hurricane belt...
and occupies two-thirds of the island's land while having just five-million inhabitants. In contrast, Haiti, the former French colony of Saint Domingue
Saint-Domingue
The labour for these plantations was provided by an estimated 790,000 African slaves . Between 1764 and 1771, the average annual importation of slaves varied between 10,000-15,000; by 1786 it was about 28,000, and from 1787 onward, the colony received more than 40,000 slaves a year...
, residing on the western portion of the island, occupies the remaining one-third of the landmass, and is very heavily settled with an estimated “500 persons per square mile.” This has resulted in many Haitians being forced to settle lands that were “too mountainous, too eroded or too dry for rewarding farm production”. However, instead of staying on lands incapable of supporting them, many Haitians began to migrate onto Dominican soil where land hunger was low. While Haitians benefited by gaining farm land, Dominicans in the borderlands subsisted mostly on agriculture, and benefited from the ease of exchange of goods with Haitian markets. Due to inadequate roadways connecting the borderlands to major cities, “communication with Dominican markets was so limited that the small commercial surplus of the frontier slowly moved toward Haiti”.
This posed a possible threat to Trujillo’s regime, because of long-standing border disputes between the two nations: if large numbers of Haitian immigrants began to occupy the less densely populated Dominican borderlands, the Haitian government could have made a case for claiming part of the Dominican Republic's land. Additionally, loose borders allowed contraband to pass freely and without taxes between nations, thus depriving the Dominican Republic of tariff revenue. Furthermore, the Dominican government saw the loose borderlands as a liability — in terms of the formation of revolutionary groups which could flee across the border with ease, while at the same time amassing both weapons and followers.
Repercussions
Despite attempts to blame Dominican citizens, it has been confirmed by U.S.United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
sources that "bullets from Krag
Krąg
Krąg may refer to the following places:*Krąg, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship *Krąg, Pomeranian Voivodeship *Krąg, West Pomeranian Voivodeship...
rifles were found in Haitian bodies, and only Dominican soldiers had access to this type of rifle”. Therefore, the Haitian Massacre, which is still referred to as el corte (the cutting) by Dominicans and as kouto-a (the knife) by Haitians, was 'a calculated action on the part of Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo to homogenize the furthest stretches of the country in order to bring the region into the social, political and economic fold', and rid his "republic" of Haitians.
Thereafter, Trujillo began to develop the borderlands to link them more closely with urban areas. These areas were modernized with the addition of modern hospitals, schools, political headquarters, military barracks and housing projects, as well as a highway to connect the borderlands to major cities. Additionally, after 1937, quotas restricted the number of Haitians permitted to enter the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
, and a strict and often discriminatory border policy was enacted; Haitians continued to be deported and killed in southern frontier regions, while refugees died of exposure, malaria and influenza.
Of the tens of thousands of ethnic Haitians who were killed, a majority were born in the Dominican Republic and belonged to well-established Haitian communities within the borderlands, thus making them citizens.
In the end, American President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
, and Haitian President Sténio Vincent
Sténio Vincent
Sténio Joseph Vincent was President of Haiti from November 18, 1930 to May 15, 1941.In October 1930 Haitians chose a national assembly for the first time since 1918, which elected Vincent as President of Haiti...
sought reparations of $750,000, of which only $525,000 (US$ in ) were ever paid: 30 dollars per victim, of which only 2 cents were given to survivors, due to corruption in the Haitian bureaucracy.
See also
- Dollar DiplomacyDollar DiplomacyDollar Diplomacy is a term used to describe the effort of the United States—particularly under President William Howard Taft—to further its aims in Latin America and East Asia through use of its economic power by guaranteeing loans made to foreign countries. The term was originally coined by...
- History of HaitiHistory of HaitiThe recorded history of Haiti began on December 5, 1492 when the European navigator Christopher Columbus happened upon a large island in the region of the western Atlantic Ocean that later came to be known as the Caribbean. It was inhabited by the Taíno, an Arawakan people, who variously called...
- History of the Dominican RepublicHistory of the Dominican RepublicThe Dominican Republic occupies the eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antilles.Successive waves of Arawak migrants, moving northward from the Orinoco delta in South America, settled the islands of the Caribbean. Around AD 600, the Taíno Indians, an Arawak culture,...
- List of massacres in Haiti
- List of massacres in the Dominican Republic
- United States occupation of Haiti
- United States occupation of the Dominican Republic