Haiti, like the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Singapore, was a colonial state that gained its independence in 1804. Haiti was a ground-breaking country, the first country founded by former slaves when the major powers of the world, including Britain and the United States, were still using slavery as their main workforce. The revolution for freedom and independence was a moment of unity among the newly freed people of Haiti, formerly named Hispaniola (The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2017). Unfortunately, the prosperity of their independence declined as existing problems worsened and new problems arose.

While there have been a multitude of factors contributing to the living conditions of Haiti today, many of those factors could have been mitigated or prevented through effective leadership. To understand the role leadership has played in Haiti, it is important to revisit the first effective Haitian leader: Toussaint L’Ouverture originally named François-Dominque Toussaint, was born a slave in 1743 and has been revered as the leader of a revolution that lead to the freeing slaves across the land and establishing a freed-slave colony (The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2019b). L’Ouverture’s story is one of resilience, strength, and resolve. He was educated by his father, also a slave, to speak and write French. His use of the French language as well as his commitment to working won him favor with his plantation master and he moved up ranks until reaching the position of steward and eventually a freed man. His position as steward allowed him to test the boundaries of leadership as he learned how to appease the wants and needs of the working slaves and French masters. Similar to Lee Kuan Yew, L’Ouverture was aware of the need to accommodate the diverse population residing in one spot to reach a point of peace that allowed prosperity (The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2019b). When slave revolts broke out in the northern part of now Haiti, he was originally uncommitted, but he soon joined ranks to dispel the acts of violence and fulfill a chance of freedom. L’Ouverture built an army capable of expelling French and Spanish forces from now Haiti and won the support of the newly freed slaves as well as many residing French and mulattos for his acts of diplomacy. Even though L’Ouverture had removed many ruling French from the island, he still committed himself and the island as French with special laws that guaranteed freedom (The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2019b). It was for his acts as a military commander that he was given the name he is famous for now: Toussaint L’Ouverture, which roughly translates to an “opening”. After resolving external conflicts, L’Ouverture also created infrastructure that supported all persons residing in Haiti. Freed men and women worked on old plantations but received compensation for their work which allowed for economic growth and prevented complacency and idleness that could lead to resentment (The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2019b). L’Ouverture’s ambitions did not end with Haiti as he also aimed to abolish slavery in the now Dominican Republic and create a united island. This action was bold to Napoleon Bonaparte who later imprisoned him until his death for these acts (The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2019b). It was not until after L’Ouverture’s death that Haiti became the independent country of Haiti as it is known now. Even though L’Ouverture was not alive to see the freedom of his home, it was his guidance and teachings that allowed for Jean Jacques Dessalines to declare independence against France in 1804 (The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2018b).

After examining the history of Haiti’s leaders,

it is evident that the state of Haiti is directly related to the callousness of some leaders, greed of others, and general lack of leadership knowledge in some more. Had leaders followed the example of L’Ouverture, Haitians might be living very different lives today. L’Ouverture is proof that leadership comes from a multitude of places including an innate want to better life, a drive to acquire the skills needed to run a successful party, a benevolence needed to garner the trust and like of all people, and a thoughtfulness to pass that knowledge on so that the legacy of a nation survives past the individual. L’Ouverture was an unlikely leader, born a slave in a predominantly slavery-driven time. Regardless of his beginnings, L’Ouverture went on to create the first freed slave-created country and unified the people for a prosperous country that utilized all members of the nation as equals. The ability to be a leader may not be evident in every person, but it can be taught and sculpted through education. By supplying the right environment, leadership capabilities can be nurtured in every person.