Haiti: A Personal Reflection on Culture, Service Learning, and Personal Growth through

Cultural Immersion

Katie Dunbar

2 February, 2018
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Haiti’s history reflects deep cultural roots in language, religion, community, and

commitment to the importance of freedom. This history is not a thing of the past, but is rather a

living testimony to the continued richness of Haitian culture. Haiti is a place where the beautiful

Creole language is spoken, where faith is emphasized, and where community is more important

than the individual. Through service learning, I was able to get a glimpse of Haitian culture from

an outside perspective. Though my worldview upon entering the trip was limited due to a lack of

travel outside the United States, the applied learning aspects of the trip allowed me to widen my

perspective on culture and human identity through cultural immersion. Haiti is a place of

warmth, and the dignity of the human person is exemplified through community values. I

learned not only about Haitian culture, but also about myself and what priorities matter in life.

As I continue to process the experience, I am convicted of the importance of service centered in

partnership, as well as the importance of using educational opportunities for the greater good.

Through pre-travel coursework, cultural immersion, service, and nightly reflections, I learned

about the living nature of culture and its implications on worldview and the importance of

education.

In a broad sense, Haitian culture is founded in the importance of freedom from foreign

power and the celebration of rich cultural traditions centered in faith and community values.

Soon after Haiti became an independent nation, Jean-Jacques Dessalines declared blackness a

matter of commitment to freedom and independence—a theme that penetrates Haiti’s roots in

self-sufficiency and drive to fend off foreign powers (Dubois, 2013, p. 143). This declaration

asserted Haiti’s focus on unity in identity. Human behavior is often rooted in perception of self

and cultural expectations. Haiti continues to strongly boast its independence from France.
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Though monetary poverty is rampant in much of Haiti, Haiti is proud in its self-reliance and

unique, melting pot culture. At the Haitian National Museum, the historical displays recount the

positive and negative aspects of Haiti’s history, and while Haiti’s history has not always been

bright, it is unique to Haiti and its commitment to freedom and cultural pride.

Also a testimony to Haiti’s stance against foreign rule was Christophe’s focus on pouring

money into national defense. The Citadel, more so than a physical means of refuge against

enemy attack, served as a monument to Haiti’s continued commitment to defend itself at all costs

(Dubois, 2013, p. 53). Despite Haiti’s honorable fortitude in asserting independence, “Haiti’s

independence had been won at a terrible cost” (Dubois, 2013, p. 15). Haiti continues to battle

hunger, well-intentioned foreigners, and a lack of access to resources readily available in

developed countries. Development certainly cannot be founded in charity, and that truth is made

abundantly clear in the failed relief efforts of non-governmental organizations with good

intentions and poorly-executed initiatives. Jean-Max Bellerive, President Preval’s prime

minister, said, “In a lot of instances, we as a government do not receive the money. The money

is going through NGOs or the institutions, but we are the ones accused of corruption, for the

money that we don’t receive” (Katz, 2013, p. 130). The United States has made its presence

known in Haiti, for better or worse. There seems to be a sustained perception amongst

culturally-unaware Americans that Haiti needs America to save the country from poverty, and

droves of people have traveled to Haiti in the years following the earthquake of 2010 to try to

assist Haiti in re-development. However, much of the reason that Haiti is trapped in the cycle of

poverty can be attributed to the very efforts implemented by the United States.

For instance, the position of Haiti’s export economy has been damaged because of United

States relief efforts. Haiti must now overcome an economic crisis that would be a less pressing
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issue had the United States allowed Haiti to make its own economic decisions. Forced reliance

on United States aid has destroyed Haiti’s rice business, and this fact is blatantly obvious in the

streets of Blanchard as bags of “high quality U.S. rice” line the storefronts. It is incredible the

ripple effect that can happen as a result of one poorly-executed action, and Bill Clinton’s relief

efforts are but one misguided decision that has impacted Haiti’s ability to establish a self-

sufficient, prosperous economy.

Prior to studying Haitian history and culture, I knew only that Haiti is the poorest country

in the Western hemisphere. This has sadly become a catch phrase to summarize what Haiti

means to outsiders. It is true that a majority of Haitians live in conditions not fit for human

habitation. However, to call Haiti poor without further analysis of the big picture is to do the

Haitian people a great disservice. As I recount my personal experience of Haiti to interested

relatives and friends, I have become almost defensive about the beauty of Haiti. Somehow,

people seem to “forget” to mention that Haiti boasts the deep blue waters of the Caribbean, or

that it is surrounded by picturesque mountains that seem to touch the sky. Haiti is mutually rich

and poor.

The Creole language is a unique blend of French, various language dialects, and an array

of African languages (Dubois, 2013, p. 22). It is a unique experience to be able to observe

human interaction without understanding what is being said. That being said, there is shared

humanity that can be spoken more clearly through body language and warmth than through

language. Haiti boasts a sense of warmth and the importance of community. Of course, it is also

easy to romanticize what dialogue may be occurring without being able to understand. In

coming into the trip with some French background, I was able to decipher the key elements of
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some conversations with children, and hearing children tell me they were hungry or thirsty was a

reality check of the reality of the situation in which much of humanity lives.

Also a common human theme is the concept of assumption that one’s worldview can be

transposed on other cultures. I learned quickly that such an assumption is naïve and misleading.

For instance, on the bus ride to the Wahoo Bay beach, some men dressed for Carnival frightened

me because of my incorrect assumption that they were part of a Vodou ritual. This was perhaps

the most embarrassing and humbling moment I experienced on the trip. There is also something

to be said for experiencing a culture rather than simply reading about it. As a class, we studied

Haitian religious festivals, yet I did not have a wide enough perspective to realize that my

perception of my surroundings was not correct.

Haiti is also a place where faith and community are valued to a great degree. Nearly

every business is named after something religious, and people are unafraid to proclaim the name

of Jesus Christ in the streets. Haitian people as a whole are admirably centered on lasting things

rather than materialism. As our class was leaving the Partners in Development compound,

Maxim thanked us for coming and for teaching him how to be more giving of himself. This

thanksgiving came as a bit of a shock to the group because this sentiment should probably have

been stated the other way around. The United States is one of the most materialistically-focused

countries in the world, and our efforts at the Canaan construction site could not compare with the

skill set of the Haitian masons. For a long time, I grappled with the purpose of my travels to

Haiti, as I am neither proficient in Creole nor skilled at physical labor. However, while I will

probably never have a perfect answer as to my purpose in Haiti, I believe that seeing another part

of the world was a huge gift in terms of learning that there is more to the world than my own
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experiences and background. This education is priceless, and I certainly learned more from the

people of Haiti than I was able to give.

Service learning is intended to be focused on acts of service combined with education and

reciprocity for the community being served (Whitehead). Partners in Development emphasizes

this model in its approach on working with groups of American students. Sustainable projects

are completed under the direction of skilled Haitian construction workers, and American students

learn about Haitian culture by working side by side Haitians and by traveling to the National

Museum. In the mountains of Canaan, active learning experiences allowed for a thorough

examination of the construct of time. In idle moments where there was little work to do, it

became clear how greatly busyness is praised in America. The construct of time is viewed

differently by different cultures, and efficiency is not always the best way of accomplishing

tasks.

The second day at Canaan, as we carried three hundred concrete bricks up the mountain,

it was clear that there was a valuable service component of the experience. While it was

beneficial to the construction workers that our American group accomplished a simple but labor-

intensive task, it was also clear that the Haitian people in Canaan could have accomplished the

same task much more efficiently. Again, the concept of efficiency was addressed. This was also

the day that I realized that many Haitians drink one small plastic bag of water a day while I had

just consumed four full water bottles of Gatorade, a peanut butter sandwich, and two Clif bars. It

is a strange phenomenon to feel guilty for having basic human needs met. Perhaps one of the

most important takeaways I learned through the service learning experience was that small acts

of service matter, and though one person cannot change the world, it still matters to do good. It

was not feasible to provide for the needs of all the people in Canaan, but the one family who is
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receiving a home will be given a long-term gift that will make an impact on generations of

people.

Service is evidently an important thing to do, but I have learned that good service

necessitates communication and partnership with the people being served. Service is not the

means to an end, but is a lifelong requirement of people in a position of privilege. I am

convicted that service learning is a well-designed model that allows for self-gift and education at

the same time. I may or may not return to Haiti, but I will forever be able to share my

experiences with family and friends. The only way to clear cultural misconceptions is through

experience and speaking the truth. Education is priceless.

In addition to learning about specific elements of Haiti’s culture and history, I also

learned that making a contribution to humanity does not require physical return to Haiti, but it

rather necessitates utilization of education for the good of others—at home or abroad. When

speaking with a boy at the Partners in Development compound, I realized how often I take the

gift of education for-granted. Wadfranz wants to be an English teacher when he is older, and he

is passionately committed to his studies. I realized that while I do not know exactly what I want

to do with my future, I have a responsibility to humanity to use my education for good. That

night, I wrote, “When I told him [Wadfranz] I might want to be a PA, he said ‘why maybe?’ He

then explained that he has a dream, and he will achieve it. It made me think about what a

privilege it is to have the opportunity to further my education.” As I struggled through the first

week of chemistry this semester, I was motivated by Wadfranz’s words; education is not for

myself, but for others. This is how I wish to keep Haiti alive. I may or may not return to Haiti in

the physical sense, but every patient I encounter deserves to receive compassionate care from a

competent practitioner focused on the patient’s personal needs and preferences.

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In the Partners in Development clinic, two nurses saw patients at the same time and in the

same small room. Including myself and Lauren, there were at times eight people inside one

examination room the size of an American closet. So many Haitian people come to the clinic

with conditions that are a result of poor sanitation or a lack of proper health education. For

instance, I tend to take access to soap for-granted. Skin conditions cannot be alleviated without

access to a proper shower.

While taking patient weights in the triage portion of the clinic, I also got to experience

what it feels like to be a minority. Most of the time in Haiti, I was around American classmates,

but at this time in the clinic, I was the only white person in a room for a time, and I could feel

people’s eyes focused on me. However, I did not feel prejudiced as minorities very frequently

are in America. Rather, I felt like an outsider in a place where I could not understand much of

the conversation around me. I hope this experience will help me to place myself in the shoes of

people in America whose first language is not my native English.

It was a bizarre experience to go to Vol restaurant, where the menu was in English and

the only customers were tourists and upper class, often light-skinned Haitians. At the time, I

really did not wish to eat at Vol. I wrote after the experience, “It [Vol] was air conditioned, and

the menu was in English. It made me feel like puking when I thought about the children who

had to leave the PID compound when we got on the bus.” On the way back from Vol, I saw one

of the little girls who often plays at the compound licking a metal pole near her home. It feels

very intrusive to sit high in a bus seat where the walls of people’s homes are low enough that it is

easy to see inside.

Before traveling to Haiti, I expected myself to wish to adopt a child so as to help the child

escape from poverty. However, I cannot imagine taking someone’s child away from the
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beautiful county of Haiti and to an entirely unfamiliar place. Parents need jobs and resources,

not adoption of their children. One of the translators in the clinic was upset because his daughter

had her sixteenth birthday the day prior, and all he could afford to give her was a cake. It made

me realize what a gift that cake was and how often I am focused on attaining material goods that

bring fleeting happiness.

In encountering people selling goods, it was an unsettling position to be in to be able to

afford most of what was being sold. It is important to support local business so as to help

economy, and so I often justified my purchases with this type of mindset. However, it was a

surreal experience to walk through Blanchard with metalwork while many of the people we

passed probably had not eaten that day. I often found myself wanting to share my Clif bars with

the children at the compound, but it was not practical in that if one person got food, chaos would

ensue. Outside the compound gate, a little girl asked me in Creole to buy her a pair of sandals.

“Achetez pou mwen,” she said. I wanted to buy the shoes so much, but I instead walked away

with a painting that I did not need.

While Haiti is stuck in the cycle of poverty, it is also a place of great warmth. Upon

returning to the United States customs in Atlanta, the culture shock was almost greater than it

was upon entering Haiti for the first time. I got yelled at when stepping over the yellow line

behind which people stand to show their passports to the security guards. I cannot imagine how

terrifying this experience would have been for someone who does not understand English.

Meanwhile, every worker at the Haitian airport tried to speak English, and the chaos in the

Haitian airport on the way back was less overwhelming than the chaos in Atlanta.

After a week of travel, Haiti began to feel familiar and comforting—almost like a second

home. As I reminisce on what I learned about Haitian culture, I find myself longing to hear
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Creole spoken in the streets. Haitian politics are hard to grasp without spending a great deal of

time studying the triumphs and failures of attempts at establishing organized government, but

freedom and cultural pride are emphasized greatly despite trials in gaining economic levity.

Haiti is poor but also rich. It is impoverished but full of life, God, community, and culture.

Through service learning, I was able to immerse myself in a culture very different from the one

in which I was raised. Good intentions are important, but I have seen firsthand that partnership

is crucial to good service. It was a blessing to work with Haitian people from Partners in

Development, and I hope that this experience will impact my educational decisions, approach to

healthcare, and viewpoint on cultural issues and service. Cultural immersion is not a matter of

becoming fully integrated into another culture, but it is rather a gift that extends beyond itself

and into futuristic decisions related to the good of humanity. I hope that Haiti remains alive in

my heart by the way in which I use the gift of education for others.
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Works Cited

Dubois, L. (2013). Haiti: The aftershocks of history. New York: Picador.

Katz, J.M. (2013). The big truck that went by: How the world came to save Haiti and left behind

a disaster. New York: Palgrave-Macmillan.

Whitehead, D. M. (2015). Global service learning: Addressing the big challenges. Retrieved

February 03, 2018, from

https://www.aacu.org/diversitydemocracy/2015/summer/whitehead