Format: Hardcover, 304pp. ISBN: 080903719X Publisher: Hill & Wang, Incorporated Pub. Date: January  1999

ABOUT THE BOOK From The Publisher Like two roosters in a fighting arena, the Dominican Republic and Haiti are encircled by barriers of geography and poverty. They share one Caribbean island, Hispaniola, but their histories are as deeply divided as their cultures: one French-speaking and black, one Spanish-speaking and mulatto. And just as the owners of gamecocks contrive battles between their birds (a favorite sport in both countries) as a way of playing out human conflicts, Haitian and Dominican leaders often stir up nationalist disputes and exaggerate their cultural and racial differences as a way of deflecting other kinds of turmoil. Michele Wucker's reports on these struggles, both in Hispaniola and in the United States, take us through the haunted mountains where sixty years ago the Dominican dictator Trujillo ordered 30,000 Haitians to be killed, to Vodou rituals in Dominican sugarcane fields where Haitians work as near-slaves, and to ringside at cockfights in both countries as well as in the United States. She focuses especially on the often contradictory policies of the United States toward each nation, which continue to influence the destiny of two important countries and of tens of thousands of Haitians and Dominicans living in the United States. Her discussion of these critically important national groups is essential for understanding their contribution to politics in our own country, indeed throughout the Western Hemisphere.

Reviews From Patrick Markee - The New York Times Book Review   ...[A] complex exploration of the cultural divide between Haiti and the Dominical Republic....[W]eaves together five centuries of tragic conflict with a subtle picture of the island [of Hispaniola] today....The book's closing scene is...a glimpse of the future...when...Hispaniola's history unfolds in a more hopeful way.   From Booknews   Explores the reasons for the perpetual conflict between the two nations--one black and French-speaking, the other mulatto and Spanish-speaking--that share the Caribbean island. Portrays leaders of both nations stirring up hostilities for their own ends, economic exploitation, massacres, and other events and conditions. Also looks at how the conflict continues among the communities in the US and at regional forces that influence the situation. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.   From Kirkus   Wucker's first book is a richly textured social history of Hispaniola. Wucker, a freelance writer specializing in Caribbean affairs, unveils the seemingly chaotic yet ritualistic world of the Dominicans and Haitians. Her approach is historical but not chronological, moving back and forth from the time of Columbus to the 20th century and through the intervening years to emphasize recurring themes rather than a linear story. In the process, we move from one strongman and atrocity to another, e.g., conquering Spaniards complain about the noisiness of natives when they are punished by being roasted alive; Trujillo massacres at least 15,000 Haitians residing within the Dominican Republic in 1937; and the Duvaliers arrogantly loot their own country, the poorest in the Western Hemisphere. Prejudices between Dominicans and Haitians, extreme differences in wealth, and a history of heavy-handed foreign intervention make Hispaniola a powder keg, yet the definitive explosion never occurs. For Wucker the explanation lies more in space than time; two nations share one island in a perpetual turf war paralleling the popular pastime of its residents, the cockfight. She argues that the cockfight is a symbol ``of both division and community,'' a combat which occurs within strict rules accepted by all as social norms. We are simultaneously horrified and fascinated because it presents an ugliness within ourselves, the natural aggression that emerges when one's territory is threatened. For humans the contested space is more complex than the closed ring of the cocks-``it can be physical, economic, emotional, or cultural''-and the island's geographic limits intensify the struggle. While the metaphor is suggestive, however, the cockfight is designed to pit equal combatants against each other, and among humans equality is in short supply on Hispaniola. Perhaps this explains why the victorious cock brings glory to his owner, yet the victors in the human competition have hardly been inspiring. A powerful cultural analysis.  Read a Chapter

Return to : Media Reviews Section