On 2 October 1937, under the orders of US-backed Dominican dictator president Rafael Trujillo, the genocide of more than 20,000 Haitians began in what is now known as the Parsley massacre.
The popular name comes from the belief that the word "parsley" was used to differentiate Afro-Dominicans from Afro-Haitians living on the border, since for Haitian Creole speakers, the letter "r" of the Spanish language was difficult to pronounce. However, according to UCLA historian Lauren Derby, there is no record of survivors of the massacre mentioning the use of this herb, so it is considered a myth.
From that moment on, Trujillo would begin a campaign to demonize the Haitian population, using voodoo as the main sign of identification.Haitian President Sténio Vincent, with the mediation of US president Franklin D. Roosevelt, requested reparations of $750,000 from the Dominican government, but Trujillo managed to reduce the figure to $525,000. The survivors received only cents and it is presumed that Haitian capitalists appropriated most of the money.
The Parsley Massacre - WCH | Stories
#ParsleyMassacre #RafaelTrujillo #Haitians #FarmingofBones