Since 1804 Haitians have suffered the burden of being the first Black Republic. Other independent countries were white and slave holding. In that reality it was too difficult for them to believe that people of color could govern themselves. Hence, years of delay in recognition. In 1825 the French government demanded reparations for the land and slaves lost when Haiti gained its freedom, and invaded the country. In order to avoid war, the Haitian president agreed to pay. It took until 1947 to repay the demand. Its been called “The Greatest Heist In History.” As for the United States: We wrote the Haitian Constitution. It served our benefit until the first fair election in 1990. It has been a struggle for Haitians to hold onto that since then.
Haitians have always been left on their own to survive. The vast majority of the population exist in a free market economy: agriculture, construction, education, clothing. Plantations and factories on the other hand are run by corporations. An international corporation my legally operate in Haiti but it must have one Haitian shareholder and board member.