Abstract
Abstract This article explores the life history of Ulrick Rosarion, a Haitian federal prosecutor who built his career during the Duvalier dictatorship. Rosarion lived his entire life in a small house of downtown Port-au-Prince, in a neighborhood formerly inhabited by the Black middle-classes that gained prominence in the political and administrative sphere during the dictatorship (1957-1986). Rosarion was also a writer who produced four books of nationalist poetry. Based on interviews and readings of his literary production, and beyond, through an exploration of architectural forms and material remnants echoing the dictatorship, this paper explores how an idealized version of the dictatorship today haunts the political landscape of Haiti. Moreover, this article argues that the state takes on a sensual form that allows for the diffusion and/or rupture of past ideologies.
Highlights
This article explores the life history of Ulrick Rosarion, a Haitian federal prosecutor who built his career during the Duvalier dictatorship
As the caretaker explained to me when I visited this house on a hot afternoon of September 2013, the building and surrounding area are key sites of Haitian history that should be better preserved: 1 Pétion was a revolutionary leader and the first President of the Republic of Haiti from 1807 until his death in 1818
While mentioning these historical narratives, the caretaker talked about the question of skin color and power in Haiti
Summary
“When you look at the trees, you will see in their swaying, the invisible and mystical body of the spirits. When you listen to the wind groaning over the countryside, it will be their voices cursing you.”. Jacques Stephen Alexis, Les Arbres Musiciens (1957: 359).
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