History and National Consciousness
By La Rédaction · Port-au-Prince · · 3 min read · Updated 24 April 2026
Translated from French — AI-assisted and reviewed by the editorial team. The French version is authoritative. Read the original · About our translation policy
To an intellectual disconnected from the importance of history
By Pierre Josué Agénor CADET
“Those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it” George Santayana
There are words which, spoken without reflection, reveal the depth of the intellectual void that plagues a society. Others, said with assurance, unveil the disarray of an elite in search of benchmarks. This week, I bitterly heard a man presented as an economist and university professor declare to a journalist that "the past is just the past" and that we must now "look at the present."
This seemingly innocuous phrase is symptomatic of a broader crisis: the loss of historical meaning in Haitian thought. It highlights a disturbing phenomenon: the rise of a technocracy without memory, convinced that modernity begins where history ends. This type of intellectual believes that looking to the future means forgetting the past. However, nothing could be further from the truth.
History is not a burden; it is a lever. It is not nostalgia; it is consciousness. It is not an illusion of the past, but the key to the present. It is through history that a people's identity is understood, the contours of its sovereignty are drawn, and the legitimacy of its future is built.
According to this technician of "practical knowledge," Haiti can no longer, in 2025, invoke Dessalines, Christophe, Capois-la-Mort, or even the Battle of Vertières. "That time is over," he says, before adding that "today we have become the laughingstock of nations."
Such a statement is not only a sign of historical ignorance; it also demonstrates a poverty of thought and a dangerous contempt for national memory. Hearing these remarks, I felt a mix of anger and sadness. Anger at the arrogance of those who, believing themselves modern, set themselves up as judges of the past. Sadness at the disconnection of a part of our elite, who confuse progress with oblivion. It is these intellectuals without memory, these politicians without roots, who, for decades, have contributed to the moral and institutional degradation of the country.
A few years ago, in response to Lavalassian authorities who spoke of foreign interference in Haiti's internal affairs, a French ambassador accredited to Haiti said: "if foreigners intervene in Haiti's affairs, it is at the invitation of Haitian leaders themselves." Haiti, today classified among fragile states, is above all a victim of its leaders' amnesia. For, in truth, underdevelopment is not only economic; it is primarily memorial. Peoples who advance are those who know where they come from. The United States, France, Israel, Rwanda, or China rely on a deep understanding of their history to shape their destiny.
Why should Haiti build itself in oblivion? Haiti does not need amnesiac intellectuals or technicians without vision. It needs rooted consciences, voices capable of connecting the past to the future. Forgetting Dessalines is to betray dignity. Forgetting Vertières is to deny our reason for existence. Our future will depend on our ability to reread our history, to understand it, and to make it the foundation of our collective rebirth. A people who remember move forward with courage. A people who forget, disappear without glory. Pierre Josué Agénor Cadet, professor of modern and contemporary history at the university
Such a statement is not only a sign of historical ignorance; it also demonstrates a poverty of thought and a dangerous contempt for national memory. Hearing these remarks, I felt a mix of anger and sadness. Anger at the arrogance of those who, believing themselves modern, set themselves up as judges of the past. Sadness at the disconnection of a part of our elite, who confuse progress with oblivion. It is these intellectuals without memory, these politicians without roots, who, for decades, have contributed to the moral and institutional degradation of the country.
A few years ago, in response to Lavalassian authorities who spoke of foreign interference in Haiti's internal affairs, a French ambassador accredited to Haiti said: "if foreigners intervene in Haiti's affairs, it is at the invitation of Haitian leaders themselves." Haiti, today classified among fragile states, is above all a victim of its leaders' amnesia. For, in truth, underdevelopment is not only economic; it is primarily memorial. Peoples who advance are those who know where they come from. The United States, France, Israel, Rwanda, or China rely on a deep understanding of their history to shape their destiny.
Why should Haiti build itself in oblivion? Haiti does not need amnesiac intellectuals or technicians without vision. It needs rooted consciences, voices capable of connecting the past to the future. Forgetting Dessalines is to betray dignity. Forgetting Vertières is to deny our reason for existence. Our future will depend on our ability to reread our history, to understand it, and to make it the foundation of our collective rebirth. A people who remember move forward with courage. A people who forget, disappear without glory. Pierre Josué Agénor Cadet, professor of modern and contemporary history at the university
