History is messy. Usually, when people talk about the US invasion of Haiti, they’re thinking of one specific moment, but the reality is that the United States has put boots on the ground in Haiti multiple times over the last century. It’s a complicated, often tragic overlap of debt, Cold War politics, and humanitarian crises. If you look at the 1915 occupation or the 1994 intervention, the reasons given to the public and the reasons discussed in the Oval Office were often miles apart.
Haiti’s relationship with the US started under a cloud of fear. Since Haiti was the first black republic to win independence through a slave revolt, the US didn’t even recognize it as a country for decades. By the time 1915 rolled around, Haiti was a revolving door of presidents—seven in just four years—and the US was getting nervous about German influence in the Caribbean.
Why 1915 Changed Everything
The first major US invasion of Haiti wasn't some sudden whim. It happened after President Vilbrun Guillaume Sam was literally torn apart by a mob. Admiral Caperton showed up on the USS Washington and landed Marines. The official line was "stability." The unofficial line? Making sure the National City Bank of New York (now Citicorp) got its loan payments back.
The US took over the customs houses. They controlled the money. This wasn't a weekend trip; the Marines stayed for 19 years. During that time, they built roads and hospitals, but they also used the corvée system—basically forced labor—to get it done. You can imagine how well that went over in a country founded by people who escaped slavery. Resistance groups called the Cacos fought back, led by Charlemagne Péralte. He became a martyr after the US military took a photo of his corpse pinned to a door to discourage rebels. It backfired.
The Brutal Reality of the Occupation
Let's be real about the numbers. Estimates of how many Haitians died during the 1915–1934 occupation vary wildly, but historians like Laurent Dubois suggest thousands were killed in the fighting or died in labor camps. The racial dynamics were also incredibly ugly. Many of the Marines sent to Haiti were from the American South and brought Jim Crow attitudes with them. They looked down on the Haitian elite and the peasantry alike.
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By the time the US left in 1934 under FDR’s "Good Neighbor Policy," they had created the Gendarmerie d'Haïti. This was a centralized military force that eventually paved the way for the Duvalier dictatorship. Papa Doc and Baby Doc used that very structure to terrorize the population for decades while the US often looked the other way because they were "anti-communist."
Operation Uphold Democracy: The 1994 Return
Fast forward to the 1990s. This is the US invasion of Haiti that Gen X and Millennials might actually remember seeing on CNN. Jean-Bertrand Aristide, a former priest and a champion of the poor, won Haiti's first democratic election in 1990. He didn't last long. A military coup led by Raoul Cédras kicked him out less than a year later.
The Clinton administration was in a tight spot. On one hand, thousands of Haitian "boat people" were trying to reach Florida to escape the military junta’s death squads. On the other hand, there was a lot of pressure to restore a democratically elected leader.
The 1994 intervention was weirdly cinematic.
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Jimmy Carter, Colin Powell, and Sam Nunn were literally in Port-au-Prince negotiating with the dictators while planes were already in the air. Cédras blinked at the last second. 20,000 US troops landed, but instead of a bloody battle, it was mostly a standoff. Aristide was back, but he was forced to agree to a bunch of neoliberal economic reforms that many argue crippled Haiti’s local rice production and made the country even more dependent on imports.
Why It Didn't "Fix" Haiti
Success is a strong word. Sure, the junta was gone. But the US invasion of Haiti in 1994 didn't solve the structural poverty. When people ask why Haiti is struggling today, you have to look at these interventions. Every time the US steps in, it resets the political clock.
- In 2004, there was another intervention. Aristide was forced out again. He says it was a kidnapping; the US says he resigned.
- UN peacekeepers (MINUSTAH) arrived afterward and stayed until 2017. They were supposed to keep the peace but accidentally introduced cholera, killing nearly 10,000 people.
- The political vacuum left by these interventions is exactly what gangs like "Barbecue" (Jimmy Chérizier) have exploited in 2024 and 2025.
The Economic Shadow of Foreign Intervention
Money is always at the heart of it. After the 1915 US invasion of Haiti, the US reorganized the constitution to allow foreigners to own land. That was a huge deal because the 1804 constitution specifically forbade it to prevent a return to plantation slavery.
American corporations moved in. High-interest loans from New York banks kept Haiti in a cycle of debt. By the time the US left in 1934, Haiti was "stable" in the eyes of Wall Street, but the average citizen was arguably worse off.
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Modern Parallels
Today, as Haiti faces a total collapse of government authority, the talk of a "multinational security support mission" led by Kenya feels like a ghost of these past invasions. The US is funding it but isn't putting boots on the ground this time. Why? Because the memory of 1915, 1994, and 2004 is still too fresh. There is a deep-seated distrust. If you’re a Haitian citizen, you’ve seen foreign soldiers on your streets for most of the last century, and yet, the security hasn't lasted.
Actionable Insights and Context
If you want to understand the current headlines about Haiti, stop looking at it as a "failed state" and start looking at it as a state that has been repeatedly interrupted.
- Read the 1915 Treaties: Look at how the US gained control over Haitian finances. It’s the blueprint for how debt is used as a tool of war.
- Follow Local Perspectives: Instead of just reading Western wire services, check out Haiti Liberté or The New Haitian. The narrative on the ground is often 180 degrees different from what you see in DC.
- Evaluate the "Boat People" Narratives: Understand that US immigration policy toward Haiti has always been tied to these invasions. When the US intervenes, it’s often to stop a refugee crisis before it hits Miami.
- Acknowledge the Debt: Haiti was forced to pay France 150 million francs for its "lost property" (the slaves themselves) after independence. This "Double Debt" combined with US financial control meant Haiti never had a chance to build a middle class.
The US invasion of Haiti isn't just one historical event. It’s a recurring theme in a long story of a neighbor trying to control a country it doesn't fully understand. Whether the motive was stopping German U-boats, fighting Communism, or "restoring democracy," the result has often been the same: a temporary fix that leaves the underlying cracks even wider than before. Understanding this history is the only way to see why there are no easy answers for Haiti today.
To get a clearer picture of the 1915 era, research the "Pershing Map" or the specific roles of the Smedley Butler Marines in the Caco Wars. For the 1994 era, look into the "Intervasion" negotiations and how the presence of the 82nd Airborne changed the negotiation tactics of the Haitian military leaders in real-time. This isn't just dry history; it's the living reason why the streets of Port-au-Prince look the way they do right now.