The Dew Breaker

The Dew Breaker by Edwige Danticat

Book review by Teresa Friedlander, Copyright 2010

There are epic novels which educate the reader by integrating pages from history with captivating stories of people living through world-changing events; and then there are those by modern authors, which only hint at the larger historical context surrounding their characters. The Dew Breaker falls into the latter category, and does this by using discrete stories to describe how the actions of the powerful few can ruin the lives of the powerless many for generations, even centuries. To understand this book, to appreciate it fully, the reader owes it to him- or herself to learn the back story:

Once upon a time, on a small tropical island in the Caribbean Sea, a peaceful population of Arawak-speaking Taínos (Native Americans) lived in harmony with nature. The Taínos grew cotton, and from this crafted fishing nets; they harvested cassava roots and maize as well. The Taínos’ only enemies were the cannibalistic Caribs who invaded from time to time, requiring them to develop defensive weapons and strategies. Life on this island, which the Taínos called “Ayiti”, was idyllic and the people enjoyed feasting, worshipping, and procreating. One day, however, enormous boats filled with strange-looking men with light skin and heavy clothing arrived; and the world, as the Taínos knew it, ended.

The year was 1492 and the captain of the boats was the Spanish explorer, Christopher Columbus. The beautiful and fertile island on which Columbus found himself is a place that has endured almost endless hardship and suffering in the 500 plus years since. Spain controlled the island, then called Hispañola, for almost a century before leaving it vulnerable to pirates originally from England, The Netherlands, and France. The Taíno people, meanwhile, all but disappeared. By 1664, France had formally claimed the western half of the island as a permanent settlement and the French West Indies Company established vast tobacco, indigo, cotton, cacao, coffee, and sugar cane plantations. The plantations required a constant supply of slaves from Africa, in order to realize their full economic potential, because slaves were literally worked to death. In the 18th century, Saint-Domingue – the French part of Hispañola – came to be called the “Pearl of the Antilles” given its richness and productivity. As much as 60 per cent of the coffee and 40 per cent of the sugar consumed by Europeans came from this tiny colony, no bigger than the state of Maryland.

At its height, Saint-Domingue’s slave population numbered 500,000 while its ruling white population was a mere 32,000, or 16 per cent of the total. In order to maintain control, slave owners resorted to extreme brutality and coercion, and there was no limit to the degradation or cruelty imposed on slaves in service to the colony’s economic imperative. The French Revolution created fissures in the established social and political order; and in 1790 a civil war broke out when free men of color demanded full French citizenship as spelled out in the “Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen”, a document similar to the United States’ Declaration of Independence. A delegation of free black men travelled to France and received a grant of full citizenship from the Legislative Assembly there. The rulers of the colony, however, did not agree and refused to recognize free men of color as full citizens. The dispute was further complicated by racial stratification: mulattos were considered of higher status than Africans, and under French law freed slaves could themselves own slaves.

In 1793, an intelligent and charismatic free man, Francois-Dominique Toussaint-L’ouverture, led a slave rebellion which eventually succeeded in driving out the French forces and repelling the opportunistic British invaders, while vanquishing the colonial slave holders. Toussaint-L’ouverture then wrote a constitution for a new government and declared himself governor for life. He was not a despot; rather he was a visionary leader, similar to our own Founding Fathers. During his brief tenure, Toussaint-L’ouverture re-established trade with Britain and the United States of America. Meanwhile, Napoleon Bonaparte wanted the colony back under France’s dominion and resorted to treachery to achieve this end. In 1802, Toussaint-L’ouverture signed a treaty with France to return the colony to French rule on the condition that slavery would not return. Three weeks later, Toussaint-L’ouverture and his family were deported to France where he died in jail a short time later. Napoleon’s forces fought a brutal war of aggression against the freed slaves in order to reinstate slavery in the colony, however the brief taste of freedom which Toussaint-L’ouverture had achieved for the population unified them and by 1804, the French withdrew. General Jean-Jacques Dessalines declared independence and named the new nation, Haiti, which meant “land of mountains” in the Taínos’ language.

In order to survive economically, Haiti was obliged to repay France the price of so-called lost property (land, equipment, and slaves) in the amount of 150 million gold francs. France, supported by Britain and the United States, imposed a trade embargo against Haiti forcing the new and fragile nation to pay this debt which they finally did in 1947.

Haiti enjoyed a brief period of peace and relative prosperity from 1874 until 1911. During this time artists, writers, and musicians flourished and the nation developed a unique cultural identity, influenced by Voodoo, Christianity, and African traditions. A small community of German émigrés meanwhile established itself and slowly gained control of 80 per cent of Haiti’s international trade as well as its public utilities and port access. This did not sit well with the United States, given the hostile behavior of the Germans in Europe, and so a group of American investors bought control of the National Bank of Haiti, where the nation’s treasure was on deposit. In order to protect the financial interests of these American investors, President Woodrow Wilson agreed to send occupying forces. During this time, the United States exploited its role as Haiti’s legal protector and revived an old law requiring peasants to perform hard labor in lieu of paying road taxes. Between 1915 and 1918, these de facto slaves built 470 miles of paved road, among other projects. In 1919, the Haitians revolted and as many as 15,000 civilians died. To reestablish order, the United States installed a dictator. Then the Great Depression ruined Haiti’s already frail economy and the United States slowly withdrew its forces. From 1934 through 1957, Haiti suffered a prolonged period of political instability until a former Minister of Health and widely respected humanitarian, Dr. Francois Duvalier, was democratically elected president.

It didn’t take long before President Duvalier, “Papa Doc” as he liked to be called, established a dictatorship and intimidated the Haitian people through kidnappings, beatings, and murders by a “volunteer” army called the Tonton Macoutes (after a Voodoo monster). To those living in fear, the Macoutes were called “Dew Breakers” because they usually came in the early morning hours, leaving footprints in the heavy dew. Papa Doc aimed to rid Haiti of its mulatto elite population and this resulted in a mass exodus of the country’s best educated and most skilled people. At the same time, Papa Doc won the favor of many in the black middle class by providing services and utilities – such as water, sewers, and paved roads – to previously neglected neighborhoods. It was from this population that he recruited his “volunteer” Macoutes.

Papa Doc died in 1971 and his 19 year old son, Jean-Claude Duvalier, took power. “Baby Doc” was predictably inept and very corrupt. He pocketed vast sums of public money and foreign aid, and married a glamorous mulatto divorcee in a lavish ceremony. This did not sit well with anyone, including his own mother, so he allowed his wife to send his mother to live in exile. When Pope Jean Paul II visited Haiti in 1983, he was horrified by what he saw and condemned Baby Doc’s regime. Three years later, Baby Doc and his wife fled the country.

The dew breaker referred to in the title, turns out to be a loving father and devoted husband who, after moving to New York, tries to forget his past. The ghosts of his victims, however, follow him and refuse to grant him peace. Award-winning author, Edwige Danticat, evokes the world of denial and acceptance that many Haitian refugees found themselves living in following the brutal Duvalier years. She does this through a collection of interconnected stories, each of which could stand on its own, but together tell the tragic story of a little nation which seems eternally cursed.

Democracy and freedom have a hard time taking root in Haiti: for every good and legally elected president, there seem to be two or three despots poised to take control. In 2006, Rene Preval was elected and showed promise as a legitimate leader. And then the earthquake happened. Is Haiti the realization of Dante’s Inferno here on earth, or is this tiny nation a living, breathing example of the triumph of the human spirit? If we recognize that Columbus’ conquest of Ayiti set in motion 500 years of suffering, the answer, I think, is both, because the Haitian people have a reputation as some of the happiest, most generous people on earth. The bigger question posed by this book, is whether we all recognize that brutality and despotism are totally colorblind, kept at bay only by the rule of law.

"Mountains Beyond Mountains"

Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder

Book Review by Teresa Friedlander (copyright 2007)

Every once in a while, I read a book that changes the way I see the world, and Mountains Beyond Mountains is such a book. This book is primarily the story of Paul Farmer, MD, a Harvard professor and infectious disease specialist, who waged war on multiple fronts against antibiotic-resistant tuberculosis. Mountains Beyond Mountains is additionally an autobiographical narrative of the author’s experience while documenting the life and work of Dr. Farmer. This book is also a love story: the biographer’s love for his subject and the subject’s love for the world he inhabits.

The title comes from a Haitian proverb: “Beyond mountains there are mountains”. This is a perfect metaphor for the never-ending series of obstacles Dr. Farmer faced and surmounted in his work with some of the poorest people in the world. Tuberculosis is a disease which thrives where sanitation is a luxury. In most cases it is easily treated with antibiotics, however a new strain has emerged which is stronger than existing medicines. In Haiti, where there is little sanitation and no money for public health, this disease has reached epidemic proportions. Life for many Haitians is, in the words of Thomas Hobbes, “nasty, brutish, and short”.

Haiti’s troubles date back to when Christopher Columbus landed on the island he named Hispaniola and triggered the extermination of the Arawak Indians. France and Spain split the island and the French developed their half – now Haiti – into a slave colony. The slaves revolted in 1791 and the country has been in turmoil ever since. Once covered with lush tropical rainforests, Haiti is now a mountain of mud and misery. Infant and maternal mortality rates are among the highest in the world, and one fourth of the population dies before age 40. AIDS is a leading cause of death. Over the past century, the United States has made attempts to help Haiti, but these efforts in the eyes of most Haitians have been misguided. As one Haitian saying goes: “Giving people medicine … and not giving them food is like washing your hands and drying them in dirt”.

Something about Haiti, despite how tragic and desperate a place it is, got inside the heart of Dr. Paul Farmer and inspired him to be a catalyst for change there. Farmer’s childhood was anything but ordinary. His family was poor and itinerant and dominated by a father whom the six siblings called “The Warden”. They were at times homeless, living out of a bus and a boat. In spite of this upbringing, Paul Farmer excelled as a student. He graduated from Duke University and Harvard Medical School, but never forgot where he came from; he loved everyone he met regardless of their circumstances or station in life. While at Duke, Farmer studied the work of medical anthropologist, Rudolf Virchow, “the principal architect of the foundations of scientific medicine”. Virchow documented how social upheaval leads to “overcrowding, poor hygiene, and malnutrition” which in turn creates breeding grounds for epidemics. Virchow’s vision of creating a healthy world shaped Farmer’s view: “Pathology, social medicine, politics, anthropology. My model.”

During his years at Duke, Farmer met a nun, Sister Julianna DeWolf, who championed migrant farm workers, many of whom were Haitians. Through Sister Julianna, Farmer met many more Haitians and observed the wretched conditions in which they lived. He became a student of Haiti and by the time he graduated from Duke – summa cum laude – Farmer was hooked. The culture fascinated him: its music, art, and religious practices. Voodoo and Christianity had blended as had the French and African languages of the former slaves. In 1983, Paul Farmer arrived in Port-au-Prince on a grant from Duke while waiting to hear if he had been accepted into medical school. He entered Harvard in 1984, gathered his text books and returned to Haiti. In spite of only showing up for labs and exams he was among the top students in his class.

All the while Farmer commuted between Harvard and Haiti, he also performed a survey of health statistics in and around the city of Cange. He collected data on births, deaths, and living conditions. This research showed the direct correlation between clean water and infant mortality. Farmer’s beliefs coalesced and he would say “Clean water and health care and school and food and tin roofs and cement floors, all of these things should constitute a set of basics that people must have as birthrights.” And so, step by step, Dr. Farmer set about making this vision a reality for the citizens of Haiti – climbing one mountain after another.

The difference between Paul Farmer and other doctors who have lived in Haiti is that while they could leave, return to the United States and never look back, Farmer knew he couldn’t. No matter where he was on earth, his heart would remain in Haiti and he would return. Many of his patients died and he frequently felt like a failure even though their deaths were inevitable given the circumstances. Farmer came to realize what the Haitians already intuited: that simply providing medical care wasn’t enough. Successful medicine in Haiti would require a more comprehensive approach: better housing and nutrition, clean water, and community-based healthcare.

Farmer’s biographer, Tracy Kidder, followed him around the world on his quest for funding for his comprehensive plan as well as basic medicines and supplies for his clinic. According to Kidder, Farmer was tireless and always cheerful and positive. He could sleep in a dentist’s chair and feel it was an improvement over other places he had slept. Farmer constantly traveled back and forth between Boston, where he is now a professor of medicine, and Haiti, where he treats patients. He went to Russia to study tuberculosis epidemics there. Farmer developed recommendations for preventing and treating antibiotic resistant tuberculosis which the World Health Organization eventually adopted.

What makes Paul Farmer so remarkable, beyond his brilliance and effectiveness, is his love for humanity. This love continues to drive him to care for the poorest of the world’s poor. He would be saintly except he has a wicked sense of humor and isn’t particularly religious. Just the same, he succeeds in Haiti where others have failed because he accepts that faith – voodoo, Christian, or medical – is necessary to healing. He also accepts with grace and appreciation whatever he is given to eat and drink regardless of risk to his own health. And he is selfless. He once he signed over his paycheck to a patient who was facing eviction. Paul Farmer didn’t starve, however; his friends took care of him.

Living our comfortable lives in the United States of America, it is easy to forget that a few hundred nautical miles southeast of us is a land of unimaginable poverty. We take clean water for granted and even if we have no health insurance, we can visit a clinic or emergency room and receive decent medical care. Mountains Beyond Mountains opened my eyes not only to how desperate the human condition can be but also how the human spirit can triumph over such desperation. Paul Farmer fell in love with Haiti and Haitians because of their spirit and serenity in the face of starvation and squalor, disease and death. These people are not blind to their plight or accepting of it; they know that their country is the end of the world. Just the same, they celebrate life’s joys and share what little they have with their guests.

Tracy Kidder is a Pulitzer Prize winning writer and Vietnam veteran who lives in Massachusetts and Maine. He comes across as enjoyable a character as the subject of Mountains Beyond Mountains. Farmer and Kidder developed a close friendship during their time together and Kidder’s recounting of this side of the story makes it even more enjoyable to read. Kidder’s writing is engaging and descriptive and the book moves at a fast pace. If you are interested in science, medicine, anthropology, or just want to read a good story, this is a great book. If you care about the future of the human race, this book is a must read.