The Peasant Paradox: Narratives of Cooperative Labor, Corvée, and Collective Violence in Rwanda and Haiti, Poster 24

Haiti and Rwanda are worlds apart, yet strikingly similar in the sense that catastrophic violence, whether natural or "manmade," has tended to color the lens of public perception and mass media from the pre-colonial era to... [ view full abstract ]

Haiti and Rwanda are worlds apart, yet strikingly similar in the sense that catastrophic violence, whether natural or "manmade," has tended to color the lens of public perception and mass media from the pre-colonial era to modern times. As a consequence, structural violence and the silenced voices of the rural poor have often received short shrift. However, as this study attempts to show, peasants have catalyzed social change and contributed significantly to the construction of national identity in Rwanda and Haiti. My research reveals how subsistence producers, rural solidarity, and agrarian concepts of communal labor are central to understanding social and political upheaval, as well as post-disaster reconciliation and rebuilding in Haiti and Rwanda. Drawing from multidisciplinary perspectives, such as peasant literature, ethnography, and political ecology, this project explores how agricultural collectivism underlies diverse and often contrasting issues, including food security and mass violence.