Haiti in the New World Order: The Limits of the Democratic Revolution

This book, a critical study of Haiti's place in the New World Order, examines the limits of its “democratic revolution” and the prospects for social change. Exploring why the successive military governments in power between 1986 and 1990 were unable to implement the neoliberal economic reforms sanctioned by the World Bank and USAID, Dupuy also analyzes the emergence, composition, and objectives of the popular democratic movement that challenged the military and led to the electoral victory of Jean-Bertrand Aristide.The book provides a comprehensive evaluation of Aristide's religious, social, and political thought and practice; the nature of the opposition to Aristide from the Catholic Church, the Haitian bourgeoisie, and the military; and the causes of the military coup d'état in 1991. Dupuy explains why, in a clear policy shift, the United States opposed a coup against the radical populist president, enumerates the concessions it won from Aristide as a condition of his return, and discusses the implications for the democratic process of military intervention and the adoption of the neoliberal model.