POST-EARTHQUAKE FOSTERAGE OF CHILDREN ALONG THE HAITIAN- DOMINICAN BORDER By TESS M KULSTAD A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 2013 1 © 2013 Tess M Kulstad 2 To Matthew, whose unconditional love supported me to fulfill this dream. 3 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Haitians often rely on a wealth of proverbs to communicate profound wisdom. As I reflect on the culmination of this arduous, yet wonderful journey, there is one proverb that stands out above the rest: Men anpil, chay pa lou (Many hands make the load lighter.) This dissertation could not have been possible without the many hands that lifted and uplifted me as I worked towards this lifelong dream. A sense of profound gratitude goes to my advisor, Professor Gerald Murray. Without Dr. Murray’s consistent, thoughtful and pragmatic guidance, I would not have reached this joyful moment. I will always be indebted to Dr. Murray for inspiring me to take on the fascinating topic of child fosterage. But above all, I will be forever thankful to him for helping me rediscover Hispaniola, my beloved island, through the fascinating lens anthropology provides. Also, my sincere gratitude goes to his wife, Dr. María Alvarez, who advised me behind the scenes, and has treated me como si fuera una hija (like a daughter) for so many years. I am very fortunate to have had the support of a group of scholars that have demonstrated a firm and consistent commitment to my success. Professor Faye V. Harrison, Professor Charles H. Wood, Professor Clarence Gravlee and Professor Helen Safa have always believed in me and supported my work. Not only did they help carry my load, but more importantly they showed me that I could carry it on my own. Their work and their lives have been fundamental in my development as an anthropologist, researcher, teacher and mentor. I would also like to thank the many organizations that also helped make this project possible. My sincere appreciation goes to the National Science Foundation and 4 the Center for Latin American Studies at the University of Florida for their financial support of this project. Much gratitude is due to the many friends and family members that helped make the completion of this project possible. Although my parents, Bob and Norma, did not live to see this goal fulfilled, their lessons in compassion and in the continuous love of learning were present throughout the entire process. My sister, Pauline Kulstad, edited this document with an amazing degree of detail and provided me with valuable feedback on its contents. My families in Santo Domingo, San José de Ocoa, Wisconsin, South Carolina, and California provided me with invaluable logistical and emotional support. In Gainesville, my dear friends Charlotte Germain-Aubrey, Thomas Germain-Aubrey, Lynne Schreiber, Jim Weaver, Phil Kellerman and Efraín Barradas provided me with the inspiration, love, and support that helped me see this project to its end. And lastly, Matthew Kaye, my husband, deserves more than special recognition. Without him, I would have never been able to fulfill this childhood dream. His love, companionship, intellect, guidance and belief in me have helped me achieve more than I ever dreamt I could reach on my own. Lastly, I would like to recognize the many, many hands in Elías Piña that helped me carry this project to its fruition. While they deserve to be named in the same manner as everyone else has been, I will refrain from doing so as most wish to remain anonymous. Their assistance, support, and experiences helped me understand the many challenges, injustices, complexities and wonders of life on the Haitian-Dominican border. I sincerely hope that this project and my future endeavors help lighten their heavy load. 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................. 4 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................................. 9 ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................... 10 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................... 12 An Unexpected Topic.............................................................................................. 13 Situating Elías Piña within the Hispaniolan Context ................................................ 20 Conducting Research in Challenging Environments ............................................... 23 Data Analysis ................................................................................................... 27 Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 27 2 MAPS, BORDERS AND DISASTERS .................................................................... 32 Changing Perspectives ........................................................................................... 35 The Border and Haitian Disasters ........................................................................... 36 Unexpected Witness ............................................................................................... 38 Thinking Disasters .................................................................................................. 40 Alternative Perspectives ................................................................................... 41 Disaster Phases ............................................................................................... 44 The crisis.................................................................................................... 45 Explaining post-disaster solidarity .............................................................. 48 Secondary phase ....................................................................................... 49 Outside aid arrives ..................................................................................... 50 Passage to closure .................................................................................... 53 Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 53 3 THE DAY THE EARTH SHOOK UNDER OUR FEET ............................................ 58 Who Are the Victims? ............................................................................................. 60 Island-Wide Fear .................................................................................................... 63 A Haitian Catastrophe Above All Others ................................................................. 66 They Are Our Brothers ............................................................................................ 71 Helping Family .................................................................................................. 72 The Border .............................................................................................................. 76 Elías Piña in the Earthquake’s Aftermath ......................................................... 78 Personal experiences ................................................................................ 78 Border solidarity ......................................................................................... 88 The wounded, foreign aid and the displaced through Elías Piña ............... 90 Non-profit funding ...................................................................................... 92 6 Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 93 4 THE HAITIAN-DOMINICAN BORDER: A HISTORICAL OVERVIEW.................... 96 Border Stages ......................................................................................................... 99 The Emergence of the Border .......................................................................... 99 The Border Disappears .................................................................................. 102 The Political Border Reappears and Its Limits Are Tested ............................. 104 A Sociocultural Region That Defies Border Demarcations ............................. 106 Reification and Enforcement of the Border ..................................................... 109 Political Unrest in Haiti and the Market ........................................................... 114 Quirino ............................................................................................................ 117 The Market and Present Day Elías Piña Society .................................................. 119 Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 121 5 PEOPLE THINK THAT THIS IS HAITI: OUTSIDER PERCEPTIONS OF THE BORDER .............................................................................................................. 123 Why Are You Going There? Elías Piña Within the National Imagination ............. 126 Just a Line: The border within the National Imagination ....................................... 128 Creeping Images ............................................................................................ 131 Hidden Region ................................................................................................ 132 More Than a Line ..........................................................................................