Book

When the hands are many: community organization and social change in rural Haiti

Cornell University PressIthacaPublished In 2001 • Pages:

By: Smith, Jennie Marcelle.

AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This book discusses the structural causes for the continued impoverishment and marginalization of Haiti rural people from the sufferers' point of view. While recognizing Haitian peasants as some of the most politically disempowered, malnourished, and illiterate people in the world, the author argues that they are capable of explaining the causes of their problems with their own words and 'theories.' Taking the poor's own models for explaining these problems, the book hopes to reverse earlier analysis of Haitians as victims hopelessly waiting to be rescued through material and technical aid. Much of the book is devoted to a closer portrayal of poor peoples' struggle to survive the harsh realities of life in Haiti by finding meaning, protecting their dignity, building community and working toward a more decent tomorrow.
SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
Cultural identity and pride
Poverty
Chief executive
Accumulation of wealth
Social relationships and groups
Taxation and public income
Research and development
External relations
Ingroup antagonisms
Exploitation
Political movements
Slavery
Naming
Verbal arts
Administrative agencies
Ethnosociology
Cooperative organization
Ethics
Labor supply and employment
Congregations
cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
Haitians
HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
2012
RegionThe area the document pertains to
Middle America and the Caribbean
Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
Caribbean
Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
Book
Evaluation
Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
Anthropologist
Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
5: Excellent Primary Data
AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
Teferi Abate Adem; 2011
Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
1988-1991, 1995-1996
Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
1800-2001
Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
Haiti
NotesAdditional notes
Jennie Marcelle Smith
Includes bibliographical references (p. 213-223) and index
LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
00012448
LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
Peasants--Political activity--Haiti--Grand'Anse (Dept.)
Peasants--Haiti--Grand'Anse (Dept.)--Societies, etc.
Community organization--Haiti--Grand'Anse (Dept.)
Social values--Haiti--Grand'Anse (Dept.)
Folk songs, Creole--Social aspects--Haiti--Grand'Anse(Dept.)
Subject keywords: Chante pwen