This is a word, a podcast from Slate. I'm your host, Jason Johnson.

Hades' entire history as a nation has been plagued by crisis and further damage by many

American and international efforts to help. But even the most jaded observers say the

current unrest is unprecedented. What, if anything, can the United States do?

This administration that centers democracy and human rights in its foreign policy

has an obligation to see the democratic transition through and the country right now.

Is there a path out of the crisis in Haiti coming up on a word? With me, Jason Johnson, stay with us.

Welcome to a word, a podcast about race and politics and everything else. I'm your host,

Jason Johnson. Ever since its leader was assassinated in 2021, Haiti has been plunged into a cycle

of violence and despair. The capital, Porter Prince, has been terrorized by armed gangs that have

made daily life nearly impossible. Citizens have seen their neighborhoods and even their homes

overrun by bandits. Kidnappings are rampant and the murder rate is so high that the United

Nations estimates more civilians died in Haiti than in Ukraine during the first four months of the

year. The disorder has left the nation's economy in shambles. Inflation is running rampant,

leaving necessities of life, including food, out of reach for many Haitians. Leaders of what

remains of the government there have been calling on the US and the United Nations to step in for

close to a year. But Haiti's past is full of interventions that left its people more poor,

more sick, and more in danger of violence and exploitation than before the interventions.

What if anything should the US and the international community do to help Haiti and what can be

learned from failed interventions in the past? Joining us for more perspective is Patrick Gaspart. He's

a former ambassador to the South Africa and the current president and chief executive officer

of the Center for American Progress. Ambassador Gaspart, welcome to a word.

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