Thank you for tuning in to another episode of the Bakari Sellers podcast.

Today we'll be interviewing my good friend and one of my favorite members of Congress.

That's actually a very true story.

Delegate Stacey Plaskett from the United States Virgin Islands.

But before we get to her, I want to talk about Haiti for a second because it's not getting

enough attention.

In case you've missed it in the last few weeks Haiti has

seen their president assassinated followed by protest and instability, followed by

a massive earthquake a few days ago, and as of this taping, hurricanes may follow.

Haiti's history is well known. They were the first independent country in the Caribbean in Latin America

and the second democracy in the Western Hemisphere. the in the French back in 1804.

Literally, since 1804, the country has paid the price for its independence,

first with having to pay the French reparations in 1825,

having to pay 21 billion dollars to France to preserve its

independence. Centuries of strife, interference from the West and internal

corruption follow. As to this, its location in Hurricane

Alley, the Caribbean, and on a major earthquake fault line you have the perfect

storm for political, historical, and geological headwinds that would keep any country from

prospering.

So it begs the question of what needs to happen.

I guess that's a question that the international community needs to answer.

But I think it starts with France paying back that $21 billion that cripple Haiti in the first place.

...