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黑料网 bioengineering major Bridget Woody '20, delves into brutal history of imperialism in Haiti that offers lessons for today.

It鈥檚 the kind of story, says 黑料网 bioengineering major Bridget Woody 鈥�20, that could be pulled from current headlines: a country in chaos, reeling from a power vacuum, threatens an imperial nation. A military colossus seizes its chance, moves in to 鈥渟ecure peace,鈥� leaving  tragedy in its wake.

Such was the backdrop for the U.S. Marines鈥� occupation of Haiti from 1915-1934. Add in racism and xenophobia鈥攐r more specifically, a fear of vodou, the Afro-Creole religion of Haiti鈥攖ogether with a hapless American plan to eradicate those beliefs, and you have the theme of her 2018  鈥�The American Crusades: Exploring the Impact of Marine Persecution of Vodou in U.S. Occupied Haiti,鈥� published in 黑料网鈥檚 Historical Perspectives.

鈥淲hen it comes to human nature, if someone tries to prevent you from practicing one of your central beliefs, people don鈥檛 like that,鈥� says Woody, a history minor who researched the invasion. 鈥淎nd that is still relevant today.鈥�

An awakening at 黑料网

What inspired the 21-year-old 黑料网 Dean鈥檚 Scholar and bioengineering major planning on a career in the medical device industry to pursue a course that introduced her to the tyranny of imperialism?

A variety of interests, she says, including a love of writing, a lifelong interest in history, and Santa Clara鈥檚 flexible core curriculum鈥攁 series of required courses that directs students toward an informed ethical engagement with the world.

鈥淎 lot of themes in my first religious class and Cultures & Ideas courses were stories about different global communities, and seeing imperialism in my history classes really affected me,鈥� recalls the Wisconsin native, who is interning at a healthcare company that creates minimally-invasive solutions for uterine fibroids.

鈥淓ven though I鈥檓 not religious, I like the Jesuit values of community and kind of being witness to everyone around you, whether in your immediate community, or distant.鈥�

As a history minor, Woody also enjoyed the fact that she could explore an eclectic range of topics in the department.

鈥淚 could go take whatever classes I was interested in,鈥� she says, 鈥渁nd I really enjoyed the aspect of social history.鈥�

For instance, the American Revolution 鈥渨as not just about George Washington and crossing the Delaware River,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 learned to focus on the social history in college, like what happened to women and minorities, not just the soldiers or the major players.鈥�

Intrigued by South American and Caribbean history and a course that was narrowly focused on one event in time, Woody enrolled in the of 1791-1804, taught by associate professor of history Naomi Andrews.

Central to Woody's interests was how the U.S. and Europe have often used their power to meddle around the globe. Woody鈥檚 final assignment was to write a research paper within the scope of what she had learned in Andrews鈥� class, from the devastating price weaker nations often pay, to the brutal toll of slavery and human suffering.

鈥淭he main theme I wanted to convey was kind of how ruthless the U.S. occupiers were in what was their self-proclaimed 鈥榗ivilized mission,鈥欌�� Woody says about her paper.  "I think we see that a lot in imperialism鈥攐ccupying forces attempting to pressure people under the name of civility. I wanted to challenge the idea of what that (civility) is,鈥� says Woody.  

Researching the background for her paper and having to synthesize it was challenging, Woody says. But the process taught her how to use databases and organize her thoughts, something she found invaluable for her other classes at Santa Clara.

It also partly guided her recent application for a Scholarship鈥攕he is now a semifinalist鈥攁nd if awarded a Fulbright, Woody hopes to travel to Jamaica to study how technology and new agricultural methods introduced during Britain鈥檚 rule of the country influenced the lives of slaves.

鈥淭he Haitian Revolution was a very bloody and ongoing 12-year conflict involving the French forces who wanted to hold onto their very profitable sugar and coffee resources,鈥� explains Woody.

鈥淲hat really stands out to me is that at the time, it was seen as a crazy act of revolution against imperial overlords. But from a modern perspective, it鈥檚 a completely justified revolt by the oppressed.鈥�

Fact versus fiction

The U.S. maintained that its occupation in Haiti was about keeping peace in the Western Hemisphere, says Woody. After more than a century of self-rule, the country had become politically instable, raising the stakes for American business interests and growing international influence there.

鈥淚n a way, it kind of had pre-Cold War vibes, meaning that American forces and the U.S. government were really concerned with 鈥渘on-American鈥� values, and were fearful of them,鈥� she says.

To help justify the U.S. occupation, the American media stigmatized  as witchcraft, violent and sacrificial. Few Marines bothered to learn that vodou鈥檚 core pillars actually rely upon interconnectedness and personal worship.   

Often鈥攁nd incorrectly鈥攊nterchanged with Louisiana voodoo, Woody says Haitian vodou is descended from diverse religions practiced by multitudes of mostly West Africans captured during the 17th century slave trade, who were then sent to European colonies in the Caribbean and Brazil.

Yet the U.S. propaganda鈥攚ith its images of zombies and pins-in-dolls鈥攑rovoked the U.S. occupiers who feared its use on them. So they routinely destroyed the Haitians鈥� drums used for vodou鈥檚 religious rituals, imprisoned vodou leaders who were often murdered while incarcerated, and beat and tortured Haitian forced laborers 鈥渇or no reason other than increasing productivity or discouraging unfamiliar worship,鈥� she writes.

But instead of stamping out the rituals and behaviors they found threatening, the Marines achieved the opposite of what they sought, transforming Haitian vodou 鈥渇rom a personal practice into a broader, more subversive form of worship.鈥�

For Woody, the legacies of the represent the resilience of the Haitian people, rather than the violence of oppression.

鈥淭he Haitian Vodouization refused to allow a foreign power to dominate their system of worship,鈥� she concludes, 鈥渞eclaiming every aspect of appropriation that they could.鈥�