Customer Reviews

Why The Cocks Fight

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We've needed a book that addresses Haiti and the Dominican Republic in the context of one another. Both keep cropping up in the news, and both keep trying to tear chunks out of each other. A meaningful study of the two nations together would make all the difference in the world in sorting out the important issues. But this isn't that book.

Oh, it's informative. It's also very close to being up to date, having been published in 1999. Wucker, who has written for Dominican newspapers in the U.S., knows whereof she speaks. But this book doesn't really treat both nations.

There's a great deal on the Dominican Republic. The convoluted history of the nation in the Twentieth Century has never been so eloquently explicated. It's a history of shifting alliances, powerful people, anger, justice, injustice, and more. And every bit of it helps in understanding the ins and outs of why so many Dominicans are coming to America and why we should care.

But Haiti glides by under the radar screen. Most of the material about Haiti in this book is actually about Haitians living in the Dominican Republic. The political information on Haiti seems to come almost entirely out of history books. Wucker travelled extensively in the Dominican Republic, but to judge by the contents of this book, she may have made one or two day trips across the border into Haiti, that's it.

Striking the balance between Dominican and Haitian issues is difficult, both on Hispaniola and in studies thereof. Ms. Wucker has tried to do so, and she's to be commended for that. Indeed, she's come closer to succeeding than anyone else in recent memory. However, this book is almost entirely one-sided, and just can't quite make the leap into usefulness.

This book is more about the Dominican Republic and the Dominican relationship to Haiti than it is about Haiti. Being quite familiar with Haiti and having considerably less knowledge of its neighbor, I found it quite informative.

Best of all, it's not academic writing. It's an easy read, quite accessible.

I recommend it.

As a Dominican-American with first hand experience in both worlds, I have to congratulate Michele on this great book! (My respect for Rice graduates continues to grow! :)) Her voice comes through with sincerity, beauty, respect, and truth. This book is a great read for anyone Dominican or otherwise who has the courage to face the subtle reality that is racial and political dynamics in the Hispanola and its relation with the US.

It saddens and embarrasses me deeply, to read (whether it is on this board, the NY Times or the Washington Post) how certain Dominicans continue to deny and even supress their own perceptions of race and its potential impact on political dynamics in the US, Europe and the island. It would be great if we as Dominicans could truly learn to love all of our racial roots. The world would be a better, more egalitarian, place to live.

PEACE

Today there are few travelers to the Island of Hispaniola compared to other Caribbean Islands. For those of you looking for a travel log you would be better served with Bradt's "Haiti & the Dominican Republic". If your are looking for information on the history, culture and politicts of Haiti and the Dominican Republic then this is the most complete and accurate book I have found.

I'm a frequent traveler to Hispaniola and specifically to Haiti where I lead several missionary trips a year. People who go on these trips always have a lot of questions and my most FAQ's are; "Why are they so poor? Why doesn't their Government help? What is the US doing?", etc. Michele Wucker takes all this dirty laundry out and waves it for everyone to see. She offers objective comparison of the cultures and why there is so much strife. The book is a compassionate dialog of history, fact and folklore that I couldn't put down. She spares no one and provides an honest and (I think) accurate review of all three countries involved (Haiti, The Dominican Republic, and The United States).

Why The Cocks Fight: Dominicans, Haitians, And The Struggle For Hispaniola is a definitive, informative, insightful study of the longstanding tensions between Dominicans and Haitians on their shared island of Hispaniola. Michele Wucker carefully takes the reader through the dramatic and bloody history, and current political dilemmas of the two nations' hostilities. Close attention is paid to the features of Caribbean life that affect modern Hispaniola in its relations to the United States and American involvement in the conflicts between these two island-sharing neighbors. Why The Cocks Fight is an excellent addition to the literature and highly recommended reading for students of international studies in general, and the Caribbean-based national conflicts of Haiti and the Dominican Republic in particular.

The evergoing conflict between the Dominican Republic and Haiti has never been a subject that has captured the international community's attention, due to their third-world status and their political instability. Unlike the only other Caribbean island to be shared by two foreign powers (St. Martin/St. Maarten), Hispaniola's history has always been linked to the topic of race and culture. As a student of Latin American & Caribbean politics and culture, I discovered many hidden truths I never knew when I was living in the cultural melting pot know as New York City. This book gave me even a greater understanding of two communities that are so close in proximity, yet so far apart in everything else.

Ms. Wucker definately has done extensive research and has delved into the complexity of racial politics on this island. Her research is not biased (as one reviewer feels it is) but rich in truth. As an author myself, I have written a book that will be published in the near future on the political legacy a famous Dominican politician has left his country, and Ms. Wucker's research coincides with the same exact research I did.

Although the author is not Haitian or Dominican, it shouldn't matter because she has done a magnificent job. I always said "it sometimes takes an outsider to understand and resolve the problems of a place he/she has never lived in." Ms. Wucker's work validates this saying.

Whether you are in Miami's Little Haiti or in New York City's Washington Heights neighborhoods, or even in some faraway place that is not directly affected by either Dominican or Haitian immigration or politics, this should be a must read for all. By reading this book, you might have understand what U.S. President Ulysses Grant was thinking when he declined an offer to "purchase" the Dominican Republic shortly after the end of the Civil War.

Overall, this is an excellent book and a must-read for anyone who is interested in cultural or political studies in the Third World.