Is This the Authentic Face of Toussaint L’Ouverture?

In the 2011 article “Is This the Authentic Face of Toussaint L’Ouverture?” Patrick Sylvain, instructor of Haitian Language and Culture at Brown University and contributing editor to the Boston Haitian Reporter, addresses the misinterpretation of Toussaint L’Ouverture throughout the years.

If there is one important historical figure from the early nineteenth century who has been consistently misrepresented through imagery, it would have to be Toussaint L’Ouverture. One would think that as a minimum, someone of his ilk and significance to Haitian history and the overall contribution to humanity’s fight for equality, freedom and dignity, a proper physical representation of his figure would be easily accessible. However, that has not been the case. As we know, images are powerful tools. Unfortunately, they are often conjured and perpetuated by the victors of history, and are thus prone to reimaging and propaganda. Predictably, the essence of Toussaint over the years has suffered a…