Missing the Forest for the Trees in the Gun Trafficking Issue in Haiti

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The ongoing debate among Haitian advocates about the US's accountability for supplying arms and ammunition highlights our incapacity to develop a common agenda and achieve a shared goal.

Firearms have become the leading cause of death for children and teenagers in the United States

As a Haitian activist, I have been frustrated and discouraged by a seemingly minor yet significant difference with fellow activists concerning the US government's responsibility for supplying illegal weapons to gangs in Haiti. Unquestionably, the illegal trafficking of guns poses a challenge for Haiti. But it is also one for the US and the world. This is a fact fellow activists ignore, which does a disservice to the debate but also the broader fight against an extremely powerful interest.

According to The Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), firearms have become the leading cause of death for children and teenagers in the United States, surpassing motor vehicle accidents and other injuries. This reality should lead activists to conclude that the proliferation of guns is a shared issue for Haiti and the US, and offers opportunities to form broader coalitions to fight against gun manufacturers and their powerful lobbies. However, our singular focus on the US's responsibility has led to policy paralysis.

Some activists argue that Haiti does not manufacture guns or ammunition.

Some activists argue that Haiti does not manufacture guns or ammunition. They advance that the gangs' ability to access increasingly powerful weapons of war is proof of a secret US neocolonial plan to demolish Haiti from within. However, this line of thinking is flawed in multiple ways.

First, those who advance the argument that the US government is involved in gun trafficking to Haiti have not provided any evidence to support their claim. Second, they seem to ignore the fact that Haitians in the diaspora and in Haiti itself are both involved in the supply and demand of guns. Finally, they overlook the fact that gun trafficking is a problem for people living in the United States as well.

While it is important to hold US manufacturers accountable for their role in weakening gun laws and for their illegal gun sales, it is misleading and misguided to accuse the US government of supplying illegal weapons to gangs in Haiti.

Non-US-based Activists ignore the US reality at the peril of their activism

Many of my non-US-based colleagues don't grasp that, as a resident of the United States, I am deeply concerned about the alarming statistics on gun deaths in the US. In 2021, there were more than 48,000 firearm homicides and suicides in the United States alone. These numbers reflect the need for more stringent gun control measures in the US. In 2022, the city of Boulder, Colorado was the site of a mass shooting that left 10 people dead. As a result, activists in are pressuring their local officials to take on the gun manufacturers in the courts.

For example, In 2022, the city of Buffalo in NY “filed a lawsuit against several gun manufacturers and distributors.  The suit alleged that those manufacturers fueled violence in the city by making or providing "thousands of firearms recovered in crimes committed in the City of Buffalo and New York State." In another example, this past January, New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a motion for a preliminary injunction against ten national gun distributors, demanding that they immediately stop selling and shipping illegal unfinished and/or unserialized frames and receivers, or "ghost gun" parts, to New York consumers.

I am also concerned about the gun violence situation in Haiti. In 2022, there were more than 530 people killed in gang-related violence in Haiti. This is a staggering number, and it is clear that something needs to be done to address the problem of gun violence in Haiti.

I believe that both the US and Haiti need to take steps to address the problem of gun violence. In the US, we need to pass stricter gun control laws. In Haiti, we need to strengthen the rule of law and improve the security situation. We also need to address the root causes of gun violence, such as poverty and inequality.

Hold gun makers accountable while demanding tighter measures in Haiti and the diaspora.

This difference in focus has created division among activists and advocates, weakening the broader coalition that is needed to tackle the issue of gun trafficking. This includes controlling the ports, especially the private ones, and tightening security at the border with the Dominican Republic.

However, Haitian advocates' focus has been exclusively on the US's accountability for gun trafficking in Haiti. This approach is being used by local actors as a political tool to avoid addressing the need for gun control measures in Haiti.

We must participate in the broader conversation and activism of states and cities in the US as well as other countries like Mexico. By working together, we can make a difference.

Here are some ways that we can participate:

• We can contact our elected officials and let them know that we support the “Haiti Criminal Collusion Transparency Act (S. 396 and H.R. 1684).” To easily write to your representatives in Congress click on this Faith campaign.

• We can volunteer our time to help organizations that are working to bring peace to Haiti (Konbit for Haiti or NHAEON).

• We can educate ourselves about gun violence in violence in Haiti and share what we learn with others.

• We can speak out against those who are supporting gang leaders and sponsors in Haiti, and encourage others to do the same.

In conclusion, as a gun control advocate, I believe that we need to avoid disregarding the forest for the trees in the discussion about the US's responsibility for gun trafficking in Haiti.

While it's important to hold US gun makers accountable for their role in gun trafficking, we must not overlook the immediate need for tighter measures in Haiti and the diaspora. We must hold to account those, especially Haitians in the diaspora who are supplying weapons and those in Haiti who have created a market with their demands for more lethal weapons. By converging the efforts of Haitian advocates with those from the US and others from Latin America and the Caribbean that have shared interests and goals, we can create a more powerful coalition that can effectively tackle gun trafficking both in the US and in Haiti.