Seeing the world through Haitian eyes, one episode at a time.
In-depth conversations with the scholars, authors, and cultural voices shaping our understanding of Haiti — from the revolution to the diaspora, from the archives to the living room. Hosted by Patrick Jean-Baptiste.
Each series opens a different window into Haitian life, scholarship, and memory.
Long-form conversations with historians, political scientists, and literary scholars whose books are reshaping the field of Haitian Studies.
59+ episodesStories from the diaspora and Haiti itself — cultural memory, family life, community, and the lived experience of being Haitian in the world.
12+ episodesQuick-hit scholarly explainers — one question, one scholar, one essential insight into Haitian history and culture.
52+ episodesExtended multi-part conversations with the towering figures of Haitian scholarship — foundational thinkers whose work defines the field.
OngoingMonthly deep-dives with Dr. Robert Fatton on Haiti’s current political crisis, tracing the roots of today’s disorder through history.
MonthlyThe Haitian Revolution told from the other side — white colonial survivors, their fear, their flight, and what their accounts reveal.
Special seriesA selection across series — each one a doorway into the depth and breadth of Haitian history.
Dr. Chelsea Stieber
A war of swords and of pens — Stieber explores how the concept of freedom was hotly contested in the public sphere after independence, through newspapers, broadsheets, and literature.
Dr. Robert Fatton, Jr.
From its foundation, Haiti has grappled with social, economic, and political systems that marginalized the majority. Dr. Fatton traces the roots of authoritarian governance.
Prof. Yveline Alexis
Winner of the 2021 HSA Book Prize. The first US scholarly examination of the caco leader who fought the US military occupation of Haiti.
Guilaine Brutus
A raw, emotionally heavy conversation about the practice of Restavek — not child servitude, but slavery — and its long-lasting consequences on families and culture.
Dr. Ashli White
Winner of the Gilbert Chinard Prize. How the Haitian Revolution forced Americans to confront the paradox of being a slaveholding republic.
Dr. Celucien L. Joseph (Dr. Lou)
A special volume on Jean Price-Mars that reassesses the importance of his thought and legacy for contemporary Haitian Studies and the meaning of Africa in the world today.
Dr. Jeremy Popkin
Eyewitness accounts of the Haitian insurrection — the underdeveloped state of French scholarship, the controversial survivor narratives, and the role of literacy in maintaining colonial memory.
Dr. Hadassah St. Hubert
Colorism in the archives, weaponized language, and the surprising intensity of doing primary-source research in Haitian history.
As of April 2025, new episodes are published exclusively at istwanou.net. Legacy episodes from Apple Podcasts and Spotify will migrate to istwanou.net by the end of 2025. Subscribe at istwanou.net to never miss an episode.
Host · Istwanou Podcast
World historian specializing in Haitian history and culture. Creator of the Istwanou historical archive and the Legacy Tour. Every conversation on this podcast begins with the same conviction: Haitian history deserves the same scholarly rigor, the same narrative grandeur, and the same institutional investment as any other civilization’s story.