{"product_id":"the-spirits-and-the-law-vodou-and-power-in-haiti-9780226703800","title":"The Spirits and the Law: Vodou and Power in Haiti","description":"\u003cp\u003eVodou has often served as a scapegoat for Haiti's problems, from political upheavals to natural disasters. This tradition of scapegoating stretches back to the nation's founding and forms part of a contest over the legitimacy of the religion, both beyond and within Haiti's borders. \u003ci\u003eThe Spirits and the Law\u003c\/i\u003e examines that vexed history, asking why, from 1835 to 1987, Haiti banned many popular ritual practices. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e To find out, Kate Ramsey begins with the Haitian Revolution and its aftermath. Fearful of an independent black nation inspiring similar revolts, the United States, France, and the rest of Europe ostracized Haiti. Successive Haitian governments, seeking to counter the image of Haiti as primitive as well as contain popular organization and leadership, outlawed \"spells\" and, later, \"superstitious practices.\" While not often strictly enforced, these laws were at times the basis for attacks on Vodou by the Haitian state, the Catholic Church, and occupying U.S. forces. Beyond such offensives, Ramsey argues that in prohibiting practices considered essential for maintaining relations with the spirits, anti-Vodou laws reinforced the political marginalization, social stigmatization, and economic exploitation of the Haitian majority. At the same time, she examines the ways communities across Haiti evaded, subverted, redirected, and shaped enforcement of the laws. Analyzing the long genealogy of anti-Vodou rhetoric, Ramsey thoroughly dissects claims that the religion has impeded Haiti's development.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Kate Ramsey\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e University of Chicago Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 11\/13\/2015\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 448\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.43lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.99d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780226703800\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eKate Ramsey \u003c\/b\u003eis associate professor in the Department of History at the University of Miami.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"University of Chicago Press","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":44813158645875,"sku":"9780226703800","price":57.36,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0555\/9255\/0515\/files\/img_d68c528a-d0c6-4908-b251-687d58bcd19d.jpg?v=1776777639","url":"https:\/\/bookstorenmore.com\/products\/the-spirits-and-the-law-vodou-and-power-in-haiti-9780226703800","provider":"Bookstore N More","version":"1.0","type":"link"}