You´re not so far off the mark, mr. Manhattanite. Although we can say in our favour that, compared with the English-Irish feud, ours have been only a simple fist fight between school children.

Even thought we live in the same island, we are really different, some of those differences are religious, language, behavior… Perhaps if we look deeper we might find some similarities but at the end we as humankind like to look at our differences instead of what make us brothers and sisters..

Another thing (that I think is changing lately) is what we are taught about Haitians… Budu is used to harm people. Don’t know if it is true but that make Haitians culture to look frightening.

- Have not seen a community with a lot of Haitians living in, but I have seen on TV some confrontations among them, that also create a barrier.
- We want to maintain the identity of our nation

These are some of the aspects that make our relationship sometimes a litter bit bitter.

My personal opinion is that, we have to learn to get along with Haitians, we share the same island, and we can learn a lot from them. As long as we continue being Dominicanos separated countries, independent, something that we have earned through history

Mr. Dom, forget what you heard about voudo (correct spelling). voudo is not a religion that deals with zombies or sacrificing people. I think most Dominicans should research what voudo is before making assumptions(If Im wrong by my assertions of the word "budu" that you wrote, please disregard this).

Thanks jemesouviens!!!

What I have heard about voodoo (that's the correct spelling) is that it divides itself in two branches:

a) The one of the benevolent spirits (Rada), which includes the spirits (or Gods) of love (Erzulie), the Creator (Dumballa), among others.

b) The one that deals with evil spirits (Petro), which includes the god of war (Ogun) and the spirit of the death (Baron Samedi).

Lautaro, your correct in your definition but the spelling is wrong my friend. The proper way to spell it is voudo and not Voodoo. The latter is the way it is spelled in hollywood movies and such.

The most common misconception that I have heard about it, mr. souviens, is that it's used chiefly for nefarious purposes (as in asking a spirit for something bad to befall to one's enemy). That's why you'll find people saying: "How will that country advance if its people are occupied casting spells and jinxes against each other" or some other BS like that.

Indeed that is correct, Lautaro, but voudo is much more than that. Its a religion that is very similar to some of the Native American religions but it involves much more of a "Christianity" element within it. Sadly enough, movies like "The Serpent and The Rainbow" have not accurately portrayed it.....Now that I think about it, the media have not portrayed anything that is Haiti/Haitian accurately.

Yep, there's not much difference between a voudo houngan/mambo and a Native American shaman. The powerful influence that they hold over their spiritual communities is also very much alike.

I think that the damage done to the image of Haiti is so extensive that it will be very difficult to bridge the gap between Haitian and Dominican relations. I would love to see the day when a majority of Dominicans smile when they hear the word Haiti/Haitian, and try to say "Sak Pase" or try to speak French/Kreyol to us, but in my mind thats just a fantasy.