Guilberly Louissaint

GUILBERLY LOUISSAINT, then a graduate student at University of California, Irvine, California, was awarded a grant in October 2022 to aid research on “Transfusing Life: The State, Disasters, Development, and the Body Politics of Safe Blood in Haiti,” supervised by Dr. Damien Sojoyner. Two main factors emerged as reasons many Haitians often shy away from giving blood: malnutrition (mal manje), and economic insecurity. The high incidence of iron deficiency anemia among Haitians is a public health crisis, with half of the population being anemic, primarily due to food insecurity. Interviews indicated that there is a strong sense of civic duty motivating many to donate blood, but because the basic physical needs of the populace, such as adequate nutrition and healthcare, are not met by the state, the volunteer-based economy of donation cannot consistently recruit a number of donors sufficient to meet the need. For many Haitians, the labor of giving blood becomes a gift that sustains the life of another but may compromise one’s health, and so is reserved for family or friends in urgent situations. Donating blood necessitates a complex calculation and assessment of social bonds, personal practices, and the political and economic conditions of the nation. Current data demonstrates that the question of Haitian political sovereignty is configured in the Haitian bio-economy of blood, as the ability to secure blood depends on the state formation, such as the transportation and collection of provisionality.