Haitian Ambassador Responds to Pat Robertson

Haiti's ambassador to the United States appeared on The Rachel Maddow Show on Wednesday and debunked comments from televangelist Pat Robertson, who blamed the country's devastating earthquake on the 18th-century slave revolt against the French.

Earlier, Robertson said on The700 Club that the earthquake was caused by a pact with the devil made when Haitian slaves launched their successful revolt against the French colonial power in the late 1700s.

"They got together and swore a pact to the devil," said Robertson. "They said, 'We will serve you if you will get us free from the French.'"

Ambassador Joseph deflated the remark by explaining how the slave revolt, which led to Haitian independence, allowed the United States to make its purchase of the Louisiana Territory, and propelled Latin American countries toward independence.

"So, what pact the Haitians made with the devil has helped the United States become what it is," said Joseph.

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