Case file · Witch trials
The anti-superstition campaign
In 1941–42 the Haitian Catholic Church, backed by President Élie Lescot, ran a campaign to stamp out Vodou: drums and sacred objects were burned and believers made to swear an anti-superstition oath.
1941 CE · 18.54, -72.33 · status: official
The account
Temples were destroyed across the country. It ended after a protest in which shots were fired during a Mass in Delmas in 1942 and the government withdrew its support. Many objects now valued as sacred art were lost.