First discovered in 1492 by Christopher Columbus, Cuba was ruled by Spain for many centuries, and served as a springboard for Conquistadores such as Hernan Cortes entering the Americas.  Spanish rule became increasingly repressive and neglectful, leading to a growing independence movement.  In 1898, with US assistance in the Spanish-American war, the subsequent Treaty of Paris granted Cuban independence.  In 1959, Communist revolutionary Fidel Castro overthrew the Cuban government and held his iron regime for the next 50 years before finally leaving the country to his brother, Raul Castro.

Cuban agriculture produces beans, coffee, sugar, rice, citrus, potatoes, and livestock.  Before the 1959 Revolution, Cuba’s tropical climate made it a popular vacation spot.

Religion is suppressed in Cuba as a result of the Communist government.  Private citizens are not permitted to access the internet without special authorization, and an expensive mobile telephone network limits cellular phone usage.  Many Cuban women and children are victimized by human sex trafficking.  Others are sent to the United States as forced laborers.  The Cuban government has made little effort to curb these practices.  Many Cuban citizens are smuggled out of the country while others flee to the United States on makeshift rafts.  78 Cubans have come to Pennsylvania so far this year.

The country of Haiti is located on the western side of the island of Hispaniola (the Dominican Republic borders Haiti to the west) and lies between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean. It is just slightly smaller than the state of Maryland.

Haiti is rich in natural resources that include bauxite, copper, calcium carbonate, gold, marble and hydropower, but mismanagement of these resources caused the country to fall into financial ruin.

Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere with 80 % of the population living under the poverty line and 54% in abject poverty. Two-thirds of all Haitians depend on the agricultural sector, mainly small-scale subsistence farming, and remain vulnerable to damage from frequent natural disasters, exacerbated by the country's widespread deforestation. While the economy has just shown signs of recovery in recent years, four tropical storms in 2008 severely damaged the transportation infrastructure and agricultural sector. Haiti suffers from high inflation, a lack of investment because of insecurity and limited infrastructure, and a severe trade deficit. In 2005, Haiti paid its arrears to the World Bank, paving the way for reengagement with the Bank. Haiti is expected to receive debt forgiveness for about $525 million of its debt through the Highly-Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) initiative by mid-2009. The government relies on formal international economic assistance for fiscal sustainability.

Beginning in the mid-1950s and lasting until the 80s, Haiti was terrorized by a familial dictatorship; the overwhelmingly oppressive François Duvalier and his son, Jean-Claude. Between the two men, more than 30,000 Haitians were imprisoned or executed if they dared oppose either man’s governmental rule. Tens of thousands of countrymen and women fled Haiti in search of new havens in neighboring and northern countries such as The Bahamas and the United States.