Past Dark

Tonton Macoute

Episode Summary

The Tonton Macoute were Francois “Papa Doc” Duvalier’s secret voodoo police, a private army who terrorized Haiti using psycho-religious warfare and random violence. Duvalier built his army from the most violent and psychopathic of the population, giving them free reign to rape and pillage under his protection. Their denim uniforms, straw hats and dark shades worn even at night have become a Haitian archetype for evil.

Episode Notes

Music and Audio Used in this Episode:

Yoshimasu Kamiya- Interlude Limbo

Schemawound- If You Can’t Be the Sun Be the Sun

Six Umbrellas- The And of the World

Monplaisir- Weird Serious Jingle of Death

Drake Stafford- Weirder

Apache Tomcat- By Request

Kevin Macleod-Ancient Rite


 

All music is Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License


 

from freemusicarchive.org


 

Additional audio from Whicker’s World episode “Papa Doc- The Black Sheep”, hosted by

Alan Whicker, originally broadcast 17 June 1969 under Fair Use.


 

Additional incidental music by Skillpak

Past Dark is written and produced by Carmen Park

Episode Transcription

There is a legend in Haitian Creole mythology about a boogeyman. 

The English translate his name as Uncle Gunnysack. He is a giant, a zombie, or a scarecrow covered in human skin. His legs are two floors high, and he stinks of the grave. He creeps by night into quiet villages, stealing into homes, snatching naughty children. All disappear into his heaving gunnysack, and are never seen again.

Its only a legend, of course. Unless you are Haitian. Then you’d know Uncle Gunnysack in his living embodiment- a gang of bullies, sadists and rapists , created, nurtured and officially sanctioned by the so-called “President for Life”, Francois Papa Doc Duvalier. Using random violence and psychoreligious warfare as their weapons of choice, they were the Voodoo police- the Tonton Macoute. 

And its Past Dark.