Jean-Claude Duvalier in the context of "Presidency of Jimmy Carter"

The Duvalier family (French: Dynastie des Duvalier; Haitian Creole: Dinasti Duvalier) was a totalitarian hereditary dictatorship in Haiti that lasted almost 29 years, from 1957 until 1986, spanning the rule of the father-and-son duo François Duvalier ("Papa Doc") and Jean-Claude Duvalier ("Baby Doc").

The 1991 Haitian coup d'état resulted in the overthrow of Jean-Bertrand Aristide, the democratically-elected president of Haiti, by a contingent of the Haitian military led by General Raoul Cédras and Chief of National Police Michel François. The coup began on 29 September 1991, when Haitian troops mutinied, launching a violent takeover that involved attacking Aristide's residence, committing massacres, and ultimately forcing Aristide into exile in Venezuela. Cédras announced the military's takeover on 30 September.

Prior to the coup, beginning in 1957, Haiti was ruled by the dictatorships of François and Jean-Claude Duvalier. Amidst political violence and growing poverty, an opposition movement began to form. Aristide arose as a prominent figure within this movement, participating in the protests that forced Jean-Claude to flee Haiti in 1986. After Jean-Claude's overthrow, Haiti was controlled by a series of military-dominated governments, but popular movements such as Aristide's Lavalas (transl. 'Avalanche') continued to mobilize, leading to Aristide's victory in the 1990–91 Haitian general election. As president, Aristide implemented populist and social democratic reforms focused on aiding Haiti's poor, which generated significant opposition from the military, wealthy elites, and the United States.

Jean-Bertrand Aristide (French pronunciation: [ʒɑ̃ bɛʁtʁɑ̃ aʁistid]; born 15 July 1953) is a Haitian former Salesian priest and politician who became Haiti's first democratically elected president in 1991 before being deposed in a coup d'état. As a priest, he taught liberation theology and, as president, he attempted to normalize Afro-Creole culture, including Vodou religion, in Haiti.

Aristide was appointed to a parish in Port-au-Prince in 1982 after completing his studies to become a priest. He became a focal point for the pro-democracy movement, first under Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier and then under the military transition regime which followed. He won the 1990–91 Haitian presidential election with 67% of the vote but was ousted just months later in the September 1991 military coup. The coup regime collapsed in 1994 under U.S. pressure and threat of force (Operation Uphold Democracy), and Aristide was president again from 1994 to 1996 and from 2001 to 2004.

Carrefour (French pronunciation: [kaʁfuʁ] ; Haitian Creole: Kafou, pronounced [kafu], meaning Crossroads in English) is a largely residential commune in the Port-au-Prince Arrondissement, in the Ouest department of Haiti. Port-au-Prince has a population of 1,234,742 while the commune has a population of 501,768.

Before the exile of Jean-Claude Duvalier, Carrefour was viewed as a Haitian tourist destination.

The Anti-Duvalier protest movement was a series of demonstrations in Haiti from 23 May 1984 to 7 February 1986 that led to the overthrow of President Jean-Claude Duvalier and the Duvalier dynasty regime and the readoption of the original flag and coat of arms of the country.

The protests were sparked by economic hardship, and widespread human rights abuses, the protests marked a significant turning point in Haitian political history. Duvalier fled into exile on 7 February 1986, ending nearly three decades of dynastic rule by the Duvalier family and paving the way for a new transitional government.