Its moment of glory came in 1804, when its former slaves founded the first independent black republic.

ECONOMIST: Rebuilding Haiti

When the colonialists were forced out, partly by a slave revolt, Haiti became the first free black republic in 1804.

BBC: Quake-stricken Haiti bears scars six months on

This was the beginning of the process that led to the creation of the Republic of Haiti, the first independent black republic of the world.

UNESCO: MEDIA SERVICES

This is a significant date as it recalls an uprising of enslaved Africans on the island of Saint Domingue in 1791, resulting in the establishment of the Republic of Haiti, the first black independent state in the Western World.

UNESCO: UK National Commission for UNESCO :: 2010 International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition

Crew and Banana Republic, not to mention Brooks Brothers' Black Fleece collections.

WSJ: Ask Teri: The Skinny Men's Suit

One of this year's most intriguing entries is by Sammy Baloji, who superimposes colonial black and white archive photos of Belgian-run mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo and places them over his color images of the decaying mines as seen today.

CNN: Photos capture plundering of Earth's resources