Haiti is my heart. I first traveled there in 2001. I always say that I flew in one person and flew out another person. It changed me on a deeply visceral level. After that initial trip, I went back as often as I could. Being a teacher, I was fortuitous enough to have summer breaks and long holiday vacation. So in those times, I went to Haiti. I didn’t go to help poor, suffering Haitians.
If anything, it was the opposite. Yes, the poverty was staggering. Yes, the needs were many. But I went for the laughter, the art, the music, and the great conversations. I went to travel in tap-taps, swim under waterfalls, teach English, and learn Haitian Kreyol songs. I went to learn Haiti’s history of oppression and racism. What Pat Robertson heartlessly referred to, as a "Pact with the Devil" was actually a determined, relentless drive for freedom and an end to slavery. I went to learn about war reparations, which Haiti was forced to pay to France well into the 20th century. I went to learn about my own country’s role in the corruption and underdevelopment of Haiti. It was somber to learn that the Duvalier dictatorships had been backed and supported by our government. I went to giggle with kids, lend a helping hand as staff support at an Orthopedic Clinic, and eat juicy mangoes washed down by coconut milk.
Like so many, this earthquake shattered my heart. Yet I know stabilization and rebuilding of Haiti can happen, will happen, and must happen. I urge those overseeing this massive relief effort to rapidly and consistently provide aerial food drops. The daily report on the website of Doctors Without Borders one day after the earthquake said, "Some parts of the city are without electricity and people have gathered outside, lighting fires in the street and trying to help and comfort each other. There was strong solidarity among people in the streets." News footage and You Tube clips show people in the streets, singing to comfort one another. Those images are the Haiti I recognize.
According to the Canada Haiti Action Network, "News crews are looking for the story of desperate Haitians that are in hysterics. When in reality it is more often the Haitians that are acting calmly while the international community, the elite and politicians have melted down over the issue, and none seem to have the remotest idea what is going on."
Airlifts and parachute drops must be executed in this crucial time in order to prevent massive starvation. Each and every corporation must be challenged to give to established first responders already on the ground, such as Doctors Without Borders and Partners in Health. However, we all must give to second responders, who will be critical in stabilization and rebuilding efforts. Small, community-based NGOs like The Lambi Fund of Haiti (www.lambifund.org) and the Haitian People’s Support Project (www.haitiansupportproject.org) are experienced, ethical, and transparent—without the large and often time inefficient bureaucracies. They were in Haiti before the earthquake, and are on the ground now with desperate needs for food, water, and supplies.
If you can afford the internet connection to access dailykos, you can afford making a donation to Haiti relief. Haitians will hold strong. Now it is our turn to do the same.