When was the last time you thought about the people devastated by the earthquake in Haiti? For most people, it seems like ancient history- a sad time when the poorest of the poor had their lives ripped apart and a time when the world came together to help a nation in need- but it was only less than five months ago that the quake hit.
A friend, and former teacher of mine, Br. Jim Boynton, S.J., moved down to Haiti in the summer of 2009 when he was reassigned by his Jesuit superiors to work at a school there. He found himself in the midst of the rescue and relief efforts immediately after the quake and worked with Team Rubicon, a group of former Marines who use their emergency medical knowledge to assist post-disaster efforts. I wrote Jim last week to check up on how things were going with him and with the relief effort. His responses to email are brief, as the only internet access he usually gets is via iPhone, but he wrote of the current situation:
As noted above, the response to the disaster in Haiti was an amazing one. Seeing all the nations of the world work together for a common goal that didn't involve combat was an impressive thing that gave a lot of people great hope. But as the news cameras leave and the nation's collective attention is turned to other disasters, it's easy to feel like we've done our part and that "old" issue is done with.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation recently offered $10m to Haiti to bolster mobile banking, which has done great things for poverty-stricken peoples in the recent past. Other efforts continue in Haiti, but clearly don't get the press they used to and still deserve. Certainly, we can't continue to donate to the Red Cross for every disaster that comes along. The oil spill in the Gulf has gripped out attention recently (and rightfully so). But just as the people of post-Katrina New Orleans were eventually cast out of the limelight for the next big story, so too are the people of Haiti now. Prayers, thoughts, checking online for news updates, these are all important steps to at least not forgetting the struggle that the Haitian people continue with day after day.
A friend, and former teacher of mine, Br. Jim Boynton, S.J., moved down to Haiti in the summer of 2009 when he was reassigned by his Jesuit superiors to work at a school there. He found himself in the midst of the rescue and relief efforts immediately after the quake and worked with Team Rubicon, a group of former Marines who use their emergency medical knowledge to assist post-disaster efforts. I wrote Jim last week to check up on how things were going with him and with the relief effort. His responses to email are brief, as the only internet access he usually gets is via iPhone, but he wrote of the current situation:
things are advancing on the jesuit front, but the nation as a whole does not seem to be doing too well. there are still 1000's in refugee camps living in complete squalor. it is hard.
As noted above, the response to the disaster in Haiti was an amazing one. Seeing all the nations of the world work together for a common goal that didn't involve combat was an impressive thing that gave a lot of people great hope. But as the news cameras leave and the nation's collective attention is turned to other disasters, it's easy to feel like we've done our part and that "old" issue is done with.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation recently offered $10m to Haiti to bolster mobile banking, which has done great things for poverty-stricken peoples in the recent past. Other efforts continue in Haiti, but clearly don't get the press they used to and still deserve. Certainly, we can't continue to donate to the Red Cross for every disaster that comes along. The oil spill in the Gulf has gripped out attention recently (and rightfully so). But just as the people of post-Katrina New Orleans were eventually cast out of the limelight for the next big story, so too are the people of Haiti now. Prayers, thoughts, checking online for news updates, these are all important steps to at least not forgetting the struggle that the Haitian people continue with day after day.
2 comments:
My mom was just in Haiti a few weeks ago. She said that it still looks like the earthquake just happened. I agree that the follow through is hard and that what's more difficult is the continuing immediate need that faces the country - ie food, water, shelter. Which were certainly concerns before the earthquake as well. What I question is the same thing I questioned right after the earthquake - which is, "What can I/we do about it?" I mean that not in a hopeless way, but in a way that takes responsibility for the needs of all. The immediate response for most people was send money. I saw an Onion article the other day that joked about a local kid flying to Haiti to check on how they were using his $10 donation. Funny. But true, what is happening there now? And what is our responsibility in the follow through as this crisis continues? Thanks for posting this Tim. I'm glad to be left with questions - hopefully we can all struggle through together.
As someone with a law degree and someone also very interested in public policy and legislation, I'm a believer that one important thing to consider would be contacting your Senator or Congressional Rep. and asking him/her to introduce or back legislation that ensures commitments to disaster relief funds. Funding for programs like Peace Corps, WHO, USAID and even military-based disaster relief may go a longer way than donations to aid organizations.
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