Haiti: I Don’t Care WHY

Unless you’re living under a rock, you are aware that on January 12, 2010 a massive earthquake hit Haiti, reducing its capital city and much of the rest of the country to piles of rubble, covering unimaginable death and devastation below. Thankfully, the world seems to be stepping up, and I’m proud to say that Canada was one of the first countries to respond.

Even as donations for aid are collected around the planet from more sources than one could have ever dreamed possible, the commentaries and moral questions begin.

“Why is Haiti so poor? * We can’t trust where the money is going! * America can’t afford it! * They’re looting stores and attacking each other, why should we help them?” And so on. New York Times Columnist Nicholas D. Kristof has been getting a plethora of responses on his blog, many similar in tone to this: “Giving money to Haiti and other third-world countries is like throwing money in the toilet”.

Firstly, I fail to understand, given the scope of the tragedy and the parameter of need, why Haiti’s prior destitution is a consideration in the aid equation. The country of Haiti has f-a-l-l-e-n d-o-w-n; it’s not there anymore. Two million people have been displaced above and beyond the hundred thousand plus dead. Given the pressing and time sensitive tragedy in front of Haiti now, I can only hope that rescue and aid workers aren’t pausing to ask: ‘Why are they [have they always been] so poor?’ -it’s extraneous in this crisis, ergo, I don’t care. In short, whether or not Haiti had a solid financial infrastructure or mass unemployment prior to this catastrophic event is hardly on the table at this point.

(Although Kristof does address the ‘why’ of Haiti’s poverty in his column dated today, Jan.-21-10 see: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/21/opinion/21kristof.html )

My question is this: Why doesn’t abject poverty trigger compassion, without a horrific disaster? Of course, this type of question is more difficult, as it makes all of us look inside ourselves, rather than outward for answers.

As UN Special Envoy to Haiti, former President Bill Clinton spoke eloquently on the needs of this impoverished country at the America’s Conference this past September. Investment in infrastructure such as factories and tourism were emphasized as a primary need.

See former President Clinton’s address at:

http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local-beat/Clinton-to-Talk-Honduras-at-the-Biltmore-62642572.html

I’m sure Mr. Clinton’s efforts lead to many joining this undertaking and many not; in all fairness, there are numerous causes and needs on the planet, and we all have a right to choose ours. Hopefully, the point being, you do CHOOSE something to care about and invest in (outside of yourself) as a human being.

“Why is Haiti so poor?” is an irrelevant question to the issue at hand. Haiti has now moved from a country in dire need to a country in dire disaster, and as such, is deserving of the aid and attention it is now flooded with.

Regardless of the slant on the information we’re receiving or even its source, we can trust the people in our newsrooms that are telling and showing us that Haiti’s citizens (our citizens) are in need.

Which brings me to another frequently mentioned concern in the media: “We don’t know where the money is going!”

Charity misuse and misappropriation has been an issue for years, and has been in the media forefront notably in the last decade. The press attention and resulting microscope has resulted in changes in regulations and laws as well as increased financial transparency, especially in North America. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to find a well-audited, well-endorsed and credible charity that is providing aid to Haiti. Certainly some funds will fall through the cracks and there are still scams and disreputable groups out there. The point is - it isn’t hard to avoid charity scams these days. There are simple websites such as the Association of Fundraising Professionals (http://www.afpnet.org/), however, due diligence is as simple as phoning your bank. I walked into my bank and learned they had set up a fund for the Red Cross; there, adequately endorsed and simple. Charities should not be sending you emails or calling you on the phone; if you haven’t figured that out, you’re in trouble.

The argument that remains, after all of this, is, of course, the most base and easy moral mountain to climb on: “Just look at them! Beating each other, looting! Why should we help them?”. Aah, yes, the ol’ rush to judgment, brought on by media images, and then the resulting ‘painting-of-all-with-one-brush’ (excuse the scientific terminology and psycho-babble, all necessary to impart a point).

Am I suggesting a censor of news here? Absolutely not, the images of looting and violence in Haiti are relevant as news stories and important to report.

Every human element that spawns from disaster is, in fact, a story and therefore ‘fair game’. In my opinion, there are two simple avenues of thought on this matter, neither of which brings me to any enlightened conclusion.

My grandmother has often said to me “Character is like tea, dear, it reveals itself in hot water”, this is a creed I live by. I don’t care how fabulous you are (or tell me you are) when life is relatively easy. How the human heart behaves when facing diversity is a lesson in heroism to us all. The cream not only rises to the top, but also often comes from the least expected places. The CTV network in Canada recently reported an incredible story of an elderly woman remaining for days at the side of a road near Port-au-Prince, vigilantly watching over a dozen or so orphans as they slept on pavement. These are the stories and the hope I choose to cling to. It is unfortunate (to say the least) that a life entrenched in poverty, desperation and little hope will lead some, perhaps even many, to take criminal advantage of a situation, and still others to wield vigilante justice. And yes, some might even say that human disaster can separate us in the most telling of ways.

Are we as North Americans, superior to this behaviour? I hardly think so. The Los Angeles Riots of 1992 come to mind.

Another path of thought on the looting and crime in Haiti can be summed up in (yet) another cliché and quote: “There but for the grace of God go I” ~J. Bradford. Do I believe I would rise to the occasion, were I faced with such a disaster, after years of barely being able to feed my children? I dearly hope so. I like to believe I would reach out, help, and do the right thing. Am I positive, beyond a doubt, that I would? Who knows, I haven’t walked in those shoes.

Ethically, morally, logistically, there is no good reason not to provide aid to the people of Haiti. As a free, pay-cheque earning citizen, I wholly respect your right not to, but to find fault in the cause with little more than these morally-justified ‘excuses’ greatly disturbs me.

12:20 PM, January 20, 2010; CNN reports Haiti suffers yet another aftershock, with a magnitude of 4.9. God and us, help them.