Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Haiti; Do You Hear Me Now?

Haiti is no stranger to devastation. Long heralded as the poorest country in the Americas, the IMF (International Monetary Fund) now believes Nicaragua holds that title; making Haiti the 2nd poorest country in the Americas. Some would say, they can’t even win at being the worst. Floods, deforestation and a non-existent economy have rendered Haiti a wasteland; need that goes beyond humanitarian relief and looks more like a global intervention is needed. Yesterday, after a earthquake measuring 7.0 splintered the already ravaged country, the world now turns their attention to a country that has long begged for help. Today, more than 80% of the population lives in poverty with close to 40% of the national budget funded by foreign aid. For Haitians the earthquake may very well be the dark before dawn. Maybe now Americans realize that less than 500 miles off our shores, Haiti sits starving in despair. Diseased, hungry and hopeless they are returned to Haiti when they risk their lives at sea and arrive on U.S. soil. Hopefully the earthquake has shaken our moral foundation and we will show some compassion to our Haitian neighbors.

On Blast
Cubans are granted asylum once they set foot on U.S. soil. Do you believe Haitians should be granted the same opportunity? If so, how does the U.S. control illegal immigration?

Keep passin’ the open windows…

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

when you travel hundreds of miles on a piece of cardboard secured to two old tires braving shark infested waters, dehydration, starvation and the elements in an effort to escape poverty, disease and a corrupt government...you shold be able to call the United States your new home once you've hit American waters.

risingsun said...

I am self described historian on the black diaspora.

If you choose to dig deeper into the plight of haiti, you will find that United States interventionism has a lot to do with the dependence of the island. Every democratically elected government haiti has ever had from 1881 onward was overthrown by the United States. The U.S does not wont any free black nations that does not up hold the white supremacist model. Haiti is kept in a state of dependency.

Anonymous said...

TESTIFY SACREDLY BREATHING.

TESTIFY.