What we can do
The devastation in Haiti just keeps coming. As late as yesterday afternoon, I didn’t appreciate the magnitude of the catastrophe. Now I can hardly believe what I’m seeing. It’s hard to remember what I was thinking about as recently as a day ago. Health care reform? Stopping by the post office? What to have for lunch? Who cares?
I was thinking this morning that if I were in a different place in my life, I would seriously consider going down there to help. But that wouldn’t be the best thing to do. Here’s what I recommend you (and I) do to respond to this tragedy:
1. If you can do only one thing, do this: contribute cash to an organization that is already on the ground. Go here or here to get started. Sometimes I hear people criticizing others for “just writing checks” to respond to human crises, but that criticism is misplaced. Checks help. A lot.
2. Redouble your efforts here at home. The human suffering in Haiti is heart-wrenching to see, and it’s easy to forget how much human suffering is occurring within your own community. It would be a very human (or, humane) response to this disaster to use it as a motivator for your own local contributions of time, energy, and treasure. I do volunteer work at a day-labor agency in Seattle, and today, one of the reasons I do that is Haiti.
3. If you are a medical professional, you might be able to go to Haiti now and make a difference. Click here for more information. If you’re not a medical professional, go to New Orleans. (That’s not a typo!) If you’re in a place in your life that allows for a more radical response, a drop-everything-and-go response, I recommend you go to a disaster site that is better prepared to receive you and get you to work right away. Haiti is in chaos; they’ve only recently secured their airport (with your government’s help), so if non-medical helpers aren’t already on site, they may not be able to make a difference in this early stage of response. But If you flew to New Orleans and found a place to stay, they’d have you hanging sheetrock in the Lower Ninth in just a couple of days!
4. Finally, whatever you do, hold the people of Haiti—and all the people on earth who suffer—in your mind and heart today, and in the coming weeks and months (okay, years). If you’re so inclined, hold them in your prayers. The person who most benefits from this activity might be you yourself, but that’s okay—you’re human, too. You’re able to suffer, and you have suffered. Your openness to the suffering of others makes you more human, and can transform your life. You can be a part of the recovery just by being emotionally present to the people of Haiti.
Photo was found here.
This post was edited with updated information about how medical professionals can go to Haiti now.
January 15th, 2010 at 10:59 am
This catastrophe is so hard to comprehend. The suggestions you make of what we can do to not only help ourselves but also help those in need are sound and thoughtful. My husband and I are making a donation today to the Haiti Fund through ERD today. I would hop on a plane today if I thought it made sense, but I know that is not a smart move at this point. Volunteering in my own community to help those in need is the best option at this point. This morning on the TODAY show Christa Breslford was interviewed from the hospital in Miami. She is a remarkable young woman.
January 15th, 2010 at 11:05 am
Thanks so much, Gen. I think it’s important that we remain vigilant about Haiti, and also keep “standing at our own posts,” wherever they are, in response to so much human need.