One day before our departure and Haiti has been on my mind for the last two weeks. The new sights, people and culture will be rewarding, but the most important part will be learning about the every-day lives of the Haitian people. Haiti has not lost its international appeal since the 2010 earthquake, but we are learning more and more everyday about the truth of the relief effort; its success and setbacks.
Haitian filmmaker Raoul Peck’s new film “Fatal Assistance” provides a look into the international aid efforts, highlighting areas of needed improvement. This film has been reviewed positively by the Huffington Post and New York Times, praising the director’s perspective and new insights on the international aid efforts. Peck received an international welcoming and recognition for his film which debuted last year in February at the Berlin film festival. This contrasting perspective builds upon the the experiences and critiques of Jonathan Katz in his book The Big Truck That Went By.
I think that Katz would agree with Peck, they both point out that international aid in Haiti had good intentions, but billions of promised dollars later Haiti is not reaping in the results such investment is expected to provide. Little of the pledges even made it to Haiti, and the method used to put aid plans into action involved little say from the people of Haiti. Organizations, governments and international corporations across the world pledged help, making it a hotspot for humanitarian celebrities including Sean Penn, Bill Clinton, and Angelina Jolie among others. Not to mention the volunteers, journalists and religious groups. We have come to learn that though they made personal sacrifices, not much of their hopes for Haiti came into fruition.
Katz called Haiti a Republic of NGOs because of the number of nongovernmental organizations working in Haiti pre and post 2010 earthquake. However, little efforts have been made to see that the people have a say in their own futures. How can a country rebuild if the people of that country are not a part of the rebuilding effort? What is needed is the involvement of the Haitian government, community leaders and people in steering the destiny of their own country. The way to turn a bleak political situation into a movement of empowerment for citizens is through participation. This is one of the reasons why I am excited to be working with the Association of the Peasants of Fondwa, where Haitians make the decisions and difference.
Haiti has remained a victim of our prejudice, and continues to be. The international community has miscalculated and misused their funds and power to push an assumed agenda. Four years after the disaster, and slowly Haiti is crawling back up to its feet. Newspapers continue to run editorials, the United Nations continue to file new action plans, again new promises are made, but we have already seen the results of promises. So why go to Haiti now?
A group of ten volunteers - students and staff from American University - on a mission to learn from those that know best, the people of Haiti. Though our efforts during our eight day trip will not be as extensive as we all wish, it will provide us a starting point that can only grow in the direction of increased awareness and activism. During our trip we will ask ourselves; how can we redirect our focus and that of our peers back to Haiti in a manner that will empower the local population and lead towards stable and sustainable growth? Hopefully we will have an answer upon our return.
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