January 12th, 2010: A magnitude 7 earthquake struck Port-au-Prince late tuesday afternoon, causing massive destruction in Haiti's capital city. The death toll is not yet known, but estimates range between 50,000 and 100,000 casualties. Time magazine has ranked this disaster in the top 10 deadliest earthquakes in known history.
The world is stunned. Relief efforts are pouring in from the international community, but the city's devastated infrastructure has made distribution painfully slow and inefficient. The UN has failed to take control and leadership: pulling doctors out of makeshift hospitals then sending them back, organizing food and water distribution but failing to control the clamoring, desperate mob, and fleeing. Some political celebrities and cultural icons such as Hillary Clinton, Lenny Kravits and President Obama have also responded to the situation with varying degrees of commitment and effectiveness. Hillary's remarks that '[The US] will be there,' and 'Haiti will come out stronger than before,' seem hollow; mere lip service and political etiquette rather than critical analysis. On the other hand, Obama has pledged $100 million dollars to rebuild Haiti, adding that these efforts will remain a US priority long after they disappear from TV and internet news sites.
What will become of the small Caribbean country is yet to be seen. The threats of disease, starvation and violence are looming like an angry boil ready to burst. Staggering numbers of people desperately require medical attention, but makeshift hospitals are understaffed, overcrowded and undersupplied. Water is a huge problem, as is food, but even when these resources are present, difficulty in distributing them to those in need (particularly women and children) exacerbates the situation severely. Desperate people will fight to survive, often at the expense of others, leading to violence and turmoil. Political upheaval is imminent; Haiti is already ranked in the world's top 10 most corrupt nations, and the dismal failure of the Haitian government to respond to the crisis could easily become its coup de grâce, paving the way for radical regime change.
But the news is not all bad. Despite the difficulties on the ground, international response to the disaster has been astounding. Text-message donations have produced a staggering $10 million US dollars so far for the US Red Cross alone! This is by far the most money raised this quickly in the organizations entire history. I believe the reason is this: All too often, people sitting at home and watching the news will gape in horror and even shed a tear at the images and information flowing in from ground zero. But they also feel helpless, like there is little they can really do, without going too far out of their way. Even the best intentions often fall flat after 20 minutes away from the TV when the dog needs to go out and Baby Jimmy has the flu and the game is coming on. But this new text-message donation system is brilliant! Who doesn't have a cell phone now a days? Texting, especially for the younger generation, is as natural as brushing your teeth. But it's even easier: by texting the word HAITI to the number 90999, a donation of $10 automatically gets sent to the Red Cross, and is billed to your monthly phone bill. It can be done instantly. If I had cell phone service at my house I would have already done this, but it seems I will have to wait until tomorrow.
