03/13/2010 7:00 am
POV
We Can't Forget Haiti, by Julie Dermansky
More than half a million Haitians are living in makeshift tents and rainy season has started.
Editor’s Note: Julie Dermansky is a photographer, journalist and artist residing in New Orleans. She got a BFA from Sophie Newcomb (part of Tulane University). Her work has been published in The New York Times, The Guardian, Der Spiegel, U.S.
News and The Tulanian. She’s currently traveling the globe for several
projects and is available to shoot portraits and assignment work
worldwide. Visit her website at www.jsdart.com. Headshot by Phin Percy Jr. All photographs © Julie Dermansky 2010
Approximately 4,500 U.S. troops remain in Haiti, most of them dealing with logistics. Spc. A. M. LaVey wrote on a Southern Military Commands site, "At the high point of Operation Unified Response, American forces numbered 20,000 and they were responding to about 2,000 incidents a day; today there are about half the number of troops here, and they are responding to under a hundred incidents per day." Army Col. (Dr.) Jennifer Menetrez told bloggers, "The last patient was discharged from the Comfort on February 27." Their stay is coming to an end and the 377 TSC Army Reserves out of Belle Chase, LA, with whom they originally traveled to Haiti, have officially taken over command of logistics from the 3rd ESC. Many of the NGOs and Haitians worry security will deteriorate with the removal of the troops. Time will tell if the Haitian government is ready to take charge.
© Julie Dermansky 2010
© Julie Dermansky 2010
Word from the APOD (Arial Point of Debarkation — base for some of the troops): Even though their tents are much better than the average earthquake victim’s temporary shelter, they, too, have been effected by the heavy pours. Click here to see a photo set on Flickr of the U.S. Military in action in Haiti, from body recovery at the Hotel Montana to the setting up of the base on the grounds of the Port-au-Prince airport.
© Julie Dermansky 2010
Today I checked in with three of the organizations I photographed in Haiti to get an update. Two of the three had some good news, but all three have stressed that the overall landscape of Port-au-Prince remains the same. I will be back on Tuesday and check things out for myself. Click here to see images on Flickr shot at the orphanages.
Michael Brewer of Reach Haiti Ministries told me he still hasn’t been able to secure land to build a new orphanage and is still hunting for new possibilities. He has been able to get help from the World Food Organization and has been helping other orphanages get food as well. He has noticed many aid organizations leaving and stresses the need for continued assistance in Haiti. He updated me on Marilyn, a sick child I photographed during my first visit. It turns out not only was she malnourished, she has TB as well. She will be in a hospital for an additional six months.
© Julie Dermansky 2010
Ben Constant, who runs two orphanages along with the tent city in the National Stadium, told me he hasn’t received any aid for the orphanages; however, his sister Mary Jo Poux will be in Haiti to help the orphanages next week. She will be meeting a container of goods she had shipped over from New Orleans filled with items for the orphanages and the tent city that have been donated for the most part by people in New Orleans. Food aid has started to arrive at the Stadium and tents have been promised to the people by March 28.
Click here to read Julie Dermansky’s "Three Weeks in Haiti."
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You are correct. We certainly cannot forget Haiti. But what is really going on? Eight days after the earthquake struck,donations for relief efforts were pouring in — in excess of $305 million at that time. More than 60% of donations received by the American Red Cross have been online contributions, and people are still contributing despite the economy. Many millions have been donated by the charities.
Where is all that money? I have watched the interviews from Haiti with Sean Penn, Anderson Cooper, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, and countless officials and relief workers…. and no one can answer that question. People still need water and basic necessities.
If the rains come, and surely they will, it is estimated that thousands more can be washed from that hillside. Money is there and still coming in. Even Afghanistan sent $200,000. Rescue efforts are there. The Brazilians have committed to keeping peacekeeping forces for six years . The Israelis brought state of the art mobile medical equipment. Along with the USA, other countries are still there. Yet people are still living in squalor and filth and begging in the streets. Is there no improvement anywhere?
Where is all that money?
The same question is still asked with regard to Katrina. Something wrong with the picture as they say. The Clinton-
Bush Fund just now appointed a board and a CEO. And maybe in six months they will determine how best to spend the $356 million they’ve raised so far. Less expenses of course. Administrative fees, salaries, studies.
There is no accountability on the part of these funds. People should donate to the International Red Cross. They don’t waste two months setting up a board and hiring a CEO. The International Red Cross puts the money to work immediately.
But obviously they didn’t receive the funding they needed to ensure that over half a million Haitians had some sort of stable shelter to protect from them not only disease but the elements.
People really didn’t care about the people of New Orleans. They donated and then forgot them. Why would anyone believe anyone would care about the people of Haiti?
Where is all that money indeed. A question no one will answer because no one dares ask. Or in some cases, cares to ask. For many, it’s just another tax deduction and a "thrill of the moment" to call in and hope you get a "star" to talk to as they got their credit card out. Beyond that, well, who cares?
Maybe when a "major" city in our country, a city that "matters" which New Orleans didn’t and doesn’t, is destroyed by an earthquake people will wake up to the reality of these "disaster" funds and stop giving to them.
Maggie , I am wondering the same thing. I donated a hefty amount to Doctors without borders, Mercy corps and Red Cross because i trust these organizations., but still I expect to see more stuff happening sooner..
Julie, KEEP Reporting and Keep Haiti in our minds and hearts. Thank you.
Thank you, Maggie, your questions are my questions. Where is the money? Who is in charge? What is happening to the poor people who lost limbs during the earthquake? I know many, many more people will die without shelter. I’ve given much thought to how these poor people could be helped. Quonset huts were used during World War II - they were cheap to make and eased the housing crisis temporarily after the war. They consisted of a kitchen, living room, two bedrooms and a bathroom - they were metal and had insulation. I used to babysit for people who lived one in our small town after the war. Not beautiful, but obviously provided shelter from wind and rain. I haven’t stopped worrying about the Haitians since the earthquake took place. Everyone who rushed there to help have their own lives to return to and can’t stay there for long.
Most of all, as you said, WHERE IS ALL THE MONEY? Who got it? Certainly not the people in Haiti. It’s time for everyone who is trying to help to come together, put the best of the best in charge and that means starting with a map showing where all the damage was done, dividing it into manageable sectors and sending relief groups to each sector. There’s no hope for this world if we can’t help put things right during a disaster of this sort. Before anything can be done, the debris needs to be moved out. Tents during hurricanes? Sheets, cardboard and plastic? No stores, no jobs, no schools, no income - where did the millions and millions of dollars in aid go? Does anyone know? God help those poor, poor people!
It is disgraceful and beyond.
From ABC News:
Donation Breakdown"In total, of the half a billion dollars sent to Haiti relief organizations contacted by ABC News, 18 percent is already being spent on food and water, Additionally, 11 percent is going toward medical supplies and clinics, six percent on housing, and two percent on operations."
But here’s the catch. The money now being spent is only a small fraction of the total donations given. Most of the donations made to the relief efforts — 69 percent or $325 million — have not been spent on anything yet.
The United Nations has tapped Bill Clinton to coordinate its efforts. But when ABC News called Clinton’s office, a spokesman said Clinton "is not operationally in command" of distributing aid in Haiti. "
No one in command? Sounds familiar. Hurricane Katrina comes to mind.
Certainly part of the problem - and it is a vast problem - in Haiti was the apparent lack of services, support and infrastructure that existed long BEFORE the earthquake struck. The history of Haiti has been a long and anguishing story, punctuated with moments of great hope and power. When the yoke of French oppression was thrown off, it seemed that a new life was within reach, but alas, it did not happen as it had been envisioned. The class distinctions, the extreme poverty, the political chicanery of many, many decades duration left this country vulnerable. But to think that not only the money, but also the will to help person-to-person is there right now, while the Haitians most need it, yet is still somehow out of reach is intolerable. Is it red tape? Corruption? Lack of a central organizational group to make a workable plan and prioritize need? Most likely some combination of all of this and much more.
People in New Orleans are still living in FEMA trailers, or have scattered and will never be able to return "home". Vast areas still have not been rebuilt. So disaster response seems to be something the human heart understands, yet human society cannot always organize it properly. People fall through the cracks, and in the case of Haiti, with rainy season beginning, the picture, already grim, will be dire once again.
I was thinking, though, that perhaps we need to return to a great historical moment of reconstruction: The Marshall Plan. That was disaster relief, reconstruction and human aid on a scale almost incalculable by today’s standards. There are lessons there, and we need to remember that the world CAN rebuild and restore. Instead of a patchwork effort from hundreds of aid groups - a noble effort, to be sure - we need a global relief organization of highly organized and skilled providers who can be mobilized quickly to assess, prioritize, manage the monetary donations, and do the work on an immediate AND long-term basis.
I’ll keep giving to Haiti and Katrina relief, and will send what I can to help in Chile … it’s what I can do. I wish it could be a lot more, though.
Instead of a patchwork effort from hundreds of aid groups - a noble effort, to be sure - we need a global relief organization of highly organized and skilled providers who can be mobilized quickly to assess, prioritize, manage the monetary donations, and do the work on an immediate AND long-term basis.
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We already have one. It’s called the International Red Cross. Officially known as International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
The one thing the International Red Cross has not managed to do is overcome the politics which in most cases is the politics of the United States.
To Julie Dermansky: this article and those photos that tell the tale as only pictures can should be front and center everywhere so people do not forget. They pull at the heart strings.
The government of Haiti - what government — has been not what we would think of as government ever. They are not going to come to the fore. . . except for photo ops.
So what can we do? Everything is just a drop in the bucket of need but we are talking people here — so if we choose the right organizations to give to, at least we know our money is getting to the right places and not lining pockets. I have been in charitable work for years and if you have questions on where to give, I would suggest one of the top three (look it up) charities for this cause - one already solidly IN Haiti before this: PIH which is Partners in Health. I live nothing to chance, knowing that our monies can so easily "disappear". This one is solid gold, believe me - do look it up. This is where I send my donations to.
The other is Doctors without Borders — an organization that touches my heart. . and why not? Or one of those listed above that are small but mighty. By the luck of the draw, you and I are not "them" but we could have been. . so we cannot forget - EVER — and we must keep giving.
Thanks for a wonderful article and photos. Joan
By the luck of the draw, you and I are not "them" but we could have been. . so we cannot forget - EVER — and we must keep giving.
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So many of us have become "them" in different ways and the "other side" is not as nice and charitable as we would like to believe. We have so many problems in this country and so many people in need. And have little compassion for them. Blaming them for their misfortune so as to not look in the mirror. And Haiti is a mirror of us. People gave. But also really didn’t care.
There should be an accounting of where the money went. By all the organizations. A full accounting. Not just a 990 which lumps it all into one "expenditure" without really disclosing where it really went. We will never have one. We never do.
I do envy you your rose-colored glasses. I lost mine a long time ago.
I feel really bad for all those people in Hati, it seems from what I’ve read and seen on the news NO one knows were the money is going that’s been raised. Who is distributing the food and clothes? They seem as organized as those who were in charge in New Orleans and they haven’t even put a dent in the repairs needed there yet, people are still living in those crappy little trailers.
And once again it’s America to the rescue. Does anyone have any details on who the other countries are that are helping? What have they done to help? What’s been done so far? Why is always America that comes to everyone’s rescue and yet we have millions of homeless right here in our own backyards, millions who go to bed hungry, maybe not millions, but close, i’m not sure of the numbers, but if someone here in our own country were to do the research it would make us cry to see how we ignore of our own people. There letting prisoners out early because they can’t afford to keep them in jail for their full term, so now society is at risk from these criminals. We need to keep our country and our people safe and taken care of before we safe the world.