I sent the following letter to many major US news outlets, as well as Habitat for Humanity and the Clinton Foundation. Please feel free to either forward this yourself or suggest places to where I can send it. At this moment, I am exhausted, but I will update my blog tomorrow with the promised detailed story of the first days of the earthquake, including my (unenthusiastic) evacuation from Haiti on Friday.
Helping Haiti: Do it Right
At 453pm on 12 January 2010, my significant other and I were in our home in the Turgeau neighborhood of Port-au-Prince. Three minutes later, we were standing in the road outside, enveloped in dust, surrounded by the screams and cries of people surging through the streets.
Haiti has become my second nation; my partner is Haitian and I moved there to be with him, but it wasn't long before I came to love Haiti for itself. To see the devastation of the past few days has been nightmarish, but also heartbreaking. Finding the light at the end of this very dark tunnel has been almost impossible. The only possible prospect for hope that I can find is the fleeting opportunity for long-term positive change that this tragedy offers, in much the same way as the great fire of Chicago in the 19th century allowed them to completely reconfigure that now-great city.
It is indisputable that Haiti needs short-term aid (e.g., food, tents, water, etc.) at this moment, but what it needs just as badly is long-term planning for a better future. What is needed is to take everyone out of Port-au-Prince, raze it to the ground, and start anew, this time with urban planners and other skilled professionals. This sounds extreme, but consider that the city will have to be razed in any case. The buildings that remain are nearly all constructed out of fragile limestone-based concrete, which has rendered them damaged beyond repair. The wreckage of the buildings that fell contains unknown numbers of bodies that are even now becoming sources of bacteria and disease certain to compound an already disastrous situation. All of these places need to be bulldozed, burnt, and removed in the interest of public health and safety. It is not possible to effectively do this with so many people still living in the city.
But what to do with all of these people, how is it possible to remove them? The answer is a two-pronged response: repatriation to the provinces (where possible) and provision of temporary, but long-term camps. More than half of all people living in Port-au-Prince are not originally from that city, they hail from smaller towns all over the country and many still have family and friends in those regions. By assisting people in going back to the provinces -- through transportation and perhaps seed money to secure housing and/or start an enterprise -- a large percentage of the people are removed from the city and living in relative safety. For those who are from Port-au-Prince, another solution must be found, namely the creation of numerous 'refugee' camps outside of the city and throughout the country.
These camps would need to provide, at a minimum, food, water/sanitation, shelter, healthcare, and security to their inhabitants. They would need to be organized by urban planners, even if they contain only tents. Most importantly, it would need to be clearly communicated to inhabitants that they cannot build their own structure on or near the camps, nor are the camps meant to be permanent homes. Rather, they are meant to be temporary dwelling sites for no more than two years while the reconstruction of Port-au-Prince is undertaken. People living in the camps could be hired as laborers to participate in the rebuilding, which in addition to creating badly needed jobs, would also provide a sort of on-the-job training. The professionals involved in the reconstruction -- most of whom will likely come from abroad -- could work with Haitian professionals, government officials, and other relevant parties to not just advise, but also to educate. Skills learned in the rebuilding of Port-au-Prince could be applied in the aftermath of future disasters, including hurricanes.
Without question, the cost of such a project will be significantly higher than simply conducting food distributions. But it would also ensure an actual future for Haiti. Instead of contributing to long-term aid dependence and enabling the prevailing haphazard systems of construction and governance of public works, this plan would empower Haitians to contribute to their own recovery and provide them with useful skills for the future. This plan could save many lives now by sparing the populace from the manifold risks inherent to living in a disaster area, but importantly, it could also mean the difference between life and death for millions of future Haitians.
The global response to Haiti has been overwhelmingly generous, but to address the crisis only in the short-term is to deny that country the opportunity to truly recover. Untold thousands have died in this tragedy; let us make sure that their lives have not been lost for nothing. I challenge everyone involved in this effort -- the United Nations, USAID, the Haitian government, aid donors, and NGOs large and small -- to muster their resources, individually and together, to start these camps as soon as possible in order to both ensure public safety and to ensure a quick start to the rebuilding efforts.
If you reading this agree at all with what has been proposed, then I implore you to pass the idea to other people who may be interested. Contact anyone you know who may be involved in the recovery efforts. If you make an aid donation, include a short note saying that you support the evacuation of all residents of Port-au-Prince.
Haiti needs help. Any form of assistance is appreciated. But to truly help Haiti, invest in its future, not just in relieving its present suffering.
Helping Haiti: Do it Right
At 453pm on 12 January 2010, my significant other and I were in our home in the Turgeau neighborhood of Port-au-Prince. Three minutes later, we were standing in the road outside, enveloped in dust, surrounded by the screams and cries of people surging through the streets.
Haiti has become my second nation; my partner is Haitian and I moved there to be with him, but it wasn't long before I came to love Haiti for itself. To see the devastation of the past few days has been nightmarish, but also heartbreaking. Finding the light at the end of this very dark tunnel has been almost impossible. The only possible prospect for hope that I can find is the fleeting opportunity for long-term positive change that this tragedy offers, in much the same way as the great fire of Chicago in the 19th century allowed them to completely reconfigure that now-great city.
It is indisputable that Haiti needs short-term aid (e.g., food, tents, water, etc.) at this moment, but what it needs just as badly is long-term planning for a better future. What is needed is to take everyone out of Port-au-Prince, raze it to the ground, and start anew, this time with urban planners and other skilled professionals. This sounds extreme, but consider that the city will have to be razed in any case. The buildings that remain are nearly all constructed out of fragile limestone-based concrete, which has rendered them damaged beyond repair. The wreckage of the buildings that fell contains unknown numbers of bodies that are even now becoming sources of bacteria and disease certain to compound an already disastrous situation. All of these places need to be bulldozed, burnt, and removed in the interest of public health and safety. It is not possible to effectively do this with so many people still living in the city.
But what to do with all of these people, how is it possible to remove them? The answer is a two-pronged response: repatriation to the provinces (where possible) and provision of temporary, but long-term camps. More than half of all people living in Port-au-Prince are not originally from that city, they hail from smaller towns all over the country and many still have family and friends in those regions. By assisting people in going back to the provinces -- through transportation and perhaps seed money to secure housing and/or start an enterprise -- a large percentage of the people are removed from the city and living in relative safety. For those who are from Port-au-Prince, another solution must be found, namely the creation of numerous 'refugee' camps outside of the city and throughout the country.
These camps would need to provide, at a minimum, food, water/sanitation, shelter, healthcare, and security to their inhabitants. They would need to be organized by urban planners, even if they contain only tents. Most importantly, it would need to be clearly communicated to inhabitants that they cannot build their own structure on or near the camps, nor are the camps meant to be permanent homes. Rather, they are meant to be temporary dwelling sites for no more than two years while the reconstruction of Port-au-Prince is undertaken. People living in the camps could be hired as laborers to participate in the rebuilding, which in addition to creating badly needed jobs, would also provide a sort of on-the-job training. The professionals involved in the reconstruction -- most of whom will likely come from abroad -- could work with Haitian professionals, government officials, and other relevant parties to not just advise, but also to educate. Skills learned in the rebuilding of Port-au-Prince could be applied in the aftermath of future disasters, including hurricanes.
Without question, the cost of such a project will be significantly higher than simply conducting food distributions. But it would also ensure an actual future for Haiti. Instead of contributing to long-term aid dependence and enabling the prevailing haphazard systems of construction and governance of public works, this plan would empower Haitians to contribute to their own recovery and provide them with useful skills for the future. This plan could save many lives now by sparing the populace from the manifold risks inherent to living in a disaster area, but importantly, it could also mean the difference between life and death for millions of future Haitians.
The global response to Haiti has been overwhelmingly generous, but to address the crisis only in the short-term is to deny that country the opportunity to truly recover. Untold thousands have died in this tragedy; let us make sure that their lives have not been lost for nothing. I challenge everyone involved in this effort -- the United Nations, USAID, the Haitian government, aid donors, and NGOs large and small -- to muster their resources, individually and together, to start these camps as soon as possible in order to both ensure public safety and to ensure a quick start to the rebuilding efforts.
If you reading this agree at all with what has been proposed, then I implore you to pass the idea to other people who may be interested. Contact anyone you know who may be involved in the recovery efforts. If you make an aid donation, include a short note saying that you support the evacuation of all residents of Port-au-Prince.
Haiti needs help. Any form of assistance is appreciated. But to truly help Haiti, invest in its future, not just in relieving its present suffering.
7 comments:
Excellent letter. I actually work in a Planning Department. I will send this letter to our director and our Urban Design staff. I'm sure there are connections. Paul had a good question: What resources does Haiti have to sell to the world to interest private investers? What would sustain Haiti?
Hi Julie, I have forwarded your letter to many. WHERE are you now? Much love, Maria
Maria Mansfield Richardson
Charleston, SC
Being a fan of NPR on facebook, they posted a call for eye witnesses to share relevant stories. If you're interested, I have a good grad school buddy who is a former NPR employee.
Hope you're okay. Love you!
Julie, I'm so glad you are safe but can imagine what you are still going through. Thank you for reliving your memories on our behalf. I suggest you send this eloguent and informed letter directly to President Obama. Because 10 to 20 letters are hand selected for him to read on a daily basis, and since in his first remarks he made a point to emphasize that the US is going to provide more for Haiti than simply relief aid, I think this letter will possibly strike a chord, if not with him, I feel it would be passed to an appropriate somebody. Love you. Christy's mom, Ginny
Julie, i agree wholeheartedly with everything presened here. We have donated funds to 2 NGOs so far and will follow up with your correspondence. Its good to hear from you, but more important that you understand what NEEDS to happen for long-term growth and prosperity to the region.
~Richard & Jerrice Cuvilly
YES to your open letter, as well as to all the comments responding to the post - GREAT ideas! One of the people at the church I mentioned to you had what I think is another great idea: so many of the people drawing unemployment in the US have job skills that could be used in the rebuilding of Haiti. How about an aid program in which our unemployed citizens are given perks (ie, extension of unemployment benefits, more money in their unemployment check, etc) to go to Haiti and use their skills in a long-term rebuilding program just like the one you're envisioning in your post?
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