What are you doing to help those in Haiti?

When we spend our treasurable time conversing or arguing why a massive earthquake of 7.0 mag struck Haiti, on Jan. 12, 2010, reducing much of its capital to rubble rather than doing something to help those in need in this country, then we know we are doing something injudicious. It was the worst earthquake in the region in more than 200 years, with several thousands feared dead. Yes, but what are you doing to help those in Haiti?

By Yemti Harry Ndienla

Haiti, as we all know, is one of the poorest and least developed countries in the world. The country is equally plagued with complications ranging from near-constant political uproar, health catastrophes, stark environmental deprivation and an annual bombardment of hurricanes, which killed about 800 people and caused vast destruction in 2008.

However, this country whose 8.7 million inhabitants are of African ancestry was not this poor from time immemorial. During the 18th century the western portion of Hispaniola, called Saint-Domingue, was one of the richest colonies in the French empire, known for its lucrative sugarcane and coffee plantations.

Then the African slave population revolted in 1791, eventually winning independence from Napoleon Bonaparte's France and becoming the second country in the Americas to free itself from colonial rule and the world's first black republic. The country was renamed Haiti. Yes, this is Haiti, where four out of five people are living in poverty, and more than half in abject poverty. And this is Haiti, suffering a humanitarian catastrophe of enormous fraction.

What are you doing to help those in Haiti, perhaps through your community or church? We need not to have friends or family in this country to offer our contributions. Consequently, my entire family and I invite you to visit American Red Cross at www.redcross.org to make contributions.

The American Red Cross is working with its partners in the global Red Cross and Red Crescent network, including the Haitian Red Cross, and other partners to assist those affected by this disaster. Any amount you can donate will be highly appreciated.