Helping Haiti: Raising Awareness
Written by Jeanette M. ‘27
Have you ever donated to a food or clothing drive at SJND based on an announcement you heard over the speaker, or a paragraph on the daily bulletin, but wondered what club was behind it? Well, the answer would be the SJND WE Club, which focuses on performing service work and donating to aid the people who need it most. The WE Club’s most recent event was the SJND Clothing Drive, which ended Wednesday, January 31st. But as humanitarian issues continue to rise, both in our country and in others, SJND’s WE Club changes its focus from action to awareness.
You are likely familiar with the Israel-Palestine conflict or the Russia-Ukraine war, but have you heard about the problems in Haiti or Afghanistan? The likelihood is that you haven’t, but the WE club is seeking to fix that. Although they might focus primarily on taking action to help those in need, the WE club’s long-term goal is to raise awareness, to spark a realization in people so that they can become agents for change in the future. This brings me to the subject of my article, which is the WE club’s upcoming presentation on the issues in Haiti.
For some background information, the situation in Haiti has caused thousands to immigrate into the U.S in search of better living conditions, opportunities, and more. The issues in Haiti begin with a lack of political stability, which has caused Haiti to become overwhelmed with gang violence that its authorities cannot control. Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince is estimated to be 80 percent under the control of major gangs. Of course, this has drastic effects on the country. For example, lack of services such as medical aid, absence of clean water and food, rape, murder, and so much more. While it’s true that the U.S has been assisting Haiti during its time of need by providing monetary aid, the incredible lack of public awareness regarding this situation is something we need to fix before we can see any significant change.
This takes me to the WE club’s part in raising awareness for this problem. Although the plans are yet to be finalized, the WE club members have been hard at work to prepare a school-wide presentation that will raise awareness about the issues in Haiti. It will also include information about people who have been trying to help. For example, two organizations hard at work to help Haitian refugees in Alameda are Welcome the Stranger and Shelter in Peace. Welcome the Stranger focuses on providing long-term care for refugees from all places, including those from Haiti, such as by providing them with educational opportunities. Shelter in Peace provides rent assistance and transitional housing to refugee families, and currently houses several families in our area.
Without volunteers to provide these services, and without the support that they rely on, these two organizations cannot reach their goals. This is why it is so essential for us to take those steps toward teaching the public about the issues in other countries and how they can help.
To find out more regarding public awareness of the issues in Haiti, we talked to a 9th grader, Jace H., about their knowledge of the subject. Jace, despite knowing more than the average person about international issues due to their passion for providing humanitarian aid, wasn’t aware of the problems that Haitians face today. “I don’t know a lot, but I would like to know more!” Jace stated. They also talked about the importance of our country being aware of these conflicts. “We are very influential on a global scale and if we start helping out people who are suffering, then maybe other countries will follow. But that’s not what we’re doing, and it’s disappointing. I hate seeing people who don’t care about human life get elected over and over and over, it’s been happening since the dawn of this country.”
But Jace was also optimistic: when they were asked about whether the presentation would be a good first step toward raising awareness, Jace stated, “On a school-wide scale, yes. And then it can reach an even larger scale eventually.” With a bit of luck and a lot of hard work, this is the goal that the WE club hopes to achieve.
To get more insight into the opinions of the members of the WE club, we also interviewed WE Club President, Carrie Truong. “The goal of the presentation was to shed light on issues that people might not be aware of,” she stated. “These organizations can’t continue to support refugees without people to back them up.” Carrie told us that the presentation was only the first in several steps being taken to learn more about the issues that Haitians face. “We’re also in the process of interviewing a Haitian family in the U.S, along with volunteers that work with Shelter in Peace and Welcome the Stranger.” For Carrie, it’s all in the day of being a member of the WE club!
To find out more about organizations that provide aid to refugees, visit https://alamedapost.com/events/volunteer-with-welcome-the-stranger/ and https://alamedashelterinpeace.org/#:~:text=Our%20Mission%3A,supported%20by%20a%20sponsoring%20organization
