From the second lines.

We've again been negligent with our blog, although this time I'm going to plead limited internet access (no power = no internet) and a series of meetings that are flying at us faster than you can say disaster relief.

My time lately has been split between collaborating with Alexis on various advocacy materials and working to get the Haiti Relief Coalition started. Founded as an association of smaller NGOs who were in Haiti before the earthquake and will be here for the long haul, the HRC seeks to support development organizations run by Haitians and to provide a space for and amplify their voices in the international conversation. Discussions about Haiti's future are happening nearly round the clock at the UN logbase, and scant few Haitians are present to be a part of these conversations.

While we have had a few difficulties ourselves getting access to the logbase (still waiting for our security badges), many Haitians face an embarrassingly-racist security mindset that blocks their access to meetings. The HRC envisions "holding the place at the table" for our Haitian partners until they are able to speak directly for themselves (as well as connecting them with the physical supports needed--food, shelter--in order for their staff members to continue doing development and advocacy work).

I find it maddening that the state of the world is this, that Haitians are "ethnocentrically treat[ed]...as tragic objects to be rescued -- [rather than] equals to walk with and learn from" (Jo Ann van Engen, "The Cost of Short Term Missions"). I suppose these are attitudes that we are here working to change, and the earthquake has made all-too-clear the relevance of this approach. It's not perfect yet, and it feels like we spend a lot of long hours in meetings, but the longer I'm here the more I see the value of these collaborative efforts.

It's been helpful for me to remember that Haitians are also people trying to figure out how to work with the new reality that is Port-au-Prince - and who are proving to be amazingly resilient (the vegetable vendors are already back on the streets, the occasional game of dominoes clacks from someone's yard). Even if we as foreign- and Haitian-run NGOs haven't yet achieved true collaboration, I find that the vision of such an inter-respectful and dialogic working model has kept me going in those moments when it seems like it would just be simpler to do the work without asking for input from others. However, I recognize that in learning from one another, we can potentially achieve the "mutually-transformative relationships" MCC values (yes, those values that are so easily endangered by daily minutia). I am not yet fully able to live this approach, but I want to continue striving in this direction.

To tide you over until our next post

"You have a choice in a situation like the one we're confronting. You can sit back in your chair and fondle your nihilism, or you can try to be original and work toward something creative." - Amy Wilentz, "The Haiti Haters"

Read the rest of Wilentz's insightful (and indict-ful) commentary in The Nation here.

A quick word

We've been neglecting the internet this week because Monday morning we came to Port-au-Prince and tried to hit the ground running. I've been working for the last two days at the U.N.'s logistics base, working to get MCC's canned meat to people who need it here, as well as helping Alexis organize a database of assessments of camps set up around the city. Bryan's been delivering food, talking with neighbors, and generally helping things run smoothly at the MCC office.

At the moment a bunch of folks are sleeping at the Depps' house, which is where we were this morning when the 6.2-level aftershock swept through the city. Even though we were sleeping outdoors on a covered patio, we all leapt up and ran out to an uncovered area - it was unsettling to say the least. So far we've only heard of minimal damage from that tremor, so that's positive.

There are fewer people on the streets than usual (I guess that "usual" will never come back), although lots more with big bags and lots more just hanging out. Many, many people have started to leave Port-au-Prince to go live with friends and families in the countryside, and a concern is making sure those areas receive the help they need to absorb the population increase. Fortunately (or really unfortunately) many Haitians are used to living without electricity or running water and having to bathe outdoors. Things are bad and there's need everywhere you look - but people are still able to be kind, to kick around a soccer ball, to start to clean up the mess. It's been encouraging for us to come here and see how much actually is being done, how people are caring for each other, and how people are starting to cope with what happened.

A quick trip to Port-au-Prince

Yesterday, Sharon, I, Jean Remy, a friend of his who's name I forget, and a Belgian who has been working in Desarmes all went into the city. Our Belgian friend was going in to catch an evacuation flight back to Belgium and the rest of us were delivering sacks of rice and corn and other supplies for distribution and to find out what else we could do to help. We bought what rice we could in the local market - it turned out to be 4 sacks of rice and 1 sack of ground corn. We also took in 2 pickaxes and some new solar panels we had just bought for the Desarmes office but had yet to install them, so they went in too to help keep the batteries charged for the folks in Port.

Driving in was just as easy as normal - when we got to the last mountain crossing before descending into the valley where the city is, many large boulders had fallen onto the side of the road but were not blocking it. When we arrived in the Croix-de-Bouquet area, we sat in a traffic jam where a once-small makeshift bus station has now turned into a very large and crowded makeshift bus station for people trying to get out of the city. A small gas station had cars and trucks lined up trying to get fuel and ended up blocking the road. In this mess we came across two ladies who work in the MCC office in Port and their families, who have been living outside since their houses were destroyed on Tuesday. They were relieved to see us and asked for a ride out of the city - for about 15 people (!). We told them we would drop off the supplies and come get them on our way out. After 30 minutes or so we squeezed through the jam and found roads to be actually much less trafficky than normal.

Our normal road to get into Port (Delmas 33) was clear but was blocked by a few big MINUSTAH trucks so we had to make a detour to one of the main roads (Delmas). We passed close by the airport and saw helicopters and convoy trucks with what looked like search and rescue teams inside. Going up Delmas towards Petionville was eerie: people were walking up and down the street and traffic was almost nonexistent.
Everyone was either wearing a mask over their mouth and nose or had smeared a white cream under their nose (possibly to keep the scent of bodies away?). Many big buildings were flattened, and in a few places we saw heavy machinery working to remove rubble, most likely searching for survivors. We made our way to Petionville fairly quickly and dropped off our supplies . We saw Ben, Pancha and a friend named Carlito, holding up as best as possible. They had to leave soon after we got there so we started on our way back to Desarmes.

We made our way out of the city and found our group ready to head out to the countryside. Miraculously all 17 of us (I think, it was hard to get a head count) and luggage fit into the pickup, where we slowly (35 mph) made our way back to Desarmes, chugging up steep mountain roads in 2nd gear. The normally 2.5 hour trip was stretched to 4.5 hours but we all arrived safe and sound. This morning Jean-Remy loaded them up again for another long slow drive to a city in the central plateau called Hinche where they have family. Hopefully they all get there safely and Jean gets back without any problems; we still have no cell phone contact which makes everything more difficult, especially if vehicles break down.

It's obviously not the most dramatic story of Haiti right now, but we just wanted to share a little bit about what we're doing in all of this mess. With the arrival of MCC disaster-response folks and more organization and coordination with other NGOs we hope to figure out the best way for us to help.

Something you can do

from MCC:

Haiti Needs Temporary Protection Status

Issue: On January 12 Haiti was a hit by a devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake. The quake hit close to the capital city of Port Au Prince, affecting up to three million people according to the Red Cross. Details of the human cost are still unclear but some estimates put the death toll in the tens of thousands.

Background: Mennonite Central Committee is responding to the disaster through emergency aid and the U.S. government, along with other aid agencies, has pledged support to the Haitian people.

President Obama in a speech on Wednesday morning said, "Let me just say that this is a time when we are reminded of the common humanity that we all share. With just a few hundred miles of ocean between us and a long history that binds us together, Haitians are neighbors of the Americas and here at home. So we have to be there for them in their hour of need."

In addition to emergency relief efforts, the U.S. government can take another important step to help the Haitian people in their "hour of need." The Obama administration can immediately grant Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Haitians already in the United States. TPS would allow immigrants who are unable to safely return to their home country - because of ongoing conflict, natural disaster or other extraordinary conditions - to extend their stay in the United States on a temporary basis.

In 2008, tropical storm Gustav and hurricanes Hanna and Ike caused more than $1 billion in damages in Haiti - the equivalent of 15% of the country's GDP - destroying crops, washing out roads and bridges and killing an estimated 800 people. According to USAID, approximately 35,000-40,000 people were left homeless and over 100,000 homes were damaged or destroyed. Haiti has still not recovered from these storms and the earthquake just compounds the problem.

Temporary Protected Status for Haitian immigrants already living in the United States will help in the recovery effort. There are an estimated 30,000 Haitians in the U.S. facing the threat of deportation. TPS status would allow them to apply for temporary work authorization and the money they send home would assist in Haiti's recovery.

Action: Send a letter to President Obama and urge him to immediately grant TPS for Haiti.

---

Alert prepared by Theo Sitther, Legislative Associate for International Affairs and Tammy Alexander, Legislative Associate for Domestic Affairs.

The story from Dezam

- is nothing compared to what's happening in Port-au-Prince. People here are starting to find out about family members missing/killed and a few funerals are already being planned. Unfortunately the earthquake happened right after the semester started (unfortunately it happened at all) so a lot of students had just returned to school from Christmas break - it's especially heartbreaking to hear of families who have lost children. We've seen more people than usual arrive in Dezam on taptaps and buses that are still running, so it seems that everyone who can is leaving the city to stay with family in the countryside.

A quick update on our teammates: three of our Haitian coworkers are still unaccounted for and several others have lost their houses. Joel and Rachel were supposed to be evacuated this morning. People are sleeping in the yard at the MCC guesthouse in Port, which is cracked but still standing - we're still experiencing faint aftershocks here in Dezam and are hoping they're not any stronger there.

So far being in Dezam is sort of like being in Philadelphia during 9-11: you're only two hours away and feel like you should do something, but you also don't want to go and be in the way. Right now the decision is for us to sit tight here, but we're hoping to find a way to help a bit more actively.

The earth moved

Just a quick post about the earthquake. We're okay here in Desarmes. In this area there were a few minor collapses (a mud wall here, a few cinder blocks there), but other than reports of a fatal heart attack during the quake we've heard nothing of local casualties. All cell phone services have been down since the quake hit and haven't yet returned, so a lot of people are worried about family that lives in Port-au-Prince or other towns (our coordinator, Jean-Remy, actually drove to Port this morning to check on his daughter and other folks). It looks like Port-au-Prince got hit harder than us because of the number of buildings and people and the number of poorly-constructed buildings with multiple stories. For now we don't know how the rest of the MCC team is in Port-au-Prince but we're hoping they are okay. We welcome your thoughts and prayers for Haiti, and we'll post more as we know more.

UPDATE: We just heard through MCC Canada that all program staff, including all international staff, in Port-au-Prince are safe and accounted for (although it sounds like Joel and Rachel had a narrow escape!). We're still waiting to find out about support staff members and are praying and hoping they are safe as well.

Ironwomen.

Yesterday afternoon six of us intrepid MCC women set out for a 28-mile bike ride through the Artibonite Valley, from Mirabelais to Desarmes:

I'm not really that short. It's just the wide-angle camera
lens and the tall Rachel standing next to me.

Sometimes we stuck together, sometimes we spread out, but either
way we were the biggest spectacle to hit the Artibonite since Fet Dezam.

Pancha won the award for Toughest Cyclist, considering the size and
weight of the brand-spankin'-new cargo bike she pedaled the whole way. (And good job on successfully completing Bike #2, Ben!)

Margot was the second toughest with her long-tail
cargo bike...this cow was pretty interested in the whole affair.

- or was the cow more interested in Esther's balancing act?

The trip was challenging and definitely stretched us
(couldn't resist!), but was a great time.

These photos are courtesy of Ben Depp, and I'll add links to the photos other folks took as they become available online.

These photos are also proof that we returned safe and sound to Haiti. It was really helpful to have people around for the sixty-to-zero, Philadelphia-to-Dezam transition that was challenging last time. We're hopeful this bodes well for the next few months!