In the wake of Haiti’s devastating earthquake last week, the AU community is coming out in support and organizing numerous events and fundraisers to benefit the victims of the disaster.
Haiti experienced a 7.0-magnitude earthquake on Jan. 12, which destroyed much of the nation’s capital, Port-au-Prince. Between 50,000 and 200,000 people were killed in the quake, according to The Washington Post. The U.S. military plans to send at least 10,000 troops to the country, and President Barack Obama has pledged $100 million in initial earthquake relief funds, according to the Post
President Neil Kerwin addressed AU’s response to the crisis in a memo sent to the AU community on Jan. 15. At least a dozen Haitian students and several faculty and staff members at AU have been affected by the earthquake, according to the memo.
The administration will do everything it can to help students affected by the earthquake, said Kerwin’s Chief of Staff David Taylor.
“Almost every school and college at AU has helped out its own students affected by the earthquake,” Taylor said. “We’re trying to remind everyone that we have students at AU from Haiti, and we are trying to make it known to those Haitian students that AU is here to help you.”
Taylor said the administration will continue to update AU’s Web site with more information about where AU students can go to get more information or to donate money to the earthquake victims.
“In a time like this, people are hungry for information,” Taylor said. “We’re hoping to give people an outlet to help out and be informed on a local, national and international level.”
Sabri Ben Achour, a reporter at AU-owned public radio station WAMU 88.5, arrived in Port-au-Prince this week aboard the USNS Comfort and is keeping listeners updated on the situation. According to Kay Summers, WAMU’s director of Marketing and Communications, Achour arranged the trip himself. Summers said Achour will pay particular attention to how the crisis affects D.C.
“His reports will have a local angle because, in addition to reporting on the crisis, Achour will be looking for Haitians with relatives living in D.C.,” Summers said.
AU students also found ways to lend a hand and spread information about the quake.
Josh Linder, a junior in the School of International Service, recently established an AU chapter of the Global Haiti Initiative. According to Linder, the club was started over a year ago by his friend at Florida State University to promote awareness for Haiti’s development issues. Linder had been slowly working on establishing an AU chapter for some time, but the earthquake inspired him to get things going more quickly.
Though the AU chapter of the Global Haiti Initiative has not yet been officially recognized on campus, Linder said he plans to expand the group in the near future.
“I am still looking for creative and passionate individuals who would like to make difference and be a part of something great,” Linder said.
Naisha Silva, a sophomore in the Kogod School of Business and the president of the AU student group Caribbean Circle, said her group is also very involved in AU’s relief efforts for the Haitian earthquake victims. Silva and her fellow members have had a vested interest in this cause from the start because of their connections to Haiti.
“Numerous members of Caribbean Circle have been affected by the earthquake, both directly and indirectly,” Silva said. “I myself, as a Haitian-American, have been directly affected by the earthquake. I have seen streets that I used to drive through as a little girl sunk in debris. A palace that once stood strong, crumble into pieces, and faces, once shining with joy, now overshadowed with despair.”
Caribbean Circle will spend the entire spring 2010 semester helping victims of the earthquake in Haiti. The group is sponsoring a clothing and supplies drive starting on Jan. 20. Members of the group will be setting up donation boxes throughout campus for students to donate what they can. Today Caribbean Circle will be hosting a “Teach-In” at which AU faculty and students will have the opportunity to discuss the social, political and economic impact of the earthquake in Haiti.
Silva said she hopes the AU community will continue to support the victims of the earthquake in Haiti as they try to recover.
“In this time of struggle we share not only this tragic experience, but more importantly, we share the comfort of hope - a hope inspired by the continuous efforts to rebuild Haiti,” Silva said.
You can reach this staff writer at jryan@theeagleonline.com.
