Did everyone see David Brooks' column in the NYT the other day about the ongoing disaster in Haiti? If not, I would recommend reading it -- though I wish somehow we could get around linking to it, I don't want the editors thinking this kind of race-baiting gets hits -- and really taking a moment to consider what he's saying. He tries to point blame for Haiti's lack of development somewhere (anywhere but here, actually), and decides its the backwards culture that's to blame. He notes, "There are high levels of social mistrust. Responsibility is often not internalized." Now he doesn't say where this comes from (time spent in the field, perhaps?), nor does he really explain what he means by social mistrust. He points to US ideas for fighting poverty like No Excuse schools, arguing for a sort of "no excuses" approach. That can be all well and good too, but 1) it never helps to gloss over real, lived historical experiences as processes experienced within a monolithic, unchanging culture, 2) it's (as Sam Martinez writes here) a little tactless at this particular moment, 3) using Mr. Clash of Civs himself, Samuel Huntington, ("cultures do change after major traumas) to make his point doesn't exactly strengthen the case, and, finally, 4) asserting the need for Haitian leaders with "middle class assumptions" to take ownership of these programs also means asking these potential leaders what they hope to achieve. What does "progress" and "development" mean to Haitians? Does they mean exactly the same thing to David Brooks? For this last point expressed eloquently, in detail, and with evidence, check out the AnthroWorks blog here.
I'd encourage everyone to get out there and read what's being written about Haiti. It's a sad, all too frequently occurring realization we have when we "discover" (or maybe "re-discover") a desperate part of the world (or our own city or town) only in the aftermath of a great tragedy or disaster. In the past week, tons of writers and scholars and students have been outspoken "experts" on Haiti, and while it might be a knee-jerk reaction to dismiss them, I do think this is the time and place to consider our place in the world and the actions we choose to take in relation to the myriad of other cultures, peoples, and places that share the Earth with us. Not everything written about Haiti has been groundbreaking or insightful, but, like I've done here, I think it's an important moment to bring more people into the fold, to let more people know about what's going on.
*On a somewhat biased note, my beloved Kentucky Wildcats put together a "Hoops for Haiti" fundraiser today that pulled in half a million dollars. Yeah, Kentuckians are wacky about basketball -- some might say "unbalanced" -- but think about how many Kentuckians that became aware and took action to help out Haitians simply because their favorite coach turned them onto it. That's a good thing.
Photo from Flickr user UNDP, Creative Commons.
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