Click here to visit the new home of Blackvoices!

HOT ON HUFFPOST BLACKVOICES:

 

Categories

Contributors

Other BV Blogs

Haiti Donations Exceed $1.3 Billion

By Boyce Watkins, PhD on Jul 12th 2010 12:34PM
Filed under: Dr. Boyce Money, News, The Economy

Comments (5)

Relief organizations in the United States raised more than $1.3 billion for earthquake-ravaged Haiti, according to fundraising experts. What is also interesting is that most of this money has not yet been spent.

"That's potentially worrisome with the hurricane season about to begin," said Stacy Palmer, editor of the Chronicle of Philanthropy. "The kind of shelters that people are in right now are tarps and things that would not necessarily be able to withstand a hurricane. The goal is to get sturdier kinds of housing."

The $1.3 billion raised for Haiti comes close to matching the $1.6 billion raised in the 2004 tsunami in the South Pacific. Much of the money was raised by the American Red Cross, which raised $468 million. The Red Cross has faced criticism in the past for not distributing funds to the specified target in a timely manner. The organization now claims that it is doing a better job at getting money out faster.


The Red Cross says that it's spent $148.5 million, roughly one-third of the funds it has collected. It says that it expects to spend $200 million by the end of the one-year anniversary of the earthquake. The earthquake, which was of 7.0 magnitude, killed over 200,000 people. Many of those people lived in Port-au-Prince, with an estimated population of nearly 500,000 people.

As a nation with a meager $7 billion GDP, Haiti is badly in need of help. I am hopeful that the American Red Cross can ensure that funds are distributed as quickly as possible and make sure that all of the $468 million raised goes to the Haitian people. Additionally, this is an opportunity to rebuild the Haitian economy, helping to provide long-term infrastructural improvements that will allow the nation to control its own destiny. There must be additional long-term investments in roads, education, electricity and other things needed to make this struggling country strong.

Also, we should never forget that it's not too late to give. The earthquake brought the world's attention to Haiti, but the truth is that the nation has always been in crisis. Those of us in a position to give to those who are less fortunate should do so at every available opportunity. While the U.S. economy is certainly struggling, it is critical that we remember that we are the richest country in the world and have the capacity, opportunity and obligation to do God's work by helping others. Given that the people of Haiti are black like many of us reading this article... well, I'll let you figure out what I'm thinking.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce's commentary delivered to your e-mail, please click here.

Comments: (4)

Add a comment

Page 1 of 1

Add a Comment

Please keep your comments relevant to this blog entry. Email addresses are never displayed but they are required to confirm your comments. When you enter your name and email address, you'll be sent a link to confirm your comment, and a password. To leave another comment, just use that password."

Most Commented Articles

Daily Drama

The Best Clips From TV's Hottest Shows

More Daily Drama >>

Find a Message Board

Discover conversations on everyone from Barack to Beyonce. There are nearly 50 forums, so click on a category below and find the right one for you.