Humanitarian Archives

April 22, 2015October 3, 2017

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Why is it so hard to talk about race in America?

“Racism is still with us. But it is up to us to prepare our children for what they have to meet, and, hopefully, we shall overcome”. – Rosa Parks

I’ve always been an avid reader and the more I travel, the more I want to read and learn about different cultures and perspectives around the world. Lately however I’ve been on a quest to learn more about our own country and identity, and reexamine my own personal beliefs and perspectives. What is the American culture and where is it headed? As a nation based on immigration and “life, liberty and justice for all” why does racism and other intolerances and hatred still continue to exist and why does it exist so strongly?

Recent events have made me question our country and the intolerance of some people who judge others based on race, sex, homosexuality, class and religion. As these issues come to a head and play in our minds, some are improved (such as gay marriage rights) while others continue to be ignored. The increased police brutality against black young men has been on the news 24/7 yet has our conversation really even begin to touch the real roots of racism? Are we as a nation truly able to speak honestly and openly about race and what it means to be black in this country? No.

In order to answer these questions, I’ve done a lot of soul searching and reading. I devoured Maya Angelou’s famous book “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” and just last week I completed the brilliant novel “Americanah” by Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie which brings the issue of race, class and status of immigrants in America to an entirely new level. Quite honestly, this book has really made me think about race issues in America and in a very different, unsettling way. It has also dismantled the American Dream quite easily but I’ve never been that naive to believe that simply coming to America would be a cure for all.

Our multi-cultural team to Haiti. How I wish these lovely ladies all lived here! All my friends in Minnesota sadly look like me. Although the population has become much more ethnically diverse over the last 20 years, communities are still segregated economically and racially.

November 21, 2013October 3, 2017

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Special report: UNICEF’s on the ground support offers glimmer of hope for children traumatized by Typhoon Haiyan

Friday marks the two week date since Super Typhoon Haiyan bombarded the Philippines, causing devastation, destruction and utter despair among this island nation. In the aftermath of Super Typhoon Haiyan, millions of Filipinos are displaced, 18,175 people were injured, 3,976 people are confirmed dead, 1,598 people are still missing and estimated damage continues to spike up to $674 million (Source: New York Times).

The storm, one of the most powerful ever recorded in the world, also destroyed homes, schools, hospitals, roads, communications and other basic infrastructure, and damaged power and water supply systems making relief services extremely complicated and difficult.

While world coverage of Super Typhoon Haiyan continues to filtrate the newspaper mostly speaking of the damage, destruction and despair, there are a few more subtle stories here and there about the most vulnerable victims of this devastating storm: The children.

On 12 November, a woman cradling a baby stands amid debris and other destruction caused by Super Typhoon Haiyan, in Tacloban City the area worst affected by the disaster on the central island of Leyte. Water, sanitation and hygiene, food, medicine, shelter, debris clearance and communications are among the priority needs. Blocked roads have limited access and the delivery of relief supplies. Photo credit: Jeoffrey Maitem/UNICEF

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November 15, 2013October 3, 2017

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Save the Children’s on the ground emergency response to Typhoon Haiyan

The tragic Typhoon Haiyan that ripped through the Philippines a week ago today left behind a trail of destruction, death and sorrow that continues to unfold. Words cannot express the utter despair that remains in the aftermath of the storm. The images of destruction, desperation and fear remind us how powerless we are and how fragile life can be especially in the face of Mother Nature. Thousands of people have lost their lives in just a blink of an eye and the exact number of casualties is yet to fully be known.

As we know, images are powerful reminders of our hopes and of our fears. A picture can paint a thousand words.

Thanks to my work as an advocate and voice for Save the Children, I was able to get access to exclusive photos from Typhoon Haiyan as well as speak with Francine Uenuma, Director of Media and Communications at Save the Children yesterday to learn more about Save the Children’s on the ground emergency response in the Philippines. Here’s the story.

A Filipino boy stand amidst rubbles of houses in the super typhoon devastated city of Tacloban, Leyte province, Philippines. Photo credit: Save the Children

A Filipino boy stands amidst rubbles of houses in the super typhoon devastated city of Tacloban, Leyte province, Philippines. Photo credit: Save the Children

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October 16, 2013October 3, 2017

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Blog Action Day 2013: Human Rights and Genocide

Today is Blog Action Day, where thousands of bloggers from around the world use their voice to advocate change. This year’s topic is Human Rights, and if you’ve read my blog you know I write passionately about my belief that all people should be granted the same universal rights.

Before I begin my post, I wanted to share with you the history behind The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (to read the declaration in full click here):

“The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 10 December 1948, was the result of the experience of the Second World War. With the end of that war, and the creation of the United Nations, the international community vowed never again to allow atrocities like those of that conflict happen again. World leaders decided to complement the UN Charter with a road map to guarantee the rights of every individual everywhere.”

Source: United Nations

I have always been a strong advocate of human rights. I believe that everyone is created equal and this strong belief is why I spend so much of my time writing and advocating on social good. The world is a highly inequitable place and human rights abuses are happening every single minute of the day. Human rights abuses range from poverty, lack of safe water and sanitation, food insecurity, lack of education, and inequitable global health services to the terrible impact of war, human trafficking, violence and rape, and genocide. Human rights abuses also include lack of freedom of speech, religion, sex, race, color, language, political views and so forth. The dark list of human rights violations is difficult to comprehend.

Save the Children distributes bread to residents of Za’atari refugee camp. Photo credit: Nicole Itano/Save the Children

In my opinion, all human rights abuses are equally horrifying and wrong. Yet one that has stuck a chord in my heart is the continuation of genocide. When you look at the history and timing behind the Declaration of Universal Human Rights, you see that it was created to help avoid further tragedies like the Holocaust. Yet, have we truly stopped genocide? Over 60 years later after the mass genocide of the Holocaust, I am struck by how these unspeakable horrors continue to happen today. The dark, devastating tragedies of Rwanda, Bosnia, Darfur, and now Syria to name a few remain a raw reminder that not much has changed.

Rami*, two, at her home in a tented refugee settlement in Lebanon, near the Syrian border. *All names have been changed to protect identities. Photo Credit: Jonathan Hyams/Save the Children

Although genocide can be extremely difficult to stop, we do have ways to ease the pain of the millions of victims trapped within a civil war. Look at Syria. As millions of Syrians are fleeing the country trying to escape the horrors of the war, they are overflowing into refuge camps in neighboring countries with little or nothing to eat and drink. Relieving refugees’ plight is a human rights issue and a legal right per Kevin Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch.* The UN and various NGOs are working to get aid delivered within Syria as well as to the millions of children and adults living in camps. If we can’t stop the war within Syria, can’t we help the people survive?

As Queen Noor of Jordan said to a large audience of youth in Minnesota about the tragic war in Syria:

“As in every war, the most vulnerable victims – no matter who wins or who loses – are young people. Their dreams, their hopes, their childhoods are being stolen in a war they had no part in creating, in which they have no voice. This is above all else a children’s crisis”. *

Just like the millions of families killed or left to try to piece back together their lives after the destruction of WWII and the Holocaust, isn’t it time we gave these children some hope for a better life? Hope that they will not only be alive but also have the tools and strength to help someday rebuild their war-torn country?

The Power of We (2012 Blog Action Day)

*Jordon’s Queen Noor lays out Syrian refugee situation via Star Tribune/John Rash

Author’s note: During my years at University, I studied French and International Relations with a focus on Western Europe. I studied a lot about the Holocaust and while I lived abroad in France, I had the opportunity to visit a concentration camp in Germany which was utterly heartbreaking. Today, I continue to read quite a bit on this time period and here are a few of my recommended reads. Also, if you are ever in Washington DC, the Holocaust Museum is a must.

Recommended books on the Holocaust

-“Sarah’s Key ” by Tiatiana de Rosnay

“The Invisible Bridge” by Julie Orringer

-“Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl”

-“La Nuit” (The Night) by Elie Wiesel

-“The Boy in Striped Pajamas” – by John Boyne

Resources to learn more:

A friend and fellow blogger Jennifer Prestholdt is the Deputy Director at Minneapolis-based The Advocates for Human Rights who has a fabulous website and publication detailing Human Rights. To read it click here. Jennifer blogs at The Human Rights Warrior.

Founded in 2007, Blog Action Day brings together bloggers from different countries, interests and languages to blog about one important global topic on the same day. Past topics have included water, climate change, poverty and food with thousands of blogs, big and small, taking part. This year’s Blog Action day is October 16th and the theme is “Human Rights”.

To view other Blog Action Day posts, search the following hashtags on Twitter: #BAD13, #HumanRights, #Oct16

Global Issues Humanitarian SOCIAL GOOD

October 3, 2013October 3, 2017

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The Children of Syria: Hunger in a War Zone

“The world has stood and watched as the children of Syria have been shot, shelled and traumatized by the horror of war. The conflict has already left thousands of children dead, and is now threatening their means of staying alive.

We understand there is a political debate over what to do next in Syria, but we believe everyone can agree on the critical need for safe humanitarian access across the entire country. There is no room for delay or argument: Syria’s children must not be allowed to go hungry.”

-Roger Hearn, Save the Children’s regional director for the Middle East.

Save the Children distributes bread to residents of Za’atari refugee camp. Photo credit: Nicole Itano/Save the Children

Last week at the Social Good Summit in New York City, I attended a small panel discussion hosted by Save the Children, ONE and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. It was a rare opportunity to hear some of the top social advocates and leaders speak about some of the pressing developments in social good involving eliminating extreme poverty, using technology for activism, and the current crisis in Syria.

One of the most touching conversations at the roundtable that day was listening to the President and CEO of Save the Children Carolyn Miles discuss the growing crisis in Syria and its tragic impact on its children. A week after returning from New York, I am still reflecting hard on these children and wondering how on earth I can help spread the word and raise awareness of their plight.

Rami*, two, at her home in a tented refugee settlement in Lebanon, near the Syrian border. *All names have been changed to protect identities. Photo Credit: Jonathan Hyams/Save the Children

A child plays in the dirt at a tented refugee settlement in Lebanon, near the Syrian border. Jonathan Hyams/Save the Children

Maya * 11 months, at her home in a disused industrial building in Lebanon near the Syrian border *All names have been changed to protect identities. Photo credit: Jonathan Hyams/Save the Children

The war in Syria is one of the largest humanitarian crisis of our time and sadly Syria’s most vulnerable citizens, its children, are paying the price.

On September 23rd, coinciding with the gathering of global leaders at the UN General Assembly in New York for UN Week, Save the Children released a startling report titled “Hunger in a War Zone: The Growing Crisis Behind the Syria Conflict“. I read the report and could not put it down. The images of Syria’s children still haunt me and I had to do something to spread the word about what is going on and how we can help.

Here is a summary of the key findings of the report. All information below as well as images being used with permission from Save the Children. To read the report in full, click here.

Zeina *, two, at her home in a tented refugee settlement in Lebanon, near the Syrian border. Zeina and her family are living in a small tent on the Syrian border. The father, Ahmad, has been part of Save the Children as Cash for Work programme, and used the money on food and water for the whole family. Thousands of children and their families continue to stream into neighbouring countries. Most of those who have escaped are living in makeshift shelters, unsuitable buildings or in overcrowded camps, amid growing shortages of food, medicine and water. * Names have been changed to protect identities. Photo Credit: Jonathan Hyams/Save the Children

Pictures tell a story. They show the world the people who are really suffering in Syria. Its most innocent and vulnerable: Their children.

This is the photo that struck a chord in my heart. She could be my own daughter. Same age. Same love for stuffed animals. But no smile to greet the day.

Refugee child in Iraq. Most of the refugees did not manage to bring any belongings with them when they fled Syria. Some children managed to save their favourite teddy bear or doll. Others have received new toys after moving to the camp. Photo Credit: Rob Holden/Save the Children

It is hard to look at these photographs and not feel some inherent urge to jump on a plane and save them. As a mother of two children, ages 6 and 8, I cannot even begin to imagine what it must be like for these parents and their children.

In mid-September, it was estimated that there are over 4 million displaced families living inside of Syria’s borders in temporary housing with little access to food to feed their children and barely a drip of water. Another two million have fled the country pouring into neighboring countries such as Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq, and Egypt at a rate of nearly 6,000 day*.

Some families are living in abandoned industrial buildings while others in makeshift refuge camps. The World Health Organization has deemed the crisis in Syria “to be one of the worst ongoing humanitarian crisis on earth”. As the sun begins to turn cold and food becomes more and more scarce, what will these families feed their growing, hungry children?

Zeina *, two, at her home in a tented refugee settlement in Lebanon, near the Syrian border. *Names have been changed to protect identities. Photo credit: Jonathan Hyams/Save the Children

Per Save the Children, “More than four million Syrians — more than two million of them children — are unable to produce or buy enough food, with many thousands living under fire and with no access to all but the bare minimum foodstuffs needed to survive. Save the Children is already seeing reports that one in 20 children in rural Damascus is severely malnourished”.**

One of the biggest issues right now is the fact that most of Syria’s families are trapped in dangerous locations where they have little or no access to food. They are faced with making the unimaginable decision. To stay inside their homes and starve or to face bullets and death by leaving the safety of their homes to get food for their family. It is a choice no parent should have to make.

“A message to the World”

“This is a message from the Syrian people to world leaders. I am 13 years old and I am Syrian. I am Ali. I want to talk about the tragedy that we have in Syria. In Syria, we have no good food and not enough water. We only have lentils. So we ate lentils every day. We would see wounded people and dead bodies every day in the street, and many children who did not have homes. They are living in schools. But now they don’t even have a school to live in. I am asking the leaders of the world to provide us safe shelter, food, water, medicine – this is all we ask. Please, please, please – help us”.

-Ali, 13 years old***

Maya * 11 months, at her home in a disused industrial building in Lebanon near the Syrian border *All names have been changed to protect identities. Photo credit: Jonathan Hyams/Save the Children

Another issue is that the war has destroyed Syria’s economy pulling a once relatively prosperous country into shambles. The United Nations “now estimates close to seven million inhabitants have been plunged into poverty since fighting began. In addition, Syria’s agriculture and infrastructure are collapsing, with grain production falling to less than half of what was typical before the war”**. Furthermore, “after two and a half years of war, the conflict has set Syria back 35 years and imposted an economic cost of more than $84 billion, equivalent to over 140 % of Syria’s pre-war GDP”. *** Once the war ends, rebuilding is going to be a long and painful journey.

A child plays in the dirt at a tented refugee settlement in Lebanon, near the Syrian border. Photo credit: Jonathan Hyams/Save the Children

What Save the Children is asking world leaders is to secure humanitarian access to the people per Save the Children’s Carolyn Miles. There are 7 million people in need of assistance and 5 million people stuck inside the country. Save the Children strongly believes that regardless of the political situation in Syria, we must do something about this enormous humanitarian crisis. We must act and we must act now. Time is running out for the millions of children and families who are suffering and facing extreme hunger and malnutrition. The world must listen and help.

Here is a link to what needs to be done. (See page 19)

Here is the latest response by global leaders: Press Release 10/02/13 Save the Children “UN Aid Access Agreement Could Save Thousands of Lives in Syria”.

The fight to save Syria’s children is far from over. We need to act now and spread the word. We need to voice our concern.

This is what is at stake: Children.

Suhad * six, lies on the floor of her home in a tented refugee settlement in Lebanon, near the Syrian border. *Names have been changed to protect children’s identities. Jonathan Hyams/Save the Children

Nadia *, one and a half, is carried by her mother Roula * outside their home in a tented refugee settlement in Lebanon, near the Syrian border. *Names have been changed to protect identities. Photo Credit: Jonathan Hyams/Save the Children

Rami*, two, at her home in a tented refugee settlement in Lebanon, near the Syrian border. *Names have been changed to protect identity. Photo Credit: Jonathan Hyams/Save the Children

Related Posts and References:

*“Six Million Displaced by War in Syria” via the Atlantic

**Food Shortages Put Syria’s Children at Risk of Malnutrition

***Hunger in a War Zone: The Growing Crisis Behind the Syria Conflict“

Highlights from the 2013 Social Good Summit

To keep in touch with the latest updates on Save the Children’s work in Syria and how you can help, click here.

About Save the Children

Save the Children is the leading independent organization for children in need, with programs in 120 countries, including the United States. We aim to inspire breakthroughs in the way the world treats children, and to achieve immediate and lasting change in their lives by improving their health, education and economic opportunities. In times of acute crisis, we mobilize rapid assistance to help children recover from the effects of war, conflict and natural disasters. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

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September 30, 2013October 3, 2017

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A New American: The Rise of Somalis in Minnesota

Last Tuesday on my flight home from LaGuardia I had the most exceptional experience. In fact, days later after an incredibly inspiring three-day visit to New York City where I attended the 2013 Social Good Summit, I still cannot stop thinking about my plane ride home. Sitting next to me on the window seat was a new American.

I really wanted to capture her beautiful, kind face but she was sleeping by the time I thought of it. Here is the New Minnesotan, a mom just like me.

For all that I’ve traveled, I have never actually been on a plane with someone immigrating to the United States. Seeing this middle-aged Somali woman sitting tentatively next to me wearing her U.S. Immigration Tag and holding her white plastic U.S. Immigration bag, simply blew me away. I couldn’t stop thinking it was a strange coincidence that she happened to not only be on my flight but was sitting right next to me after I had just spent three extremely intense days at the Social Good Summit learning about a vast array of global issues.

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July 2, 2013October 4, 2017

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WaterAid Providing Taps and Toilets for Madagascar’s children

Close your eyes for a minute and picture Madagascar. What do you see? I see miles upon miles of pristine beaches, lush green tropical forests, exotic flora and fauna and brilliant blue sea. Madagascar, an island nation of 22 million people off the southeastern coast of Africa is home to several exotic species, 90% of which are unique to the country. Because of its isolation from other landmasses, most of Madagascar’s mammals, half its birds, and the majority of its plants exist nowhere else on earth.

Lemurs are endemic to Madagascar. Image Source: Wikipedia Free Commons

Lovely lush Madagascar. Image Source: Wikipedia Free Commons

Waterfalls are abundant in Madagascar. Image Source: Wikipedia Free Commons

This former French colony who gained their independence in 1960 is also home to a lesser, more ugly reality: Poverty. According to the World Bank, 69% of the population of Madagascar lives below the national poverty line threshold of one dollar per day (2011 statistic). With poverty brings hunger, malnutrition, disease, hardship and also lack of services such as access to safe drinking water and sanitation. Although running water, electricity and sanitation are provided by the government, sadly these services do not reach all the people. Based on 2010 estimates only 34% of the rural population have access to an improved water source (World Bank). Sanitation fared worse: 79% of the urban and 88% of the rural population live with unimproved sanitation services (2010 estimates from the CIA World Factbook).

Not having safe drinking water or adequate sanitation is a major hurdle in receiving an education. In a country with only 64.5% literacy rates, education is a key to lifting people out of poverty yet what child, especially a girl, would want to go to school without a toilet?

Last week WaterAid launched an exciting summer campaign to help provide proper sanitation and safe drinking water to Madagascar’s children. Over the next couple of months, WaterAid aims to reach 12,000 children in 31 schools by providing 150 taps and 100 toilets in Madagascar. What is so wonderful about this campaign is that all summer long you can follow the stories and updates of the children who will be impacted as well as the progress of the construction through the celebration on September 19th when the children return to school with taps and toilets for the very first time.

Project Sekoly: Improving School Water and Sanitation in Madagascar

In Madagascar only 41% of the population has access to safe water and 11% to sanitation. We’ve been working here since 1999 and have helped more than 177,000 gain access to safe water and 145,000 to sanitation. – WaterAid

Tsimahavaobe primary school in the town of Morondava is one of many schools in Madagascar with no toilets, no supply of safe water, and nowhere for pupils to wash their hands. We are asking supporters to join Project Sekoly, to help fund sustainable water and sanitation facilities for desperately poor schools in Madagascar. Your support will ultimately result in the poorest children in Madagascar staying healthy, gaining a better education and having the opportunity to achieve their potential. – WaterAid

What you can do?

Over the next few weeks you can follow the story as children in Madagascar get the water and sanitation they need to keep them healthy enough to build their dreams.

Follow their story on Twitter at the hashtag #buildfutures

About WaterAid:
WaterAid was founded in 1981 and works tirelessly to provide clean water and sanitation for Africa, Asia and Central America. Since its inception, WaterAid has dramatically changed lives and has worked closely together with local organizations, communities and individuals, to employ affordable and locally appropriate solutions to provide safe water, effective sanitation and hygiene education to people in developing countries

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January 23, 2013October 4, 2017

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27 Acts of Kindness

“Weeping is not the same thing as crying, It takes your whole body to weep, and when it`s over, you feel like you don`t have any bones left to hold you up.”
― Sarah Ockler, Twenty Boy Summer

Remember the victims and their shining smiles. 26 are pictured above. Yet there are 27 victims of the massacre if you include the killer’s mother who was shot before he entered the school. Photo credit: Time Magazine

Like most people around the world I was mortified and heartbroken by the horrific events that occurred at Sandy Hook Elementary in the small, close-knit community of Newtown, Connecticut. As a mother of two children ages 6 and 8, the unimaginable tragedy struck even closer to my heart and soul and made me think in ways I didn’t want to. How on earth a young lost soul could do the most horrific thing imaginable is beyond any reasonable thinking. I have thought about it for a long time and still the pain and fear remain and the questions unanswered. Perhaps we will never know.

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December 27, 2012October 4, 2017

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The Crisis in Syria and how you can help

The onset of the Syrian conflict over 21 months ago has been utterly devastating. Thousands of Syrians have been displaced and over 540,000 Syrians are registered refuges in the neighboring countries of Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Egypt. Unfortunately the refuge crisis is only getting worse. Bordering countries have seen a huge sudden increase of over 140,000 refuges in just the last six weeks. Furthermore, on Wednesday The UN predicted that if things don’t calm down in Syria and the ugly Civil War does not end soon, the number of Syrian refuges could explode to over 1.1 million by early summer.

As winter blankets Syria and her neighbors, the conditions at the refuge camps are grim. In some camps, women and children represent over 75% of the refugees such as in Zaatari, Jordan, which has 30,000 refugees at the moment. Families are struggling to survive and feed their families, living in tents under the freezing cold conditions with sadly no end of their desperate situation in sight.

Fortunately NGO’s such as World Food Programme (WFP) is there to help. The WFP has worked alongside the UNHCR (The United Nation’s Refugee Arm) to provide a regular supply of food to the families. While UNHCR is distributing such necessary supplies as blankets for fuel and cooking, the WFP has been supplying “dry rations” over the winter months that refugees can cook themselves. The Dry rations include rice, bulgur, wheat, yellow split peas, sugar and salt, which are provided along with a daily allotment of bread.

In the Zaatari refugee camp alone, over 100 communal kitchens have been built that services 30,000 people. The UNHCR is working to build more in order to ensure everyone has access. But the cold, cruel wind of winter is making situations miserable for many.

Meanwhile inside Syria, food insecurity is on the rise due to bread shortages and higher food prices, leaving millions of Syrians in desperate conditions and may lead to more people leaving the country and entering the already over-crowded refuge camps.

It is not a good situation, but you can help. Simply share this video to raise awareness or make a small donation to the World Food Programme that can help feed a family and save a life.

This post was written on behalf of the Global Team of 200. Information above is provided by the WFP as well as research on the web. To learn more about the World Food Programme’s work, click here.

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December 15, 2012October 3, 2017

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Rebuilding homes and hope in Haiti

This post is the second piece of a two-part series on the recent Carter Work Project and Habitat for Humanity’s work in Haiti. To read the first post “The Story of How 600 Volunteers Built 100 Homes in a Week” click here.

In lieu of pictures, this video says it all. The commitment, the teamwork, the compassion and the hope that these volunteers have given to people who have lost it all.

Above: “Our Carter Work Project closing ceremonies video celebrates the impact of 100 new homes built in Haiti by more than 600 volunteers alongside families affected by the 2010 earthquake.”

Global Issues Global Non-Profit Organizations and Social Good Enterprises Humanitarian SOCIAL GOOD

December 14, 2012October 4, 2017

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Why

How many times do I have to try to tell you
That I’m sorry for the things I’ve done
But when I start to try to tell you
That’s when you have to tell me
Hey, this kind of trouble’s only just begun
I tell myself too many times
Why don’t you ever learn to keep your big mouth shut
That’s why it hurts so bad to hear the words
That keep on falling from your mouth
Falling from your mouth
Falling from your mouth
Tell me

Why
Why
I may be mad
I may be blind
I may be viciously unkind
But I can still read what you’re thinking
And I’ve heard it said too many times
That you’d be better off
Besides

Why can’t you see this boat is sinking
Let’s go down to the water’s edge
And we can cast away those doubts
Some things are better left unsaid

But they still turn me inside out
Turning inside out turning inside out
Tell me
Why
Tell me
Why
This is the book I never read
These are the words I never said
This is the path I’ll never tread
These are the dreams I’ll dream instead
This is the joy that’s seldom spread
These are the tears

The tears we shed
This is the fear
This is the dread
These are the contents of my head
And these are the years that we have spent
And this is what they represent
And this is how I feel
Do you know how I feel?
‘Cause I don’t think you know how I feel
I don’t think you know what I feel
I don’t think you know what I feel
You don’t know what I feel

-Annie Lennox, lyrics “Why”

Residents and members of the media at a vigil in Kauhajoki, Finland, one day after the September 23, 2008 shooting incident. Photo credit: Wikipedia Commons.

Why?

I am utterly heartbroken today by the tragedy that bestowed upon Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut. What happened today is unimaginable. It is horrendous. Ugly. Cruel. And uncomprehensible.

As President Obama said holding back tears, there is “not a parent in America who doesn’t feel the overwhelming grief that I do.”

The fact that once again a young man opened fired on children in an elementary school is so sickening that I can hardly hold back my tears.

Can’t our children be safe anymore? Do they have to fear for their lives when they go to the one place they should be safe: School. The movies have already been ruined. The malls as well. Meanwhile schools continue to be hit by the unthinkable.

I don’t understand it.

Our world is becoming so insanely violent, and not only in America. Gratuitous violence is portrayed left and right in movies, on television and 24/7 on CNN. It is spread across the front pages of our newspapers on a daily basis and is found in children’s video games, books and toys. Our children are growing up in an everly increasing violent world, so violent that people are almost becoming immune to violence. It is disheartening and depressing.

You combine our violent world with the fact that in this county any kind of wacko can buy a semiautomatic gun off the internet without skipping a beat, makes my stomach lurch. Gun control is not the only answer but having some legislation in place to slow down the process would certainly help. Why on earth you can easily buy weapons meant to be used in warfare is sick. No one should be able to freely buy these kinds of killing machines.

I worry deeply about a growing problem of hatred and apathy among some young men. The last few mass shootings have all been performed by young, lost souls. The Connecticut school shooter was only 20 years old. The Oregon, shooter a mere 22 years old and described as “numb” before the attack. The Colorado movie theater shooter who was only 25 and clearly a psychopath (how were the red flags in this case ignored?). The Virginia Tech shooter who took out dozens was a college student and then there is Colombine. Sadly, the list continues and never seems to stop. Why these young men kill innocent people and not just kill themselves makes absolutely no rational sense. To kill children, little ones, is even more sickening.

What bothers me immensely is that nothing seems to be getting done to change things and curtail the endless amounts of tragedies. Why aren’t we taking steps to tighten gun control? Why aren’t we putting more functioning systems in place to help deal with mental health issues? And why on earth do we live in a world that celebrates violence in almost everything we do? Why?

Of course I know these are complicated issues and aren’t easily solved. But we can certainly take some steps forward and stop ignoring the issues. It seems like each time a mass shooting happens, it creates a ripple effect on over to the “lunatics” out there who get an “ah ha” moment and copy it. Why not? In their sick heads where violence is glorified and gets plenty of attention (think CNN and Fox News, 24/7 coverage), it just feeds the frenzy.

My heart aches tonight for the parents who lost their young children. I walked into my children’s elementary school this afternoon to pick them up and had to hold back tears. My daughter, so sweet, so precious and innocent is in Kindergarten. Max is in second grade. Even the thought of something this atrocious happening in their school made my stomach ache and my eyes well up with tears. I don’t know how I could ever go on living.

Please say a prayer tonight for the 18 children and the adults who needlessly lost their lives. It is time we did something to end this world of violence.

I’ll leave you with this one quote that I read and it broke my heart. All the kids wanted was to celebrate Christmas. They didn’t want to die.

First grade teacher Kaitlin Roig, 29, locked her 14 students in a class bathroom and listened to “tons of shooting” until police came to help.

“It was horrific,” Roig said. “I thought we were going to die.”

She said that the terrified kids were saying, “I just want Christmas…I don’t want to die. I just want to have Christmas.”

Global Issues Humanitarian SOCIAL GOOD

December 10, 2012October 4, 2017

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Helping Haiti: The story of how 600 volunteers built 100 homes in a week

I am honored to be writing a two part series on behalf of Habitat for Humanity. Recently 600 volunteers from around the world set off to Haiti as part of the Carter Work Project for the second year in a row with the goal of building 100 homes in a week. Here is their story.

“Men anpil, chay pa lou.”

Many hands [make] the load lighter.

-Haitian proverb

In 1984, President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn created the Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Project in response to the basic need of simple, decent and affordable shelter for people around the world. For 29 consecutive Mr. and Mrs. Carter have volunteered with Habitat for Humanity for one week building homes and hope in over 14 countries. Past missions have brought people together to build homes as close as Mexico and Canada and as far away as South Africa and the Philippines. It has been an amazing feat and even more impressive given the fact that Carter and his wife Rosalynn, who are both in their mid-eighties, are right there with the volunteers on the ground, pouring in their heart, sweat and soul, in every project.

Global Issues Global Non-Profit Organizations and Social Good Enterprises Humanitarian SOCIAL GOOD

Thirdeyemom

Traveling the World and Doing Good

Category: Humanitarian