Crisis of the Most Basic Need

Most of you have heard about the worldwide food crisis. And I'm hoping most people are aware of the effect it is having on the poverty-stricken world. So you know where I'm going with this right?

What would you or I do if we were that hungry? Living on $1 a day, maybe $2, and trying to feed a family on that? Imported food costs a lot and most food in Haiti is imported because, as one example, the US helped put Haitian rice farmers out of business with their government-subsidized rice pushed on the Haitian market, undermining the local farmers prices. Nice. Now that's something to be proud of: taking away a livelihood, undermining a struggling economy, making a poor country even more dependent on its rich neighbor instead of helping it to be self-sustaining. When I've been in Haiti and seen Haitians carrying the big sacks of rice with a huge US flag plastered on one side, and "U.S. Rice" on the other, it makes me ashamed and disappointed.

Now there is a report of an influx of Haitians fleeing Haiti in boats. See it here. How desperate must one be to attempt this very risky, very deadly journey? I can only imagine. Or more likely I can't imagine. They are unfazed by the possible drowning or shark-attack scenarios. Well, I guess if your choices are to die starving to death or maybe not die by taking a treacherous boat trip to Florida, I guess it is a no-brainer. At some point you have to do something.

And if they make it to the US or elsewhere, if they survive the seas, the rickety and overcrowded boats, possible malnutrition or starvation on the boat, then what? As if they haven't been through enough, if they are caught, they are sent right back. If they make it without being caught they must integrate into a new culture and language, into a country where many people reject them, and they must do all this starting with nothing.

Spain has a similar flow of immigrants coming here in boats from North Africa. They encounter similar dangers. And much of the reception here is the same as in the US. Cold. Spaniards have stereotypes about every kind of immigrant here. Watch out for the Romanians, they're criminals, along with the gypsies. And the North Africans, they sell drugs and pirated DVDs on the street because they have no skills to do real jobs. And South Americans have some skills; they can be our nannies and housekeepers, but they're poor, so they're not as good as us. This is the general feeling I have understood from Spaniards in listening to them on the subject.

Our upstairs neighbor was born in Peru and is a French citizen. She has endured discrimination while looking for a job even though she is fully entitled to employment as an EU citizen. But what's weird is that WE are immigrants too and no one seems bothered by us. People even talk to us about the (other) immigrants. Hmm, could it be because we are white and middle class?

Unfortunately this goes on in many places throughout the world. Why, with wealth and privilege, are we so resistant to giving a hand up to others who need it? It's not like there is a limited amount of success to go around and we must protect our share. Wouldn't helping others to improve their lives helps everyone in the end? Ah, the big questions of life.