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It's already bitterly ironic that Bill Clinton is the United
Nation's special envoy to Haiti, after the economic policy he imposed
there to transform it into the Caribbean's sweatshop. Now, President
Obama has asked George Bush to lead fundraising efforts for relief in Haiti. After Bush took part in an international coup to overthrow Aristide. It's like sending in the horsemen of the apocalypse to negotiate peace.
There are, however, more sensible ideas.
It's already bitterly ironic that Bill Clinton is the United
Nation's special envoy to Haiti, after the economic policy he imposed
there to transform it into the Caribbean's sweatshop. Now, President
Obama has asked George Bush to lead fundraising efforts for relief in Haiti. After Bush took part in an international coup to overthrow Aristide. It's like sending in the horsemen of the apocalypse to negotiate peace.
There are, however, more sensible ideas.
First, as poet activist Shailja Patel has posted, there's a progressive action plan for Haiti:
Haiti: 10-point action plan
1) Grants, not loans.
2) Keep corporations and corporatist policies OUT. Stop disaster capitalism in its tracks.
3) Cancel ALL Haiti's debt to the Inter-American Development Bank.
4) Let Aristide return to Haiti.
5) Lift the ban on Aristide's Fanmi Lavalas political party.
6) Rip up the neoliberal pre-earthquake Clinton-Obama program for Haiti: tourism, sweatshops, privatization, deregulation.
7) Do not allow US military or UN "peacekeepers" to point guns at desperate Haitians.
8 ) Allow all Haitians in the US to work, and remit money home.
9) Release all 30,000 Haitians held in US jails for deportation, and grant them Temporary Protected Status.
10) Demand that France start repaying the $21 billion it extorted from
Haiti in 1825, to "compensate" France for loss of Haiti as a slave
colony."
Then, a question about what to send to Haiti...
Formula for Disaster
Finally, the question of who to send your money to...
After the Quake, Depend on Women
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
It's already bitterly ironic that Bill Clinton is the United
Nation's special envoy to Haiti, after the economic policy he imposed
there to transform it into the Caribbean's sweatshop. Now, President
Obama has asked George Bush to lead fundraising efforts for relief in Haiti. After Bush took part in an international coup to overthrow Aristide. It's like sending in the horsemen of the apocalypse to negotiate peace.
There are, however, more sensible ideas.
First, as poet activist Shailja Patel has posted, there's a progressive action plan for Haiti:
Haiti: 10-point action plan
1) Grants, not loans.
2) Keep corporations and corporatist policies OUT. Stop disaster capitalism in its tracks.
3) Cancel ALL Haiti's debt to the Inter-American Development Bank.
4) Let Aristide return to Haiti.
5) Lift the ban on Aristide's Fanmi Lavalas political party.
6) Rip up the neoliberal pre-earthquake Clinton-Obama program for Haiti: tourism, sweatshops, privatization, deregulation.
7) Do not allow US military or UN "peacekeepers" to point guns at desperate Haitians.
8 ) Allow all Haitians in the US to work, and remit money home.
9) Release all 30,000 Haitians held in US jails for deportation, and grant them Temporary Protected Status.
10) Demand that France start repaying the $21 billion it extorted from
Haiti in 1825, to "compensate" France for loss of Haiti as a slave
colony."
Then, a question about what to send to Haiti...
Formula for Disaster
Finally, the question of who to send your money to...
After the Quake, Depend on Women
It's already bitterly ironic that Bill Clinton is the United
Nation's special envoy to Haiti, after the economic policy he imposed
there to transform it into the Caribbean's sweatshop. Now, President
Obama has asked George Bush to lead fundraising efforts for relief in Haiti. After Bush took part in an international coup to overthrow Aristide. It's like sending in the horsemen of the apocalypse to negotiate peace.
There are, however, more sensible ideas.
First, as poet activist Shailja Patel has posted, there's a progressive action plan for Haiti:
Haiti: 10-point action plan
1) Grants, not loans.
2) Keep corporations and corporatist policies OUT. Stop disaster capitalism in its tracks.
3) Cancel ALL Haiti's debt to the Inter-American Development Bank.
4) Let Aristide return to Haiti.
5) Lift the ban on Aristide's Fanmi Lavalas political party.
6) Rip up the neoliberal pre-earthquake Clinton-Obama program for Haiti: tourism, sweatshops, privatization, deregulation.
7) Do not allow US military or UN "peacekeepers" to point guns at desperate Haitians.
8 ) Allow all Haitians in the US to work, and remit money home.
9) Release all 30,000 Haitians held in US jails for deportation, and grant them Temporary Protected Status.
10) Demand that France start repaying the $21 billion it extorted from
Haiti in 1825, to "compensate" France for loss of Haiti as a slave
colony."
Then, a question about what to send to Haiti...
Formula for Disaster
Finally, the question of who to send your money to...
After the Quake, Depend on Women