US Military’s “Security” Not Helping Haitians

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The United States has sent millions of dollars worth of aid to Haiti, much which has been distributed by US military personnel. As the days go by, however, the military on the ground has began to exercise harsh techniques to prevent looting in Port-au-Prince. Shooting machine guns into the air and pointing them at hungry Haitians is not what should be happening. Why can’t the US ever understand that enforcing military-style “security” is not always the answer?

This BBC video here shows what I’m referring to above. In it you will see Haitians scavenging for supplies and food, but when the military shows up they flee. It’s easier to think that these people shouldn’t be stealing, but remember it’s been 8 days since the earthquake and the food drops they are getting only lasts a day or so.

Several photos show the “aid” given to Haitians: a bottle of water and a plate of food. Some air drops have more supplies, but a pot to cook in is not as important as the food and water they need. How are Haitians supposed to survive with food and water for one day? It’s not possible, they cannot simply rely on the aid that is being distributed — they must search for more.

LOOTING IS A MEANS OF SURVIVAL

When I lived in San Salvador back in November 1989, a brutal military offensive was launched by the rebel forces (FMLN) against the standing right-wing government. The entire city of San Salvador shut down for two weeks — many people left on foot when the bombing and machine gun shooting would briefly stop, but many had to stay and endure the situation. My family was of them, my grandparents were on wheelchairs and there was no way we could get them over the trenches on the roads so we stayed.

After one week, we ran out of food. We were eating mayonnaise for protein and the bottle wasn’t going to last long to feed six people. The neighbors came knocking on our door to tell us that there was looting going on at the local marketplace which had been shut down. We didn’t think twice. I was 11-years old at the time, but I wasn’t afraid to go with my mother and aunt to see if we could get something to eat. It was a very traumatic experience, but we manage to get enough food to survive until the rebels retreated back to the country side and the city went back to normal a week later. Bullet holes adorned out brick walls, but we were safe.

Unless you have been through a war, an earthquake, or any other disaster in a third world country, no one should judge what the victims must do to survive. Yes, there are some people that do take advantage in those types of situations, but the majority are doing it to feed their children and relatives. I know that’s why our evangelical family did it. Next to other Pentecostals, Catholics, atheists, rich and poor Salvadorans, we all did it.

BLACKS AS VIOLENT

More troops are schedule to arrive in Haiti in days to come to assist in the distribution of aid. From day one the guns had been drawn to protect convoys and patrol the streets. For that American soldier carrying a machine gun, seeing hungry people may not resonate because his own belly is full. He ate at the command center, he probably even took a shower.

From day one CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta reported that the situation was due to “become violent.” He was already afraid of the “violent Haitians” and what they would do. It was like looking forward to the next big headline: “Violent Haitians Destroy Themselves.” Would the same story had been told if the earthquake had taken place in Italy? No, because the way we’re taught, people in Europe are so much more civilized.

You will see video from all the TV networks showing the looting and the “violent” Haitians. It’s like deliberately dehumanizing the very same people we thought were as humans as you and I a week ago. Black people already freak out many whites in America — they are portrayed as criminals, gangsters, violent thugs. It’s nothing new, these are cultural beliefs that never seem to really improve. Showing the black people in Haiti behaving desperately could easy trigger the notions that those are not people, they are criminals.

Indeed, there are many criminals who did in fact escape the prison in Port-au-Prince when the earthquake struck and gang violence had been wide spread even before the earthquake, but in moments when the majority of the population are in dire need of help because relatives are trapped under rubble worrying about the gangs should be the last thing.

I’ll tell you what real security is: showing up to protect the victims, not the valuables, collapsed banks or grocery stores. If anything, our troops should be blasting open those stores so people could have easier access to the food inside. The FMLN in San Salvador did just that, they blew open the marketplace because they knew people were hungry. Desperate situations call for desperate measures.

Are we going to get Haiti right or is it going to be even worse than Katrina? I’m very afraid that it’s looking more like the latter.

Editor’s Note: Please follow Dolores M Bernal on Twitter, and visit this author’s archive on News Junkie Post.

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