Folks,
I was standing outside the CODEP depot, and a small group of folks clustered around me to talk about Ukraine. Haiti is not a country with newspapers. It’s all about radios and smart phones (which have been supplied cheaply ever since the 2010 earthquake). People follow the government news reports every morning from 7:00 to 8:00 AM. Afterwards they salute the flag as the national anthem is played. If there is no flag in sight, they stand with their hands clasped behind their backs during the music.
People watch and wonder about world events, as we all do. Here are some of the comments people were making in our conversation:
“How does all this matter for Haiti?”
“We have bad times. But, we aren’t getting bombed!”
“Trump called Haiti a shit-hole. Biden seems like a nicer guy.”
“Why does Biden want to protect Ukraine so hard?”
“Ukraine is right NEXT to Russia?”
I find myself in the most amazing conversations explaining the nuclear threat, discussing American’s divided politics, and listening to Haitians sympathize with victimized people. This is the richness I find by living here in Haiti.
Michael Anello, Executive Director
