www.beingandbecoming.info

 



Haiti Links of Interest
Thoughts to all those who survived Haiti, and especially the orphans
and brave Haitians working to care for them in
Haiti in the long term. May they get the support they need.

Also thoughts to the Haitian adoptees and their surviving birth
relatives based in Haiti, and the work of those adoptees
who have now reached adulthood and do work with the Haitian community.



Earthquake and Wider Assistance Programs for Haiti


The earthquake  in Haiti 12 January 2010 is an enormous tragedy. We all want to assist.  Some general relief programs can be explored at:

 http://www.standwithhaiti.org/haiti

 https://donate.msf.org.au/donate_haiti.cfm

 http://tiny.cc/WFpDw
Remembering Haiti is a country, not a crisis


The issue of rushing to airlift children: some personal thoughts


Following the earthquake there has been and will be a lot of media on the adoption of Haitian children by non-Haitians based overseas.  This includes some talks of airlifts, much like the 'Operation Babylift' evacuations during the Vietnam War.

As a researcher who has looked into the experiences of  Vietnam War adoptees, someone currently studying contemporary Australians who adopted from various Asian and African nations, as a volunteer for various adoptee-focused projects, and as a transnational adoptee myself, these comparisons prompted me to reflect on a number of things.   I hope to write about them in more depth soon. 

I personally feel there are no easy answers.  However, when it comes to adoption, especially during times of crises when administrative records, procedures and due process can go astray, I do think there are some important questions that need to be asked such as:

- who has the most power going on in overseeing these children's welfare (including verifying they have no birth relatives who can take care of them), and who might not?
- whose voices are being amplified and what critically needed voices might we not yet heard from?
- who gets left behind? why?
- what long term assistance is in place for Haitian adoptees who've grown up in contact with their birth relatives and have grave concerns for their well being now?
- what long term plans are being secured for children in orphanages to be reconnected with their surviving families (immediate or extended)?
- what might be learnt from Zoe's Ark, the UN consensus on not rushing to airlif children during the Asian tsunami and some of the complexities to arise from past airlifts from Vietnam?
- what is being done to allow Haitian families to stay connected in Haiti?
These are the types of questions not always asked in the mainstream.  I encourage people to share these questions if they find them useful.


We all want to do what we can for these children in Haiti and also their wider community. 


We can also do our best for these children by looking for and listening to all sides and scenarios during this tragedy so they are protected both in short term and long term ways. 

Below is a list of links and stories that remind us to practice caution rather than haste in response to orphans in Haiti and using airlifts, and to think outside old paradigms:
STATEMENTS BY GROUPS
Adopted and Fostered Adults of the African Diaspora (AFAAD)  various updates at:

http://afaad.wordpress.com

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various updates at:

http://www.ethicanet.org/ethica-response-to-crisis-in-haiti


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As a result of the earthquake that hit Haiti on 12 January 2010, thousands of persons within Haiti and abroad have lost contact with their loved ones.

The aim of the Family Links website is to accelerate the process of restoring contact between separated family members.  If you know of people going over to Haiti let them know about this service so they can assist others to be aware of it and share knowledge of it on

http://www.icrc.org/web/doc/siterfl0.nsf/htmlall/familylinks-haiti-eng?opendocument

Interview with ICRC about finding relatives

http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/haiti-earthquake-interview-180110


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(via story in CNN - organization links to be added soon)

Three aid groups called Thursday for an immediate halt to any new adoptions of Haitian children after last week's earthquake.
Save the Children, World Vision and a unit of the British Red Cross said the focus first must be on tracing any family members that children may still have and reuniting them.

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/01/21/haiti.adoptions/index.html


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SOS Villages statement:

Haiti statement and general link

http://www.sos-childrensvillages.org/

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 various updates at:

http://uai-news.blogspot.com/2010/01/international-adoption-community-calls.html

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STORIES IN THE MEDIA


Too early to begin adopting Haitian children, would-be parents told
Children's groups in the US have warned that mass adoptions could open the door to 'fraud, abuse and trafficking'

 Its also valuable to consider all sides and scenarios during this tragedy so children are protected both in the short term and long term ways

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jan/18/haiti-earthquake-orphans-adoption-warning

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Adoption agencies warned off Haiti's orphans

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/adoption-agencies-warned-off-haitis-orphans-1871972.html



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Protecting Haiti's children
Our view: Good intentions don't justify child trafficking disguised as adoption

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/editorial/bal-ed.haiti0207,0,2692969.story

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STATEMENTS BY ADOPTEES / ADOPTEE BLOGS


Explore  various adoptee perspectives and updates at:
As the sites above have multiple posts on Haiti re: adoptions following the earth quake the general links are supplied rather than specific pages.  Please search topic 'Haiti' when visiting.


Explore others perspectives at:



Examining the Operation Babylift Airlifts:

'A developmental psychologist's view of Operation Babylift',
Edward Zigler. (1976) American Psychologist,  Vol. 31,  No. 5, pp. 329 - 340.

"The Bitter Legacy of the Babylift." 1975
 http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,879714,00.html


'Beyond the Vietnam War Adoptions: Representing Our Transracial Lives'.  Williams Willing , I. (2006). In Outsiders Within: Racial Crossings and Adoption Politics. (Eds, Trenka, J. J., Oparah, C. & Shin, S. Y.).  Cambridge, MA:  South End Press. pp. 275 - 285.