Thursday, January 12, 2012

Remembering Is Important: The Second Anniversary of the Earthquake in Haitie


From The Bishop of Ohio-

Today as we mark the second anniversary of the 7.0 earthquake that leveled the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince and its surrounding areas, it is important that we remember this natural disaster in which hundreds of thousands were killed, countless injured and one of the poorest countries in the world was sent deeper into poverty, if that is possible.

More than simply recalling the day, it is important that we quite literally re-member -- that we reconnect and attach ourselves again to that part of the body of humanity that was severed from the rest of the world by the initial, catastrophic event and has been continually isolated by the resultant health, economic and infrastructural devastation.

Of course there are many governments, faith organizations, relief agencies and others working hard to address the ongoing needs of the Haitian people and assist in the Herculean task of recovery. But for the vast majority of us, Haiti has been replaced in our consciousness by the subsequent natural disasters in Japan, New Zealand, Turkey and here at home, or by whatever today's news cycle presents. That is the problem. Once a disaster is off the front page, even one as colossal as the 2010 earthquake in Haiti or the 2011 tsunami in Japan, we tend to detach from it. And when we detach from it, the isolation recurs and the companionship declines. We move on, while the victims have nowhere to go. That is why remembering is so important.

More here-

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rev-mark-hollingsworth-jr/remembering-haiti-earthquake-anniversary_b_1194323.html

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