13615: Lafleur: Would you flee.. (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Lourdes Lafleur <lourdeslafleur@videotron.ca>

Would you flee?
Bob Thomas, Daily Journal

November 08, 2002

What would it take for you to flee from America? When would you decide to
crowd onto a boat and sail to another country where your future was
undetermined, and you knew not one soul? In order to board this boat, you
would have to come up with an amount of money way out of your reach. You
would have to sell your home, car and personal belongings if you had them.
Because -- without the fee for the boat ride, you'd have to keep living the
life you so desperately want to escape. Could you imagine how unbearable
America would have to become in order for you to flee from those you love,
from your home, your land, your identity?
For 200 Haitians who boarded a man-made boat last week, their homeland
became this unbearable place to live. Many Haitians will be sent back unless
they can prove they suffered political persecution. Is it fair to let this
condition be the only factor in determining whether a migrant can stay in
America or not? Shouldn't the poor conditions of the land, the 90-percent
unemployment rate and the daily struggle to find food factor in? Should the
fact that three out of five Haitians suffer from malnutrition play a role in
determining if these 200 can stay?
If these facts are not enough to allow them to stay, maybe this information
from the Associated Press should be considered:
Tens of thousands of boat people fled a military regime in Haiti and
received refuge in the United States during 1991-1994. In part to halt that
influx, 20,000 U.S. troops invaded in November 1994 and reinstated
(Jean-Bertrand) Aristide, the Caribbean nation's first democratically
elected president, renewing hopes for a better life.
However, since then, many people have turned from supporting Aristide
because since his election, political gangs have gained strength and crime
has risen. It is reported that Aristide's 2000 election was rigged.
So, does America have a responsibility to these Haitians? Is it okay for
America to invade a land with good intentions; but when the results become
unfavorable for the occupants of that land, should Americans accept some
responsibility?
According to the AP story, before December, detainees were freed while their
cases were considered. But this group will not be released because of a Bush
administration policy quietly introduced last year. The policy change
apparently was prompted by fears of a mass exodus from Haiti. Basically, the
administration knew the conditions of Haiti were so awful that many of its
occupants would want to flee and decided to do nothing but make a policy
change making it legal to detain refugees while they were here.
Can America keep invading countries to correct human conditions without
accepting responsibility when the corrections fail? Haven't we seen the
ramifications of this? If America is going to be the police for the world,
then America also needs to be the social worker for the world.
A mother and former social worker, Meg Shaughnessy is a regular Journal
columnist from Monee. She can be contacted through this newspaper.