#1484: The Labeling of Haiti - Florestal Comments on Madhere's Suggestion (fwd)

[Robert Corbett <bcorbett@netcom.com>]

From:Jmfloresta@aol.com

Wesley Madhere wrote:
<<I'd like to propose we begin a writing campaign to editors of major 
newspapers and <<magazines everywhere to put a stop to this nonsense once and 
for all....What I <<am suggesting is the following. Each time  "The Phrase" 
is mentioned in an article <<anywhere, we bombard the editor of that 
particular periodical with a barrage of <<letters.  If it's a  small local 
paper in your city or hometown, I suggest you forward <<their address/e-mail 
to the rest of us (those who are interested)so we all can send <<letters 
instead of just one person expressing his/her own view.  I believe it 
requires <<that kind of collective effort if we to put a stop to it.>>

Kudo to Madhere for this suggestion. If a large number of Haitians 
participate in this effort and manage, at least, to make the writers SHY 
about using this unfair label, we would have accomplished many small 
victories. While I agree with Madhere that there is a psychological victory 
there, there are many others that would be accomplished that are also 
important:

1) It would motivate Haitians to better appreciate the power they have when 
they join forces, instead of the individual victories which most succesful 
Haitians outside of Haiti have to accomplish alone. 

2) It would signal that Haiti may not be as powerless as it has been so far 
depicted. But let's not get carried away. We are a long way from the Jewish 
Anti Defamation League's power - and many other like Jewish organizations 
here - and the respect they enjoyed throughout the world in defending 
antisemitism.

3)Using the same arguments presented by Madhere - should every country have a 
label reflecting the least attractive of its attributes - we will denounce 
the unfairness of some in the media against the defenseless.

4) It will also show that the Corbett's list is not talk only. Haiti has 
enough problems already that it does not need to add unfair label to them.   

While Madhere's willingness to contribute financially for an ad - informing 
that we won't take it anymore - is noble , our collective actions will speak 
louder. So, let's stop this unfair label.