You shall not oppress a stranger for you know the feelings of the stranger, having been strangers in the land of Egypt.
As our plane nears Haiti this verse continues to go through my mind. Emma and I are about to arrive at a country that is nearly invisible in the Western Hemisphere. Haiti is the proof there are multiple ways to oppress the stranger. While we all respond when we see the active oppression of those on the margins of society, it is the passive oppression that is far more dangerous. Because the poor are perceived as weak and vulnerable they are easily devalued: their very real needs ignored. It is the moral equivalent of changing the channel when you want to watch something more pleasant. The Torah reminds us that when it comes to the plight of others we are commanded to look, to see and to respond. To do otherwise is to deny the image of God in others.
I had the opportunity to visit Haiti a few years ago under the sponsorship of the American Jewish World Service. I remember being shocked to see the rubble of the earthquake that had occurred a few years earlier. Most of the country appeared to be in the same condition. It will be interesting to see how the country has responded.
Emma and I are traveling under the auspices of a remarkable organization called Fonkoze. We landed in the airport and made our way through a crush of people seemingly intent on offering us a ride to wherever we wanted to go. It felt a bit harrowing to be honest. Finally, we found the Fonkoze team and we put our suitcases in the back of a pickup truck and off we went to the Central Plateau of the country. The poverty is everywhere as we drive further and further out of Porto Prince. We are being led by one of the leaders of Fonkoze. A warm, dynamic and remarkably positive person by the name of Linda Bouchard. Even after more than a decade doing this work, Linda talks about having to run back to her car to fight back the tears at some of the stories. Over dinner we speak with one of the directors of Fonkoze's educational effort. She goes and trains the monitors who will teach others to read. Then after the course of a year most of the people who start the program leave it as readers. She quoted one woman who said that after she learned: "I was blind and you have given me back my eyes".
I am very excited about the plan for tomorrow and all look forward to sharing it with you. We have only been in Haiti for a few hours and those around appeared in a bit less than being strangers and more like brothers and sisters.
Exodus 23:9
As our plane nears Haiti this verse continues to go through my mind. Emma and I are about to arrive at a country that is nearly invisible in the Western Hemisphere. Haiti is the proof there are multiple ways to oppress the stranger. While we all respond when we see the active oppression of those on the margins of society, it is the passive oppression that is far more dangerous. Because the poor are perceived as weak and vulnerable they are easily devalued: their very real needs ignored. It is the moral equivalent of changing the channel when you want to watch something more pleasant. The Torah reminds us that when it comes to the plight of others we are commanded to look, to see and to respond. To do otherwise is to deny the image of God in others.
I had the opportunity to visit Haiti a few years ago under the sponsorship of the American Jewish World Service. I remember being shocked to see the rubble of the earthquake that had occurred a few years earlier. Most of the country appeared to be in the same condition. It will be interesting to see how the country has responded.
Emma and I are traveling under the auspices of a remarkable organization called Fonkoze. We landed in the airport and made our way through a crush of people seemingly intent on offering us a ride to wherever we wanted to go. It felt a bit harrowing to be honest. Finally, we found the Fonkoze team and we put our suitcases in the back of a pickup truck and off we went to the Central Plateau of the country. The poverty is everywhere as we drive further and further out of Porto Prince. We are being led by one of the leaders of Fonkoze. A warm, dynamic and remarkably positive person by the name of Linda Bouchard. Even after more than a decade doing this work, Linda talks about having to run back to her car to fight back the tears at some of the stories. Over dinner we speak with one of the directors of Fonkoze's educational effort. She goes and trains the monitors who will teach others to read. Then after the course of a year most of the people who start the program leave it as readers. She quoted one woman who said that after she learned: "I was blind and you have given me back my eyes".
I am very excited about the plan for tomorrow and all look forward to sharing it with you. We have only been in Haiti for a few hours and those around appeared in a bit less than being strangers and more like brothers and sisters.
