Someone please call 911.

Yesterday afternoon when I turned on CNN and saw:"BREAKING NEWS: 7.0 Earthquake Hits Haiti", even before listening to a detailed report or seeing any images of the island, my eyes immediately welled with tears.

I'm not hyper-emotional, nor am I Haitian, but having studied earthquakes and knowing the Haitian history, I was saddened like you wouldn't believe.
Haiti cannot catch a fucking break; its one country that really cant afford this.

I talked to someone yesterday who said,"Man, this might be worse than Hurricane Katrina!"

I literally laughed.

Hurricane Katrina is a joke compared to this.

First, I knew Haiti was congested, but what I didn't know is that its the most overpopulated country in the Western hemisphere.
There are 2 million people that live in Port-au-Prince (the capital) and the city is only equipped for 50,000 people.
And to add insult to injury, the epicenter of this earthquake is only 10 miles away from Port-au-Prince.
Haiti is also the poorest country in the Western hemisphere where 50% of the people live under the poverty level.
So, you already know that a lot of the country's infrastructure isn't up to American standards and the shanty homes that the poverty stricken country is filled with mos definitely arent.

So between the congestion, the poverty, the political unrest, the racial tension with the Dominican Republic, the heavy amount of violence and the weather/eco problems inluding floods, hurricanes and deforestation, Haiti is pretty much fucked.

Yesterday, I honestly thought,"Damn. There could be close to 1 million people injured and/or dead before this is all over."
The country was already devastated before this, calling out for aid, and now this is just fucking egregious.

Anyway, Ive always been interested in international events so I knew the beautiful, revolutionary and historic history of Haiti which makes it even worse...
If you are a black person anywhere in the world, then Haitian history is your history.

Haitian slaves executed the only successful revolt to abolish slavery and Haiti was the first free black republic in the world.

So pretty much, Haitian slaves were bad ass to defend one the most powerful armies in the world (the French).

As far as Im concerned, black people all over the world (the Diaspora) owe a lot to the Haitian slaves and the revolution that would eventually shape our world.

(Find out more by watching this 6-part series)

So besides the loss of life, Im afraid Haiti will also lose some of that beautiful history during the destruction.

I'm not listing all these horrible facts to be a Negative Nancy, but I want to ignite, as Obama would say, "a fierce urgency of now".

I am really proud to see all my friends and young people in general, exhibit so much humanity during this crisis, but there are some who continue to complain about the donations and its really steaming my clams.

I keep hearing people say things like...

"We need to try to help our local brothers first before we make a global change."

AND

"People never care until its a catastrophe...smh"

AND

"We should be helping America first."

I can understand that view to a certain extent, but honestly, I think its bullshit.

You're not helping the situation at all by being condescending, so stop.

I don't know about you, but my compassion isnt limited to nationality.

I am human first and American second.

As "hippy" as it sounds, we are all brothers and sisters (especially my black people in this case) and I help family.

Also, do you really think the people of Haiti care about how extensive your volunteer or donation history is right now?

Answer: No.

It doesn't matter what you did in the past, it matters what you do NOW.

Haiti needs our compassion and solidarity during this time, not condemnation towards those who are trying to help.

And to those who understand the severity of the situation and are still apathetic (ex: Rush Limbaugh), put your heart in the microwave and press "defrost" cause you're cold-blooded.

Its unfortunate that during times of war, so many are quick to lend our military and bear our arms to other countries, yet people complain when others open their hearts and lend a hand during times of catastrophe.

So kids...

If you can donate your money, do so.

If you can donate your time, do so.

If you can donate your prayers, do so.

You can afford a few dollars, but Haiti cant afford to ignored.

Below is a list of ways you can help and its all legit (click here for source):
Yele Haiti Foundation: Text YELE to 501501 and donate $5.

UNICEF: Visit unicefusa.org/haitiquake or call (800)4UNICEF
Red Cross: Visit redcross.org, call (800)REDCROSS or donate $10 by texting HAITI to 90999.
World Vision: Visit worldvision.org or call (888)511-6598
Americares: Visit americares.org or call (800)486-4357

P.S. As I have said before, one of my dreams is to join the Peace Corps after grad school.
My top choice is to serve on Hispaniola (the island that Haiti and the Dominican Republic share).
The history of Hispaniola drew me to want to serve those people (especially with the racial and political tension the countries hold).
But after some research, I quickly found out that Dominican Republic was my only choice being that the Peace Corps pulled out of Haiti about 5 years ago due to violence.
The PC serves in 3rd world countries who usually have a history of violence, so for the PC to pull out, that's a big deal.
Even though I cant serve in Haiti, I am now even more hopeful that I get placed in D.R. cause I know it will help somehow.

PEACE,

Jai.