Last Monday, in Washington DC, Brooklyn’s Congresswoman Yvette Clarke in an up-to-date address, to the House of Representative took her stance again, to press for the preservation for the island of Haiti, adamantly declaring to the House the on-going crisis that is still taking place in the island.
“Mr. Speaker, I rise this day to help shed light on the escalating crisis in Haiti. There is no doubt that the Haitian people are experiencing some of the most horrific times in modern, civil society,” revealed Congresswoman Clarke. In explaining the devastating conditions that need immediate attention, Clarke remind congress that there is no functioning government in Haiti and that under such circumstances it presents a problem for the country when there is no protection for the Haitian people.
Clarke raised the issue of the starvation that is now happening in the nation especially among children and highlighted recent data from the United Nations stating, “that four million Haitians face “acute food insecurity” and one million are one step away from famine.” As the Congresswoman continued to emphasize her points, she reminded the House of Representatives that the United Sates is a mere seven hundred miles from the shores of Haiti, “and yet, in many ways Haiti has been forgotten. It is urgent that we pay attention.”
She also noted that the rhetoric on some immigrants is vicious and racial and it requires that America pays attention, “…because the Black diaspora has always been a defining component to American Blackness…We can never again forget that Black history is America’s history,” said the congresswoman. Clarke called for more of her colleagues and the administration to come to the aid of the Haitian people, stating that she will continue to push for an extension for Temporary Protective Status (TPS) for Haitians.
On another occasion, other congressional members have also echoed the plea and demanded that the United States do more to prevent the transfer of weapons to Haiti and to stop the forcible repatriation of migrants who are trying to escape the intensifying street violence. The Congresswoman applauded her colleagues for their efforts in trying to help get aid to Haiti.
Congresswomen, Sheila Cherfilus-McCormicck, Cori Bush and Ayanna Pressley, have joined forces and established dialogues on the devastation in Haiti, and were called out by Clarke. These congresswomen also met with human right advocates and Haitians organizations recently to advocate for increased oversight at the Florida ports. Other participants included in that meeting were Amnesty International USA, Florida Immigrant Coalition, Family Action Network Movement, and the Haitian Bridge Alliance leaders.
