This Saturday we have a benefit for Haiti at the victoria with PLEASE, NATURE AND SLUSHY GUTS playing live.
This should help answer some questions as to why and why now...
Although Positive Action puts its emphasis on helping local charities and causes there will be times unfortunately when world events will turn our hands to aid, support and unity.
The Haiti disaster has left thousands dead and even more homeless; the country’s infrastructure has been destroyed. Haiti is at square one and despite the encouraging and unprecedented amount of money and aid that has been pledged from around the world sadly the people are soon forgotten. As is the case after many disasters the months that follow are crucial but the months after that are do or die to putting the area and society back on track. Most money goes into food and immediate aid but after this we tend to forget the hundreds of schools, jobs, homes and general infrastructure that has disappeared, needs to be rebuilt, and if removed from our society would see us at tenterhooks to hold on to the day to day lives we hold so dear.
Positive action stands in solidarity with the Haitian people and puts on this show to aid in keeping the publics awareness at a level above that provided by the country’s media.
We are also putting on this event to highlight and support the exposing of the oppression the Haitian working class has suffered pre and post quake, a fact that has been created and covered up by the West’s imperialist forces. It would be immoral and insensitive to use the disaster to highlight an argument against capitalism and imperialism, fact is this is not a newfound view in its infancy, its an argument that began before many of us were born and its effects have been felt for decades. It’s the reason this country was so inadequately equipped for such a disaster. Money and support for anti-left leaders has been pumped into the country from the US since the 1950’s in a bid to counter support for nearby Castro led Cuba. Since then the US has had a major influence on who holds power in the country and has played a big part in the gradual shift of the poor into the 3rd world housing of the Port-au-prince, the area most badly hit by the quake. The US with all their power and money invested in this country turned a blind eye to an area beyond repair, where its streets and thousands upon thousands of poverty-ridden residents were in dire need of support. Its only now with the country stricken by disaster that the worlds eyes are open and upon Haiti that the US acts as the White Knight when all along they were more like the pillaging Viking hordes.
We mentioned before it was perhaps immoral and insensitive to point out a political argument in the aftermath of the quake, but what is it then that the imperialist powers that be (The US) are using the disaster as an opportunity to once again re-establish their footing in this ravaged country, why else would you donate a billion dollars but yet still hold the country to a debt that equals to much more than this. The Obama administration still disallows the Haitians popular left wing political party the Lavalas Family and their estranged leader Jean-Bertrand Aristide from running for parliament. In 2004 Aristide was extradited from Haiti in the form of a rebellion (weapons and support supplied by our old friend Mr Bush) the result of a smear campaign against him created by the US part, this was caused by Aristide’s desire to re-distribute the profits from the privatization of enterprises (an idea pushed by the US on to Haiti) to the Haitian people. Surely Mr. Obama, you know the guy who likes change and democracy and all that jazz, could have some sway in letting the first democratically elected leader of Haiti and one that in only December thousands of people marched the streets of Port-au-prince in support of back to the people whom he has vowed to bring back from the brink.
The events go far beyond what we can fit in this leaflet, all we can do is direct you to the truth and ask you to show your support not just now, for the Haitian’s homeless, ill, missing, and poor in the wake of this terrible disaster, but for the future of Haiti’s working class who may have to struggle against US and UN occupation and influence for years to come.
For those asking wanting to know why we havent done anything for Chile, apart from the obvious in that we had this planned a long time ago and would never take back a pledged benefit because something else happened in the mean time the disastors emergency commitee who we are donating has this press release that explains the situation in Chile and why they will not be sending help there.
http://www.dec.org.uk/item/428
Also the disastors emergency commitee who we always give to on these terrible events put out this press release which may help:
http://www.dec.org.uk/item/428
