Perspective

Dealimg with disasters

By Masako Yamada

I don't have a TV at home so the only time I watch the news is when I'm traveling. My boyfriend and I were on a road trip in Canada when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans. We heard snippets of news on the car radio as we drove and remembered that we'd visited the vibrant city less than a year ago. Especially troubling were the reports that thousands of evacuees had been trapped in a sports stadium for days without basic resources like food, water, electricity and toilets. We were aghast.

At one hotel, we saw a news clip of Celine Dion crying hysterically. Celine Dion is French Canadian and I was not surprised to see her on Canadian news. What surprised me was that she was so passionate about a tragedy that was, in a certain sense, not really hers. It turns out her feelings were shared by citizens across the world.

Many news reports suggested that one of the reasons the government response was so slow was because many of the victims were poor blacks. Celine Dion criticized the United States for spending money to send troops to Iraq and not spending money to feed, clothe and shelter its own people for a few days. She personally donated a million dollars (¥111.5 million) toward relief efforts.

I wonder whether Celine Dion felt particularly close to New Orleans because it's a city that was originally settled by French Canadians. Even now, descendants of these immigrants are called "Cajuns."

I have a friend who's Cajun. His name is Steven. He said many people at work have asked him how his friends and family are doing and whether they could help. He said that, at first, he didn't know how to answer the questions ... partly because he couldn't get in touch with his loved ones and partly because he couldn't collect his racing thoughts. He did say, however, that even though he couldn't answer, he was glad that people had asked.

This weekend, Steven is hosting a personal fund-raising party to help his relatives living around New Orleans. One of his uncles outside the city has been housing dozens of relatives who have lost their homes and jobs. Steven has asked us to donate practical items he can ship to his uncle, as well as money to help defray the cost of taking care of such a large number of people.

What a comfort it must be for one to have loving relatives on whom one can rely. However, many of the victims of Hurricane Katrina do not have such support networks. This is where the government, churches and non-profit organizations must step in to help. I believe the religious foundation upon which the United States is based (including Christian, Jewish and Islamic faiths) encourages citizens to help complete strangers.

Many feel that the best way they can contribute is by doing hands-on work, but the fact of the matter is that in these scenarios, cold-hard cash is probably the best thing one can contribute. New jobs also need to be created to enable displaced residents to earn their own money. My company has established a Hurricane Katrina disaster relief fund where the company contributes a dollar for each dollar that employees donate. Many of my colleagues have participated in this program.

Shukan ST: Oct. 7, 2005

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