I subscribe to a newsletter from a group called Beyond Borders which is a missions-oriented foundation operating in Haiti. Every month I receive an update on the work that has been done in Haiti by local and overseas missionaries. This month's update was particularly alarming and saddening. With the world's economy in a bit of trouble now (thank you corn) the price of produce has risen dramatically. However, most of the world's income per capita has not risen at all. Haiti's average per capita income is 44 cents a day. 44 cents to pay for water, shelter, clothing, fuel....that's 44 cents to survive. Many families go a day or two at a time without a meal. This extreme poverty comes as no surprise as Haiti's dependence on imported produce has grown exponentially over the last 20 years. The country used to be self-sufficient in this area but the greed of various corporations and the American government (*see end of post for details) has successfully killed this reality. This is not only a matter of hunger, but of justice.
Next week, starting Monday and ending Friday, I will subsist on only 44 cents a day for food. I know that standards of living vary and the standard of living in Canada is much higher than Haiti, but I think it important for me to do this as an act of solidarity. I've decided I'm not going to include water in this, considering how difficult it is for me to calculate such things - so i get to drink tap water to my heart's content. 5 days, $2.20 to spend (not just "spend". The value of items bought prior to the start of Monday counts as well, so if I eat a can of tuna that I bought last week, that's 89 cents). This amount includes whatever i might spend on miscellaneous items. (minus gas....it's just not possible)
What do I hope to achieve? It's not just a matter of trying to starve myself so I feel more "in tune" with the sufferings of this world. That's bull. Solely changing my mental state does nothing for Christ's kingdom or people. We need action! So I've averaged the amount of money I spend in a regular week (I'm not telling you the ridiculous amount) and that will go to Haiti instead of into my stomach or wherever else. In addition, this will teach me how to let go of the things of this world, including food. It's like an "everything-material-fast". I've been thinking about materialism lately and how I so easily dish out money. 13 bucks for a 6-pack of beer, 3 bucks for a bottle of juice, 25 bucks for AYCE sushi, 40 bucks for a bag that I don't even like. (Thank you, John Knight) It's absurd and ridiculous, and we don't even realize it.
So here we go. It'll be rocky and I know I'll be grumpy and irritable. But here we go.
** in 1986, Haiti freed itself from dictatorship that had been supported by the US. They were bankrupt. Washington agreed to give them conditional aid granted that they cut foreign rice-tariffs down to 3.5 percent (tariffs protect local industries). The average international average for rice tariffs is 43 percent (are you effing kidding me?) Haitian farmers couldn't compete with American rice producers and many were forced out of business. With the rise of international food prices today, in theory, Haitian farmers should be able to return to business. The reality is, however, that farmers have lost their lands and irrigation canals have crumbled because of years of neglect (there was no point in farming rice).
