By Paul Shepard on Oct 14th 2010 4:33PM
Filed under: News, Politics, Race and Civil Rights
When Senegal President Abdoulaye Wade (pictured above) pledged in January to help survivors of the Haitian earthquake that took more than 250,000 lives, you could practically feel much of the world roll its collective eyes.
It's true that Haiti and Senegal share a common link, since both had been colonized by the French. But more troubling was their shared poverty. Both nations are among the poorest in the world.
But Wade stuck to his promise. This week, 163 Haitian students landed in Dakar and were welcomed by dancers, singers and drummers to accept the offer of free housing and scholarships from the Senegalese.
More Haitian students from the devastated island nation are expected to arrive in Senegal shortly.
Wade has endured some criticism at home for his grand gesture. Some have argued against giving scholarships to the Haitian students when some young Senegalese struggle to find university slots or employment.
Wade also had to scale back his original offer of free tracts of land for the Haitian students to simply free housing.
I understand the feelings of resentment on the part of the Senegalese. But I trust they will be short lived.
Senegal has taught the world a lesson in how to share its meager reserves with people who are more unfortunate.
It leaves me with the sense that if Senegal can bring Haitian students to its shores, why aren't we hearing more about what affluent countries are doing to help?
http://xml.channel.aol.com/xmlpublisher/fetch.v2.xml?option=expand_relative_urls&dataUrlNodes=uiConfig,feedConfig,localizationConfig,entry&id=868400&pid=868399&uts=1286812395
http://www.aolcdn.com/ke/media_gallery/v1/ke_media_gallery_wrapper.swf
Your Hottest News Stories
Mike Stewart, AP
Getty Images North America
Your Hottest News Stories
07-Oct-10 - A new billboard of Bishop Eddie Long has appeared in Atlanta, causing a lot of controversy.
Click Here for the Complete Story
Your Hottest News Stories
03-Oct-10 - Rick Sanchez, the host of 'Rick's List,' was fired by CNN this week.
Click Here for the Complete Story
Your Hottest News Stories
01-Oct-10 - Police arrested Marcus Bascus who appears to be involved in the shooting of 19-year-old Seton Hall honor student Jessica Moore.
Click Here for the Complete Story
Your Hottest News Stories
01-Oct-10 - The ex-wife of Bishop Eddie Long, Dabara S. Houston, claimed in court documents that Long abused her during their marriage.
Click Here for the Complete Story
Your Hottest News Stories
29-Sep-10 - Jamal Parris, one of the accusers, told Fox 5 Atlanta what happened between him and Bishop Eddie Long.
Click Here for the Complete Story
Your Hottest News Stories
28-Sep-10 - Trying to get various black public figures to speak out for or against Bishop Eddie Long has been harder than getting 4-year-olds to go to the dentist. No one is talking, but everyone is paying attention.
Click Here for the Complete Story
Your Hottest News Stories
27-Sep-10 - Jessica Moore, 19, was hanging out at an off-campus frat party Saturday, when a man who was angry about not getting in to the party, came back with a gun and started shooting. Moore was shot in the head.
Click Here for the Complete Story
Your Hottest News Stories
25-Sep-10 - According to a recent Aol. Black Voices poll, only 49 percent of respondents believe that Bishop Eddie Long is gay.
Click Here for the Complete Story
Your Hottest News Stories
23-Sep-10 - Bishop Eddie Long allegedly sent these questionable pictures to his "spiritual sons."
Click Here for the Complete Story
Your Hottest News Stories
23-Sep-10 - Some really "interesting" pictures of Bishop Eddie Long, which were allegedly sent by Long to one of his "spiritual sons," were made public last week.
Click Here for the Complete Story
Your Hottest News Stories
Michelle Obama Attends Beyonce Concert
7 Weird Ways To Bug-Proof Your Picnic
Comments: (5)
Add a comment
By: Tom Truth on 10/14/2010 6:12PM
Far more Haitians than "163 students" have wound up in the USA. In addition, the USA has publicly and privately donated BILLIONS to Haiti, something Senegal hasn't done.
And it's not like Haiti is some admirable country.
Not only is it extremely poor, it's one of the few countries left in the world that has on-going slavery, black-on-black slavery at that:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnklOtfJRSE
Of course, posting inconvenient (incovenient for BV that is) facts like this automatically makes me a "racist".
Get your facts straight.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: The Cynic on 10/15/2010 8:11PM
Billions of dollars have been PROMISED to Haiti.
NONE of it has showed up. Get your facts straight.
AP IMPACT: Haiti still waiting for pledged US aid
By JONATHAN M. KATZ and MARTHA MENDOZA (AP) – Sep 28, 2010
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5idZiVQhHcyG1gpBjzXaAmmk4_OtAD9IHE5BO1?docId=D9IHE5BO1
p.s. what does Haiti having slavery have to do with anything? Do you know how many ppl were affected by the Earthquake? Do you honestly feel all of those ppl were bad or deserved what they got?
Report This
By: F Dar on 10/15/2010 5:27AM
Senegal is a majority Muslim country .It is serving Allah by taking care of distressed fellow human beings, while the richest ' sole global power', USA, is busy illegally invading other countries, killing thousands of innocent civilians & looting their natural resources. Thank you Senegal!
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Paul I. Adujie on 10/15/2010 8:41AM
Haiti, 2 Million Persons Still Homeless 10 Months After Earthquake!
http://www.examiner.com/bergen-county-independent-in-new-york/haiti-2-million-persons-still-homeless-10-months-after-earthquake
Haiti, 2 Million Persons Still Homeless 10 Months After Earthquake!
http://www.google.com/search?q=Haiti%2C+2+Million+Persons+Still+Homeless+10+Months+After+Earthquake%21+Adujie&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&clie...nt=firefox-a
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: ADRIAN HARRIS OF SOUTH GEORGIA GO!!! GRAMBLING TIGERS GO!! WORLD CLASS DRIVE!!! on 11/02/2010 12:12AM
HAIL!!! ALMIGHTY WIND MAKER!!! EARTH SHAPER!!! HAIL TO THEE ABBA!!!! HAIL TO YOU SEPIA SPECTRUM BAND PEOPLE!!! YOU SEE OUR HEARTS? WE WERE INFAMOUSLY KNOWN AS THE NEGRO AFTER BEING RENAMED BY "CANNABLES" KNOWN AS "EUROPEAN SCHOLARS". THEN HE CREATED A BEING CALLED THE PRIMITVE NEGRO, DEFINED BY HIM AS A SIMPLE, CHILD LIKE BEING, HALF NAKED, UNSPOILED BY CULTURE, AND CONTENT TO HANG BY HIS TAIL LIKE A MONKEY WHILE HE, AFTER THE SLAVE TRADES AND EUROPEAN INVASION CAUSED ALL OF THIS ON THE CONTINENT, WOULD LEAD MANKIND INTO NEW REALMS OF ART, SCIENCE , CULTURE. THE WHITE MAN ALSO RECLAIMED OUR AFRICAN FOREBEARS AS "DARK SKINNED WHITES", ATTACKED BLACK HISTORY AND EUROPEANIZED ALL OF ANCIENT HISTORY; SO THAT ALL ACHIEVEMENTS WERE THE PRODUCT OF BLONDE HAIR, BLUE EYES, AND ARYAN HERITAGE. WE BECAUSE OF OUR INHERANT PRIMITVE AND SAVAGENESS WERE NOT WORTH THE REST OF THE DEVELOPED WORLDS ATTENTION OR ANY OF US IN ANY OTHER FORM IN THE CIVILIZED WORLD, WHICH WE CIVILIZED. BUT AS YOU READ ABOVE IS THIS ACT OF THE AFRICAN AND THE AFRICAN AMERICAN THAT WAS ALWAYS THE RULE AND WHAT WAS EXPECTED OUT OF OUR ADULTHOOD. THIS ABOVE THAT YOU READ ABOUT IN SENEGAL IS ONE OF THE HALLMARKS OF AFRICAN CULTURE. THAT IT DIDN'T MATTER HOW POOR WE BOTH WERE, "TOGETHER WE WILL MAKE IT". I AM AN AFRICAN AMERICAN AND I KNOW THIS IS WHAT I WAS TAUGHT IN MANHOOD TRAINING. AND OF COURSE WE PRACICED IT DURING SLAVERY AND UP TO THE 60'S. THEN RIGHTYFULLY WE BECAME MISERABLE CREATURES FOR PRACTICING THE WHITE MAN'S WAY; OTHERWORDS "THE HELL WITH YOU PULL YOUR OWN DAMN SELF UP CAUSE YOU NOT GONNA GET MINE". AND LOOK AT US NOW!! BUT THE BLACK MAN AS ALWAYS IS HIS OWN SOLUTION, I.E. BEING A BLACK MAN IS THIS AFRICAN COUNTRY AND HOW ITS LEADING THE WORLD SHOWING IT HOW A BLACK MAN OR MAN IS SUPPOSE TO CARRY HIMSELF AND ACT WHEN OTHERS ARE IN NEED. NEVER MIND WHAT HE DOESN'T HAVE BUT WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN EXEMPLAIR OF THIS NATION,SENEGAL, IF THE REST OF THE STATES WOULD HAVE REACTED TO NEW ORLEANS DURING AFTER HURRICANE KATRINA THE WAY THE BLACK MAN IS DOING HERE, BUT THE BLACK MAN IN NOT IN SITUATION MENTALLY, PHYSICALLY, POLITICALLY, ECONOMICALLY, SOCIALLY IN THIS CIVILIZATION. OR WE WOULD HAVE REACTED LIKE WE WERE EXPECTED TO WHEN OUR FELLOW CTITZENS ARE IN THE HORROR OF DARKNESS. MY COUNTRY TIS(IS) OF THEE(YOU) SWEET LAND OF LIBERTITY. HOW CAN YOU FEEL LIBERATED UNLESS YOU HAVE PEOPLE WITH YOU. A LAND IS MADE UP OF PEOPLE THAT YOU ARE APART OF. OTHERWISE YOU'RE JUST PLAIN ALONE!!! SUICIDE IS PROBALY NEXT. OUR DEFINITION OF "BLACK OR BLACKNESS" BEFORE THIS WHITE MAN INVENTED THIS RACIST MESS, WAS CORRECT THINKING AND BEHAVIOR TOWARD HUMANS. THAT'S THE TRUTH!!! GO AFRICA GO!!! LEAD THE WORLD FOR IT CERTAINLY HAS FEASTED OFF OF YOU. I'M PROUD!!! BYE Y'ALL!!! PLENTY OF WATER AND NUTRIOUS FOOD!!! LORD GET PLENTY OF SLEEP!!!! EXCERCISE IF YOU CAN FIND SOME KIND OF WAY!!! LOVE Y'ALL!!! PEACE!!!
Reply to this Comment | Report This