Chapter Twelve
Haiti

In today’s society, there are many things that we, Americans, take for granted. We are supplied with water, healthcare, electricity, food, sanitation, and much more. I some parts of the world the people don’t even receive food, let alone other necessities. For Americans the concept of not having enough food is very hard to fathom. We are able to eat whenever and wherever we want. Whether it be in the car, at work, home, and during public events it is very easy to consume any type of food. We are fed to the point of being overweight, unhealthy, and lazy. But, in the Third World, this scenario is very different. The underdeveloped part of the world struggles, not only to get food, but also with clean water, proper health care, and many more necessities that the developed world takes for granted.

For instance, Haiti is a prime example of a country that needs vast improvements in all areas to survive. This Third World country, located in the Caribbean Islands, is an underdeveloped country located near the Dominican Republic.

In this country there are approximately six and a half million people, and the majority ranges from ages 15-64 years old. Since 1995 there has been a 1.5% increase in population. If this rate keeps up Haiti may become more unstable than ever before. (ABC Country Book of Haiti)

Poverty in Haiti poses to be a very severe problem. In fact, "about 75 % of the population in Haiti live in poverty (ABC Book of Haiti)." With this statistic it is no surprise that approximately, "one billion Haitians lack the essential services such as water, sanitation, education, and health care" (Facing the Future). Without these necessities, Haiti is faced with the growing problems of vast health problems and increased death rates. Haiti does not have the proper health facilities to supply the Haitian people with adequate services.

These services are supplied to some of the Haitian population because they are employed. But, a small income can only do so much. Many Haitians make their living by substance farming. This operation is very limited due to the weather and the labor supply. Many families only own a small-scale portion of land, and because of this, the families do not receive an adequate amount of money to help supply for the family. Instead of farming for income, many other Haitians turn to factory work. In fact, many Haitians work for a popular company called Walt Disney. This famous company employs many people, but mainly teenage girls. The average employee is a young girl ranging from age 15 on up. Not only is this working situation violating the law by using child labor, but also the working conditions are dirty, cold, and abusive for all employees. For a company that is known throughout the world, you would think that the labor conditions would be more advanced and healthier for all employees. These employees are putting their lives at risk to produce clothing and other Disney products. There are toxic fumes that are released in the production process and no protective gear is supplied to eliminate harm to employees. After all, employees are a key factor in making a company successful.

In Haiti, the working conditions for producing Disney products isn’t the only downfall. Wages for these Haitian workers is unbelievably low. These families can barely supply food for their family on a daily basis. On the average, a Haitian worker makes "10 to 25 cents and hour, which in turn equals an average of $1.80 a day. (Disney Fantasy)" Minimum wage in the United States can be as much as 50 times the wage rate that Haitian Disney workers earn. If Disney would increase the hourly wages to at least $1.00 an hour, more Haitians would be able to help supply their family with more food and more security. With the income level that the Walt Disney company receives, this idea of increasing wages for Haitians would not cause Disney any financial problems. In the long run, Disney may find improvements because of this change in many areas. The employees would be much more happier, and in turn the products would be produced faster and have better quality. At this point in time Disney is fighting many legal battles in dealing with the cruelty and underpaid employees in Haiti. If Disney would increase the wages for these poor people they would find these legal instances diminishing rather quickly.

Because the wages in Haiti are so low, the poverty level in Haiti is now up to 1.3 billion people. With this vast amount of poverty stricken people in Haiti, this country is more susceptible to "domestic violence, illegal drug use, and unintended pregnancies (Population and Poverty)."

Domestic violence becomes a concern in a country with poverty because of low morale. For instance, a low paying job means added frustration in providing for a family. Low wages mean a continuous struggle with money for food, medication, and proper hygiene. In order to release this frustration violence in turn may be the result. A wife may be beaten, a child may be molested, and violent outbreaks may cause hatred between family members.

Illegal drug use in this underdeveloped country is a massive growing problem as well. Many Haitians resort to drugs in order to block out the horrible life that they have to live. These drugs supply a relief to many of the less fortunate natives of Haiti. Marijuana is grown easily in many common places, so Haitian people can access this drug with little problems. A large part of the Haitian population consists of teenagers. Many teenagers whether Haitian or American use marijuana and other drugs to feel high or a rush. This growing problem not only involves teenagers but many adults are using illegal drugs as well. Adults partake of these illegal drugs for many of the same reasons that teenagers do. There are many problems that can lead to the use of illegal drugs for both teenagers and adults. For instance there may be money problems in the family, a sickness in the family, frustration due to work, and many other problems that lead to the cause of drug use.

Unintended pregnancies are also a common problem for many Haitian families. Pregnancies are common in Haiti because there is not adequate resources in order to offer proper birth control methods. As I stated earlier, Haiti is lacking many necessary health care benefits. Birth Control is one of them. Although, if these resources are offered, many of the Haitian families can not afford to pay for them. These poor families are living in poverty and can not afford food let alone birth control. There are on average 39 births in a population size of 1,000. But without the proper health care, many of these babies don’t make it out of the hospital alive. Because of the enormous population the infant mortality rate is rather large. In turn many of these unintended pregnancies are causing more problems for the families in Haiti.

Haiti is an underdeveloped country with low income for many families, inadequate health services, poverty, and many other problems. These severe problems are increasing each year and soon they will be out of control. Many companies are taking these Haitian people for advantage and Disney is creating the biggest amount of hardship for these families. With $.28 and hour I would be able to buy myself a piece of gum and nothing else. I can’t imagine how these poor families can even make it a week without starving or becoming fatally ill without the proper care that they need. Haiti is a country that needs major health and financial help. We Americans can consider ourselves lucky because we have all of the food and health care that we need. We just take advantage of it.

ABC Country Book of Haiti. [On Line], Available:

http://www.theodora.com/wfb/haiti_people.html.

Disney Company rips—off Haitian Workers. [On Line] Available:

http: www3.silas.unsw.edu.au/~green1ft/1997/276/276p19c.htm.

Disney’s Fantasy Becomes a Nightmare, "Disney Fantasy". [On Line] Available:

http://www.citinv.it/org/CNMS/archivio/lavoro/disney_fant.html.

Population and Poverty, "Facing the Future: People and the Planet". [On Line]

Available: http;//www.facingthefuture.org/economy/economy-7htm.