According to the Associated Press “In the first four days after the earthquake, U.S. charities had received $150 million for Haiti — outpacing the response to both Katrina and the tsunami.” While the world welcomes the outpouring of assistance from the people and government of the United States of America, I often take a more analytical view of everything. I am not here to question the altruism of America, but rather to ponder the possibility of ulterior motives behind it. Why the hell would America give so much so quickly now, especially when they’re still feeling the effect of the recession? After all, since hurricane Katrina and the Indian Ocean tsunami occurred during better economic times, it would be expected that they would have given more then. The Silver Dragon seeks to investigate this peculiar happening.
According to the U.S. Immigration Policy on Haitian Migrants (http://www.ndu.edu/library/docs/crs/crs_rs21349_21jan05.pdf) “The devastation of Tropical Storm Jeanne coupled with escalating civil unrest and armed rebellion in Haiti has renewed congressional interest in U.S. policy on Haitian migrants, particularly those attempting to reach the United States by boat. While some observers assert that the arrival of these Haitians demonstrate a breach in border security, others maintain that these Haitians are asylum seekers following a 30-year practice of Haitians coming by boat without legal immigration documents. Migrant.”
The same document goes on to say “U.S. immigration policy toward migrants from Cuba and Haiti are often discussed in tandem because there are several key points of comparison. Both nations have a history of repressive governments with documented human rights violations. Both countries have a history of sending asylum seekers to the United States by boats. Finally, although U.S. immigration law is generally applied neutrally without regard to country of origin, there are special laws and agreements pertaining to both Cubans and Haitians. Despite these points of similarity, the treatment of Cubans fleeing to the United States differs from that of Haitians. Cuban migrants receive more generous treatment under U.S. law than Haitians …”

It should be noted that in 1991 there was military coup d’etat deposing Haiti’s first democratically elected President, Jean Bertrand Aristide. 15 October 1994, was the date of President Aristide’s return to Haiti. Now, riddle me this, Batman: If there was such a sudden spike in illegal migrants after the coup d’etat, what will the effect be after such a devastating earthquake?
According to Time Magazine, “On Friday, the third day after the earthquake, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano announced that the estimated 100,000 to 200,000 Haitians “not legally in the United States” as of Jan. 12 would be granted a form of asylum called Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which would allow them to work in the U.S. for the next 18 months. Earlier in the week, she had declared a suspension of the enforcement of the expulsion orders given to 30,000 Haitians.”
http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1953379_1953494_1954262,00.html
This whole situation raises a question in my mind. Are the Americans giving out of the genuine kindness of their hearts, or are they trying to ‘fix’ Haiti quickly so that there would be no excuse for Haitians entering the US illegally?