The Power of Only One...

Arizona's Tough New Law Against Illegal Immigrants

2010-04-27T20:06:00.000-07:00

Prejudice rears its ugly head, all in the name of "National Security". I say it's xenophobia in the Millenium. More on the story below.

Arizona's Tough New Law Against Illegal Immigrants

Just Like You

2010-04-24T06:26:00.000-07:00

Racism is judging somebody solely on their race, skin color, texture and color of hair, and shape and color of eye. Judging them to be somehow inferior. Less than. Unworthy of human kindness and mutual respect. Ultimately, racism comes down to judging people.

In this month we have talked about judging others based on age, ability, gender, and even location. We have talked about the ugly truth of the under belly of predjudice. I would wager that most who read this will think, "Oh, I hate prejudice people! How can people be so shallow and insensitive?" I know because I find myself thinking the very same thing.

Yet, if I were to be honest with myself, I still judge people on a daily basis. I judge students to be lazy and unwilling to help themselves. I make assumptions about the slovenly dressed woman at the grocery store with the dirty kids running around, making a ruckus. I judge grammar-impaired oil-changer at Jiffy Lube. I sigh in relief that I am not any of "those people". I am blessed to have a strong work ethic, backed by a college degree. My kids are clean and (relatively) behaved in public. And, thanks to my mother, I have excellent grammar skills when I speak. Yet, I have judged all of these people to be some how inferior, less than, and unworthy of my kindness and mutual respect. I am culpable of discrimination.

This week was a sobering reminder about how judging appearances is often folly. I have a student, the General, a very bright "A" student. He came to my class after leaving an advanced level class of the same course I teach. He has always been very successful in my class. Things began to change. Although the General is passing, he has not done a single assignment outside of class and recently his grade has dropped nearly 3 letter grades. Finally, I was ready to take care of business.

Last week, I asked to see an assignment, the third one this grading period; of course he did not have it. I chastised him, demanding to see that assignment and the new assignment by next class. Come the next class, again he had neither assignment. This time moved from chastisement to reprimand. Also, the General had to have all three assignments by the next class or his parents would be notified.

Of course, the next class he did not have a single assignment. He just meekly apologized, looking at me with my frustration and indignation. After class, like a Harpy on scent of her prey, I went on a mission to solve this problem. I spoke to his counselor and his other teachers, all of us agreeing that he was not meeting his potential. It was, in fact, time to call his parents. The only working, local number I had ended up finding was his mother's cell.

I called, barely introducing myself, and launched into his litany of sins against education. It was at this moment the purpose of the call changed. Mom's tone was somber and I could hear her choking back the tears as she listened, but soon the floodgates collapsed. Out came the pouring of tears and truth. She was going through a divorce and the General was hurting. There is more to the story, but these are private details. However, as she lay bare her broken life before me, I realized how cruel I had been based upon an assumption. He was not lazy. He was not defying me. He was struggling with the loss of his family.

I tease that I have a jaded heart, that I am an Ice Queen. But I am not embarrassed to admit, while talking to this woman, I broke down crying. I wanted to reach through that phone to embrace her to make her lover's heart stop breaking, to soothe the worried mother. Because I know. I am divorced woman with two boys. Every time I look at them and think about the divorce, my heart shatters into a million pieces knowing that because two adults could not "get it together", they will live divided, and in some respects, broken lives.

This past few weeks I had to re-learn a lesson that I thought I had lalready leared, over and over again, these past 16 years as a teacher: "Never judge a book by its cover because the story inside just might be unexpected. I asumed a highly capable student was slacking off, when in fact his heart and his life were falling apart.

Today, as you go into this world and see the faces and the lives of those who surround you, try to look past race, age, gender, and ability. More so, look pass the poor grammar, the fashion faux pas', and missing assignments. Look into the hearts to see the genuine person. What you might find is someone just like you, with a hurting heart, broken into a million little pieces.

A Rabbit in the Moon: Casts a Shadow in America's WWII Victory

2010-04-14T20:05:00.000-07:00

Examples of Racism Around the World

2010-04-12T19:26:00.000-07:00

Australia

"Australia has also had a very racist past in which apartheid has been practiced and where indigenous Aboriginal people have lost almost all their land and suffered many prejudices. In the past, the notorious policy that led to the Stolen Generation was practiced. This was the institutionalized attempt to prevent Aboriginal children (and thus future generations) from being socialized into Aboriginal culture. (This also occurred in various parts of the Americas too.)

Aborigines are the poorest group in Australia and suffer from very much preventable diseases. For more about these issues, you can start at these harrowing reports from John Pilger a prominent Australian journalist who has been critical of many western policies.

The Sydney 2000 Olympics also brought some of Australia’s racist past and present to the fore. (On the positive side, many parts of Australia’s rich diversity in people is slowly helping relieve prejudism. However, some more traditional and conservative politicians are still openly racist.)" (http://www.globalissues.org/article/165/racism#RacisminAustralia)

Brazil

Greece

Greece has one of the worst records in the European Union for racism against ethnic minorities, according to the BBC. Anti-immigrant sentiment has long been high, especially against ethnic Albanians, who form the largest minority. Until the 1990s, the BBC notes, Greece had been an extremely homogenous society. With the fall of communism many immigrants from Eastern Europe came to Greece. Albanians especially have been targetted by a lot of racist sentiment. Some hostage taking by a few Albanians in recent years has not helped the situation.

India

In India, there has long been discrimination against what is considered the lowest class in Hinduism, the Dalits, or untouchables, as well as sectarian and religious violence. Although it has been outlawed by the Indian Constitution, the caste system was a way to structure inequality into the system itself. And while outlawed, the social barriers it creates is still prevalent in rural areas where most Indians live. It also features in the view of Hindu extremists and traditionalists. (http://www.globalissues.org/article/165/racism#RacisminAsia)

Race and Racism in the United States

Honoring Those Who Fight the Good Fight (using Langston Hughes' Words)

2010-04-09T20:26:00.000-07:00

The heart of racism is fear, hatred, and self-loathing. It seeks to isolate, dishearten, and obliterate. Time and time again, those peoples most oppressed have repudiated the power it once held over them. Across the ages and across the globe, racism has begun to lose it's grasp. People now are chosing to shed their ignorance as they embrace the truth. We are all members of the same race, the human race. We are all brothers and sisters in the same large family called to love and serve one another.

I dedicate these Langston Hughes poems to those who have fought the fight. To those who envisioned a world as it should be and not as it was.  The dream has dawned. May the reality of change shine down on the world.

Thank you for your valiance.

I, Too, Sing America
          by Langston Hughes

I, too, sing America.

I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.

Tomorrow,
I'll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody'll dare
Say to me,
"Eat in the kitchen,"
Then.

Besides,
They'll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed--

I, too, am America.

Mother to Son
     by Langston Hughes

Well, son, I'll tell you:
Life for me ain't been no crystal stair.
It's had tacks in it,
And splinters,
And boards torn up,
And places with no carpet on the floor --
Bare.
But all the time
I'se been a-climbin' on,
And reachin' landin's,
And turnin' corners,And sometimes goin' in the dark
Where there ain't been no light.
So boy, don't you turn back.
Don't you set down on the steps
'Cause you finds it's kinder hard.
Don't you fall now --
For I'se still goin', honey,
I'se still climbin',
And life for me ain't been no crystal stair.

Of Prejudice, Ignorace, and Fear

2010-04-08T18:22:00.000-07:00

“Prejudice cannot see the things that are because it is always looking for things that aren't."
"Prejudices are what fools use for reason.” -Voltaire
“Many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices.” -William James
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” -Mark Twain
“Prejudice is the child of ignorance.” -William Hazlitt
“Prejudices are the chains forged by ignorance to keep men apart.”-Countess of (Marguerite Gardiner) Blessington

FORMS OF RACISM

2010-04-06T20:54:00.000-07:00

The word race did not appear until the 16th-17th Centuries. The origins of the word are unknown; it is thought that it has its roots in the Italian word, razza--ethnicity or breed. As discussed on the first post of this month racism is defined as:

"the belief that characteristics and abilities can be attributed to people simply on the basis of their race and that some racial groups are superior to others."

The terms racism and prejudice are often used interchangably. In our world, there are other forms of discrimination other than prejudice based on race. Fear and ignorance are the root system that continues to anchor these prejudices in the modern world, a root system nurturing the fear of the unknown and fear of being "less than". Classifying someone's status as "less than" our own ensures that we are not the "low man on the totem pole," somehow making us superior and those different from us inferior.

Ageism--judgement based on age
Sexism--judgement based on gender
Geographic --judgement based location/place
Classism--judgement based upon economic status
Ableism--judgement based upon mental or physical "disability"
Ethnic--judgement based upon cultural attributes (language, religion, customs/traditions)
Epidermal--judgement based upon range of skin tones (light skin versus dark skinned)

http://www.endracism.org/Default.aspx

Children's Book Author or Reviled British Imperialism Poet?

2010-04-04T09:29:00.000-07:00

When people hear of Rudyard Kipling, they often reflect happily upon a childhood, filled with the stories of adventure with the characters of the Jungle Book, Rikki-Tikki-Tavi, and The Man Who Would Be King. But, when you think of Rudyard Kipling, do you think of "racial superiority", racism, or Social Darwinism? I would wager that most among you are pondering why I would even link the two together, Kipling and racism.

Perhaps you did not know that Kipling penned the White Man's Burden, a poem that extolled the racial superiority of the "White Man" and the God-given right to go into "exile" in an effort to "civilize" the world for those less fortunate "heathens". Read for yourself and see what I mean.

White Man's Burden (by Rudyard Kipling)

Take up the White Man's burden--

Send forth the best ye breed--
Go bind your sons to exile
To serve your captives' need;
To wait in heavy harness,
On fluttered folk and wild--
Your new-caught, sullen peoples,
Half-devil and half-child.

Take up the White Man's burden--
In patience to abide,
To veil the threat of terror
And check the show of pride;
By open speech and simple,
An hundred times made plain
To seek another's profit,
And work another's gain.

Take up the White Man's burden--
The savage wars of peace--
Fill full the mouth of Famine
And bid the sickness cease;
And when your goal is nearest
The end for others sought,
Watch sloth and heathen Folly
Bring all your hopes to nought.

Take up the White Man's burden--
No tawdry rule of kings,
But toil of serf and sweeper--
The tale of common things.
The ports ye shall not enter,
The roads ye shall not tread,
Go mark them with your living,
And mark them with your dead.

Take up the White Man's burden--
And reap his old reward:
The blame of those ye better,
The hate of those ye guard--
The cry of hosts ye humour
(Ah, slowly!) toward the light:--
"Why brought he us from bondage,
Our loved Egyptian night?"

Take up the White Man's burden--
Ye dare not stoop to less--
Nor call too loud on Freedom
To cloke (1) your weariness;
By all ye cry or whisper,
By all ye leave or do,
The silent, sullen peoples
Shall weigh your gods and you.

Take up the White Man's burden--
Have done with childish days--
The lightly proferred laurel,
The easy, ungrudged praise.
Comes now, to search your manhood
Through all the thankless years
Cold, edged with dear-bought wisdom,
The judgment of your peers!

Just Another Word for Hate, Ignorance, & Self-Hatred

2010-04-01T18:49:00.000-07:00

Today, April 1, millions of Amercians will participate in the fun and silly tradition of April Fools' Day, a day for michief and naughty little pranks. However, for The Power of Only One, April 1 signals a change of topic. I have spent all day trying to come up with a new global issue to address here. Several different ideas came to mind, but none of them "got the blogging juices going." So I did what I always do. I "googled". Googling Top Ten Global Issues solved the dilema. There in the search results, I found the answer. Racism. Instantly, I knew which direction to go.

April 12th will mark the 149th anniversary of when the American nation was torn into two. The North and the South. The Blue and the Gray. This was was a war of economics and government control, with the issue of slavery looming in the background. But if you read between the lines, ultimately the American War was a war of racism. Today, on April Fools' Day, I write about the ugly truth about racism. Racism is neither a joke, nor is it a laughing matter. Racism is just another word for hate, ignorance, and, in the long run, self-hatred.

Global Issues (www.globalissues.org) describes racism as:

"the belief that characteristics and abilities can be attributed to people simply on the basis of their race and that some racial groups are superior to others. Racism and discrimination have been used as powerful weapons encouraging fear or hatred of others in times of conflict and war, and even during economic downturns."

I will spend the next month delving into and exploring the issues of race and racism. We will discover the many ways racism rears its ugly head in cultures across the globe, as well analyzing as the legacy of racism in these various cultures.

To start this journey, I would like share a video produced by The American Anthropological Association (AAA). Use the this video to start thinking about race and racism.

Nelson Mandela & His Contributions to African Progress

2010-03-31T17:46:00.000-07:00

DON'T FORGET:

May 7 World AIDS Orphans Day & Essay Contest Part II

2010-03-30T18:16:00.000-07:00

http://www.fxb.org/FXBinAction/orphansday.html

New York, March 15, 2010

Press Release
Children Invited to Enter : 2010 World AIDS Orphans Day Contest

To commemorate World AIDS Orphans Day on May 7th, 2010, kids in grades 4-8th are invited to share their stories! Children should submit a letter sharing their views on the following topic:

Millions of kids around the world have lost their parents to AIDS. Write a letter to Albina du Boisrouvray, founder of World AIDS Orphans Day, explaining what you think should be done to help these kids live better lives.

The winning essay will be posted on the World AIDS Orphans Day website (www.worldaidsorphans.org). The author will receive a certificate from Albina du Boisrouvray, international humanitarian and founder of World AIDS Orphans Day, and $200 to be donated in their name to a charity benefiting children!

Spread the word! This is an exciting way for children to express their thoughts and speak out in support of orphaned children around the world!

Entries should be a maximum of 300 words and emailed or attached in Word form to info@worldaidsorphans.org by 5pm Eastern Time on Monday, April 26th, 2010.

For consideration, all entries must have the applicant’s full name, age and grade level and a parent or guardian’s full name and contact phone number or email address.

Additional Rules:

Entries due by 5pm on Monday, April 26th
Maximum length: 300 words
Open to children in all countries in grades 4-8 (or of the appropriate age)
The winning letter will be officially announced on Friday, May 7th
All entries will become property of WorldAIDSOrphansDay.com and FXB International

*******
Press contact:
FXB USA — Nico D’Auterive — ndauterive@fxb.org — 1 212 697 3566

Find World AIDS Orphans Day on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/WorldAIDSOrphansDay?ref=ts

May 7--World AIDS Orphan Day & Essay Contest

2010-03-28T20:00:00.000-07:00

http://www.worldaidsorphans.org/

Children and AIDS

• AIDS has orphaned more than 15 million children around the world. Over 80% of these children live in sub-Saharan Africa.

• AIDS is more likely than any other cause of death to create double orphans – children who have lost both parents. (UNICEF)

• Less than 1 in 10 of these children receives any type of external support or help. (UNICEF)

• By 2010 there will be an estimated 20 to 25 million AIDS orphans. (UNICEF)

• Every 15 seconds, a young adult between the ages of 15 and 24 is infected with HIV. (UNICEF)

• Approximately 2.3 million children under age 15 currently live with HIV. (Global AIDS Alliance)

• Every minute, one child under age 15 dies from AIDS or an AIDS-related illness.(UNICEF)

• An estimated 11 million children under age 5 die each year from preventable or treatable diseases. (WHO)
• Children who have lost one or both parents to AIDS are more likely to suffer from hunger and malnutrition, to drop out of school, to become infected with HIV and to face discrimination, abuse, and exploitation.

About World AIDS Orphans Day

World AIDS Orphans Day, held each year on May 7th, is a grassroots campaign to draw attention to and advocate on behalf of the more than 15 million children orphaned by AIDS. The campaign engages leaders, activists, and young people from around the world in awareness raising and action for AIDS orphans and vulnerable children.

Today, a diverse coalition of organizations, government officials and everyday citizens is standing up to make children a priority in the fight against AIDS. Your voice is their future.

10 Percent for Children
This World AIDS Orphans Day, we are calling on global leaders to take serious action in addressing the crisis of AIDS orphans by allocating at least 10% of overall HIV and AIDS funding to meet the needs of children who are orphaned or made vulnerable by the pandemic.

UNAIDS estimates that at least $4 billion will be needed over the next two years to meet the basic needs of many of these children. Since 2003, the US Congress has pledged to earmark at least 10 percent of all HIV/AIDS funding for children, but it has consistently failed to meet this goal. Increased funding will provide the necessary resources for governments, partner organizations, and local communities to respond to the special needs of children.

Visit www.worldaidsorphans.org to join the campaign.

Spread the word. Tweet this. Post on Facebook. Email this post to family and friends. Email me at powerofonlyone(at)gmail(dot)com and I can send you the flyers and logos. Tomorrow's post will feature the essay contest and rules. (all data from www.worldaidsorphans.org an FXB initiative)

We can all change the world, even with the Power of Only One.

No Infrastructure, No Economic Development

2010-03-26T19:25:00.000-07:00

The more developed a country's infrastructure, the more developed that country's economy is.

“Modern infrastructure is the backbone of an economy and the lack of it inhibits economic growth…”
“investing more funds without tackling inefficiencies would be like pouring water into a leaking bucket. Africa can plug those leaks through reforms and policy improvements which will serve as a signal to investors that Africa is ready for business.”

In order to develop a nation's economy and to encourage the growth of profit-making industries, there are five major infrastructure systems key to economic success: power, water, transportation, information and communication systems, along with a well developed educational system. All of which most African nations lack.

Infrastructure Blog Power Point

If Pictures Say a 1000 Words, Political Cartoons Tell A Whole Story.

2010-03-24T04:07:00.000-07:00

Africa: In Fact--Life After Imperialism

2010-03-22T17:59:00.001-07:00

Africa in Fact BLOG Power Point

The World's 10 Worst Dictators | Parade.com

2010-03-21T18:24:00.000-07:00

The World's 10 Worst Dictators Parade.com

Africa has 4 of the world's 10 worst dictators. Read all about each one of them in the article provided above. Of the four, Robert Mugabe is one man who should be feared and with whom the United Nations should deal.

Mission Possible or Improbable? Depends on the Approach

2010-03-20T22:00:00.000-07:00

"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." ~ Albert Eintstein

Solution for the poverty and turmoil in Africa?

My personal belief after months of research: investing in and promoting Non-governmental Organizations (NGO's) that empower the people to solve their own problems locally according to the region's unique culture, social norms, mores, customs, and values, not according to those of a wealthy, overfed country. Feed a man a fish, you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and help him to make nets and fishing poles, you feed him for a life time. Help to educate his sons and daughters, and his grandsons and grandaughters will change the world.

Genocide: Destroyer of Hope

2010-03-19T17:01:00.000-07:00

gen·o·cide (jn-sd) n. The systematic and widespread extermination or attempted extermination of an entire national, racial, religious, or ethnic group.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Greek genos, race; see gen- in Indo-European roots + -cide.]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
geno·cidal (-sdl) adj.
geno·cidal·ly adv.

Africa is a continent with rich cultural diversity. With 53 countries, over 750 ethnic groups, and approximately 2000 languages, this diversity would seem to be the cause of disagreement, conflict, violence, and war. But it is not the diversity of the people that causes the conflict, conflict that often leads to genocide. The common factors in Africa's regions of genocide include: 1) extreme poverty 2) failed government systems unable to successfully transistion from colony to independent nation, and 3) a dependence upon resources, such as oil and diamonds, often used to fund a war lord's army and campaign.

However, genocide is more than a definition in a dictionary. It is more than the discussion as the root cause of such "horriffic violence and destruction". For millions in Africa, genocide is the reality that the people of any gender, of any age, and of any religious persuasion must endure on a daily basis. What does genocide look like? Thanks to the The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, you can see up close just how destructive genocide is globally, particularly in Africa. Follow the link provided below to bear witness to the violence, the destruction, and even the resilience of those most affected.

Photo Gallery: Genocide

Disease Afflicts The People of Africa, More than Just HIV/AIDS

2010-03-17T20:22:00.000-07:00

Both selections are not my words and are taken directly from the sources cited within the reading.

Malaria
Malaria is only transmitted by female mosquitoes of the genus Anopheles. Most female Anopheles mosquitoes are nocturnal feeders (that is, they only bite at night).

Four Nobel Prizes have been awarded for work associated with malaria to Sir Ronald Ross (1902), Charles Louis Alphonse Laveran (1907), Julius Wagner-Jauregg (1927), and Paul Hermann Müller (1948).

The two most effective and potent anti-malarial drugs come from plants with medicinal values recognized for centuries: artemisinin from the Qinghao plant (Artemisia annual, China, 4th century) and quinine from the cinchona tree (South America, 17th century).

When combined with HIV/AIDS, malaria is even more deadly, particularly for pregnant women and children. Read more here.

Source: http://www.nothingbutnets.net/malaria-kills/

African Trypanosomiasis (African Sleeping Sickness)

What is African trypanosomiasis (African sleeping sickness)? African trypanosomiasis, also called African sleeping sickness, is a systemic disease caused by a parasite and transmitted by the bite of the tsetse fly. There are two types of the disease, named for the areas of Africa in which they are found. West African trypanosomiasis, which causes a chronic infection lasting years, is caused by the parasite Trypanosoma brucei gambiense. East African trypanosomiasis, which causes acute illness lasting several weeks, is caused by Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense. Worldwide, 25,000 new cases of both East and West African trypanosomiasis are reported each year; however, the World Health Organization (WHO) says it is vastly underreported.

African trypanosomiasis is confined mainly to tropical Africa between 15 degrees North and 20 degrees South latitude. The greatest risks of contracting the disease occurs in parts of Eastern and Central Africa, including:

Uganda
Kenya
Tanzania
Malawi
Ethiopia
Zaire
Zimbabwe
Botswana

West African trypanosomiasis can be contracted in parts of Western and Central Africa. Because tsetse flies inhabit rural areas only, living in woodland thickets of savanna and dense vegetation along streams, visitors to urban areas are generally not at risk.

What are the symptoms of African trypanosomiasis? The following are the most common symptoms of African trypanosomiasis. However, each individual may experience symptoms differently.

Symptoms, which occur within one to four weeks of infection, are often initially nonspecific and may include fever, skin lesions, rash, edema, or swollen lymph nodes on the back of the neck. The infection then generally progresses to meningoencephalitis. As the illness progresses, symptoms may include:

personality change
weight loss
irritability
loss of concentration
progressive confusion
slurred speech
seizures
difficulty walking and talking
sleeping for long periods of the day
insomnia at night

If left untreated, death will occur within several weeks to months. The symptoms of African trypanosomiasis may resemble other medical conditions or problems. Always consult your physician for a diagnosis.

source: http://www.healthsystem.virginia.edu/UVAHealth/adult_travel/african.cfm

Why So Much Violence in Africa?

2010-03-15T04:57:00.000-07:00

Why is there so much conflict in Africa? Although there are over 700 ethno-liguo-cultural groups in Africa with an estimated 1000-2000 languages, this rich diversity, these many differences are not the root of ethnic tension, conflict, and all out war in the many countries of Africa. Conflict comes as a cost to a colonial past with a "divide-and-rule" public policy, as well as high levels of poverty, failed governments, and an over-dependence on natural resources such as oil and diamonds; these resources can finance the rebels' cause and war. Compared to all other continents on this planet, Africa suffers the most from the ravages of war and internal conflict. See for yourself.

http://jae.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/9/3/244, http://stealthconflicts.wordpress.com/2008/12/30/new-world-maps/

And the Chidlren Carry The Burden...

2010-03-12T17:40:00.000-08:00

200,000 child slaves are sold every year in Africa. There are an estimated 8,000 girl-slaves in West Africa alone. (sources: BBC 5 October, 2001 & Anti-Slavery Society)

About 120,000 African children are participating in armed conflicts. Some are as young as 7 years old. (source: Africa Children’s Charter)

Children account for half of all civilian casualties in wars in Africa. (source: Africa 2015)

One in six African children dies before the age of five. Most of these deaths could be prevented. (source: Africa 2015)

Nearly one third of children in Sub-Saharan Africa are underweight. (source: UNICEF)

In sub-Saharan Africa, measles takes the life of a child nearly every minute of every day. An effective measles vaccine costs as little as $1 per child. (source: UNICEF)

Between 12 and 14 million African children have been orphaned by HIV/AIDS. (source: World Bank/UNICEF)

Nearly 2 million children under 14 years old are HIV positive. (source: UNICEF)

43% of children in Sub-Saharan Africa do not have safe, accessible drinking water. (source: UNICEF)

64% of children in Sub-Saharan Africa do not have adequate sanitation. (source: UNICEF)

Only 57% of African children are enrolled in primary education, and one in three of those does not complete school. (source: Africa 2015)

For every 100 boys there are only 83 girls enrolled at primary school. (source: World Bank/UNICEF)

SOURCE: http://www.fightpoverty.mmbrico.com/facts/africa.html

Invisible: Children Living with AIDS

2010-03-10T04:15:00.000-08:00

AIDS destroyer of Africa, destroyer of dreams

2010-03-08T15:35:00.000-08:00

Twenty-two million people in Africa have HIV, representing 2/3 of the total infected population of the world.
Seventy-five percent of the world's AIDS-related deaths occur in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The main mode of HIV/AIDS transmission in Africa is heterosexual intercourse. The second-most common mode of transmission is from mother to child, either during pregnancy or breastfeeding.
Many Swazi communities have been destroyed by the AIDS epidemic. Swaziland has been affected most by the HIV epidemic. The country has a 38.8 percent adult infection rate and a life expectancy of only 39 years.
In Botswana, Namibia, Swaziland and Zimbabwe, current estimates show over 1 person in 5 between the ages of 15 and 49 is living with HIV or AIDS.
Since the beginning of the AIDS epidemic, 83% of the deaths have been in Africa.
At least 95% of all AIDS orphans have been African.
In 1998 wars in Africa killed 200,000 people. AIDS killed 2 million on the continent.
As infection rises in the general population, so does the likelihood of encountering an infected partner early in one's sexual career.
In Africa, especially Southern Africa the average life expectancy is only 48 years; this being largely because of the AIDs epedimic. In 2005 the world suffered around 3 million deaths because of AIDs, out of those 3 million an estimated one third were in Sub-Saharan Africa. The cause of this has to do largely with lack of education on the subject, and lack of prevention methods coupled with hard to find quality treatment.

SOURCES (These are not my words. I cut and pasted the facts & figures directly from the sources listed above.)

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/388297/the_sad_facts_about_aids_in_africa.html?cat=47

Donkeys Bring in Books, The Children Come

2010-03-07T09:58:00.000-08:00

To contribute to this program, read below and clink on the link provided for more information.

The Story of Johannes & His Reading Program (taken from Ethiopia Reads)

Yohannes Gebregeorgis, a native of Etihopia, learned to read in his village school - taught by Peace Corps volunteers. He fondly remembers the first book he held in his hands outside of school...at the age of nineteen. Eventually, he came to the United States as a political refugee. He earned a Master's degree in Library Science from the University of Texas.

While working as a children's librarian at the San Francisco Publisc Library, Yohannes was asked to purchase books in various languages for the library. He was surprised to discover that, despite a large Ethiopian population int he area, he was unable to find books printed in any of the Ethiopian languages. Recognizing the importance of reading for children in his native country, he founded Ethiopia Reads in 1998, inspired to make books available to Ethiopia's kids.

As Yohannes worked to develop his project, he contacted American author Jane Kurtz. Jane grew up in Ethiopia, where her parents worked for many years, and has written many books about its land and people. Yohannes' vision caught Jane's attention: she, too believed in the power of books to change lives. She rallied friends, family and her community to raise funds to publish Silly Mammo, the first English/Amharic book for children, which was written by Yohannes and based on a well-loved children's folk tale from Ethiopia.

Proceeds from the sale of Silly Mommo supported Yohannes' dream of opening a free public library for children in Addis Ababa, a city of 3 million people. In 2003, Yohannes moved back to Addis Ababa to formally establish Ethiopia Reads. he and his family lived in the top floor of a small house; on the bottom floor, he began building a library.

On April 7, 2003, Yohannes and Jane cut the ribbon on Shola Children's Library. Established in a poor neighborhood with no safe spaces for play, reading or art activity, the library served thousands of children during its first year of operation. Four years later, the staff recorded 60,000 visits from children! In June of 2008, the library moved from its original location into a larger facility, with more room for books and children. Shola currently offers programs in sanitation, art, theater and dance as well as tutoring and study groups.

Ethiopia Reads believes that education is the key to improving the lives of the next generation of Ethiopians, a country filled with children, and that books are the key to fostering a genuine love of learning. We invite all who love children and books to join us in this endeavor.

I Saw What I Saw

2010-03-06T07:11:00.000-08:00

I saw what I saw and I can't forget it

I heard what I heard and I can't go back

I know what I know and I can't deny it

Something on the road

Cut me to the soul

Your pain has changed me

Your dream inspires

Your face a memory

Your hope a fire

Your courage asks me what I'm afraid of

And what I know of love

We've done what we've done and we can't erase it

We are what we are and it's more than enough

We have what we have but it's no substitution

Your pain has changed me

Your dream inspires

Your face a memory

Your hope a fire

Your courage asks me what I'm made of

And what I know of love

Something on the road

Cut me to the soul

I say what I say with no hesitation

I have what I have and I'm giving it up
I do what I do with deep conviction

Something on the road, cut me to the soul

Your pain has changed me

Ooohhh...

Your dreams inspire

Ooohhh...

Your face a memory

Ooohhh...

Your hope a fire

Ooohhh...

Your pain has changed me

Your dream inspires

Your face a memory

Your hope a fire

Your courage asks me what I am afraid of

Your courage asks me what I am made of

Your courage asks me what I am afraid of

And what I know of God,

And what I know of God.

http://www.nomadshow.com/

LRA: Army of Destruction and Despair

2010-03-04T18:37:00.000-08:00

The Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), led by Joseph Koney, is part cult, part army, but entirely the driving force of destruction and despair in the lives of thousands of young African boys and girls. To better understand the plight and suffering of these Invisible Children please watch the two following videos and refer to the links provided.

My African Child

2010-03-03T18:18:00.000-08:00

So young in heart

He cried for milk

So poor and helpless

Mama weeps in pain

His eyes so red

A week he cried

A month ago,

To the world he came

Mama so young

Papa has run

Under the bridge

They lay their heads

In storm and rain

They search for food

Through man and sex

Mama fed him well

The days went by

Mama health decreased

Only five months old

Mama said goodbye

In rain and cold

He cried so loud

In sun and heat

He wept and wept

Three days gone by

Since mama left

And now he sleeps

To meet with mama

~Toris Okotie (The African Poet) NY~

http://www.poemsofsoul.com/africanpoems.htm

History of Human Rights: Self-Evident Truths or Merely Words?

2010-03-02T03:57:00.000-08:00

by: Youth for Human Rights International
"Youth for Human Rights International teaches human rights education both in the classroom and beyond traditional education settings. We aim to reach people from diverse backgrounds and our materials often appeal across generations. From teaching human rights through conferences and workshops to hip-hop and dancing, the message spreads around the world and reaches onto every continent and into many countries." (About Youth for Human Rights)

Disparity: Waiting to Be Fed

2010-03-01T04:18:00.000-08:00

~disparity~

Passions Revealed

2010-02-28T18:05:00.000-08:00

Jack and Aye at Got Passport: Will Travel, We'll Serve, are encouraging their followers to create a Passion Board to "DISCOVER and UNLEASH your PASSION through ART and CREATIVITY." For some reason this challenge resonated with me and within minutes I started the project and within a couple of hours I completed the project.

What does this have to do with the Power of Only One?
I rummaged through the piles of magazines and family pictures, cutting out words and images. As I arranged these onto the canvas, I saw of pieces of my heart and soul and my story-path began to unfold. It revealed where I had been and those who have helped me to get there. I can see where I am now, yet, it is clear where my spirit longs to be. I experienced a "Moment of Conversion."

I have always loved studying Africa and it's people, diverse cultures and rich history. I have been asked often, "Why do you love Africa so much?" The only way I can explain it is that whenever I talk about Africa or study it, I hear the voice of God. I was not born in Africa, nor is any of my family from Africa. I am not even African-American. I should have no connection to this continent, but I am called to it. Called to come and to help bring change, called to make a difference there.

For nearly a decade, I have been talking about how I could help the people of this continent. I have brainstormed and designed programs in my heard to make a difference. I have talked to my family and friends about what I could do as just one person. But it was always talk, until January 1 of this year. This year I fell into my "Moment of Conversion." This year I started the Power of Only One, armed with the hope and desire to bring change to the world, change for Africa, one post at a time.

Literally, the heart of my Passion Board is Africa. It is surrounded by my past, my present, and the future for which I hope. One day, Africa will be both my destination and my destiny. I will be ready because of the love of my family, past travel experiences and the lessons learned along the way, as well as the the hopes I carry in my heart for the future.

How strange that a blog challenge, an simple little art experiment, helped me to see to see my own life's story and the passions I hold dear to my heart.

Chile Needs Our Help, Our Thoughts, Our Prayers

2010-02-27T16:23:00.000-08:00

COPIED from USA Today. (Chile earthquake: How you can help and stay safe from tsunamis)

Several international disaster relief organizations have already begun mobilizing resources for the earthquake-stricken region. Here are a few that have already launched campaigns for Chile:

AmeriCares is sending medical supplies and humanitarian aid to Chile. Go here to make a donation to support these efforts.

The American Red Cross has already pledged $50,000 in aid for Chile and tsunami preparedness. You can make a donation through the American Red Cross' International Response Fund, and it will be allocated specifically for Chile relief efforts.

Habitat for Humanity is also seeking donations for Chile rebuilding efforts;
The Salvation Army is also sending personnel and supplies to assist in the relief effort and is in need of donations.

Samaritan's Purse, the international aid and development group headed by Rev. Franklin Graham, is working to help.

Save The Children is sending an emergency assessment team to Chile and is asking for donations to its Children's Emergency Fund to aid these efforts.

World Vision, a Christian humanitarian charity organization, is also working to help children and families devastated by the quake. To learn more about its efforts and to donate, visit itsr website.

Texting to help
Text CHILE to 25383 to donate $10 to Habitat for Humanity
To follow relief efforts and opportunities for aid, you can also follow the Red Cross on Twitter.

Dinner for A Dollar

2010-02-26T19:30:00.000-08:00

Half of the world lives on less than $2 a day. I spend more than $2 on a frivilous "skinny" latte whenever the whim hits. Half the world lives on $730 a year. I spend more on my rent in a single month.

On Monday, I generated a list of things people can do to help fight world hunger. One of the items on the list I found quite helpful. I read that sending Tweets about world hunger to educate followers in an effective and easy tool to get the out word about world hunger. I Tweet, as in nearly 6500 of them in the past year. So Tweet I shall to help spread the message.

However, one suggestion on the list has haunted me all week. One website suggested people make a dinner for $1 and invite friends over. Explain to them that many people must meet the challenge of inexpensive meals to feed the family every day. I started to think, "What would I or COULD I make for a group of 4-6 for just a $1. I don't know why, but this challenge has been picking away at my brain all week. I think I am actually going to try this meet this challenge: Make a meal for $1 and invite friends over to share the meal and to share the lesson.

Here is the meal I planned

Pot of ramen noodles (3packages @ .15 cents each) = .45 cents
Cornbread muffins (1 packages Jiffy that makes 6 muffins) =.33 cents
1/2 milk & 1 egg for cornbread = .20 cents

WOW! Can you imagine?! Each person gets ONE cornbread muffin and a small bowl of meatless ramen noodles. I can't describe just how in shock I am right now after trying to plan the menu. This would only be a challenge to enlighten me and a small group of friends. This is the reality for millions of mothers and fathers every day, every meal. What are your thoughts? How do you feel?

I feel selfish. wasteful. fat. greedy.

DO

2010-02-24T14:51:00.000-08:00

"Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person."

--Mother Teresa

Click & Give!

2010-02-23T18:35:00.000-08:00

Go here. Click on a button and give food to those in need.

It's that easy? What? Click and give? That's It?

YES!

When you visit The Hunger Site, all you have to do is follow these 2-3 easy steps.

Click on the button that reads, "Click Here to Give...".
For each click, sponsors pay for food by the cup to feed the hungry. 100% goes to charity.
If you want to give more, shop the store.

According to the site:

Charity Partners of The Hunger Site

"The Hunger Site is proud to be partners with three leading charities that are working hard to end hunger and poverty. Mercy Corps , Feeding America , and Millennium Promise build on your efforts by providing food and resources to those suffering from hunger and poverty in the U.S. and around the world.

When you click daily, the money generated by our site sponsors goes directly to these outstanding organizations to further their efforts in the ongoing battle against hunger. Below is just a small example of how funds from your daily click are helping real people, both in the U.S. and worldwide."

You Have the Power to Make a Difference

2010-02-22T18:11:00.000-08:00

Maybe you are sitting there wondering, "What possibly can I do to help end world hunger? There are 1 billion hungry people in the world and I am only one person. Surely there is nothing I can do that will really help." Here are some simple steps that you can take right now, all of which bring us one step closer to eradicating world hunger.

Advocate for food security as a basic human right.
Go here and take the Hunger Quiz to test your knowledge about world hunger and the World Food Programme.
Write a letter to the editor of your local news paper sharing how you feel about world hunger and explain just how much it matters that the United States get involved and join the fight.
Write a letter to your representative, demanding that our country be involved in and committed to finding solutions to world hunger. Encourage our government to invest in grassroots programs that promote micro-finance solutions and sustainable agriculture.
Support micro-finance solutions by going to kiva.org, learn about the program, make a small loan to a entrepreneur, and empower a woman to raise herself and her family out of poverty.
Buy Fair Trade products such as coffee, clothing, and home decor.
Eat less meat. Each pound of meat requires 16 pounds of grains.
Become a Facebook fan for the World Food Programme (WFP).
Tweet hunger facts.
Play FreeRice.com. Sponsors donate 10 grains of rice for each correct answer on this educational sight. Have fun. Learn something. Feed the world.
Make a meal for only $1. Invite someone over and explain that the meal that only cost $1 is the reality for many people across the globe on a daily basis.
Visit On the Road, watch the videos, and learn what the WFP is doing to fight world hunger.

SOURCES:
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20090601/ten_things
http://www.wfp.org/stories/10-things-you-can-do-world-food-day

Poverty is the Beast that Feeds World Hunger

2010-02-21T19:27:00.000-08:00

Ironically, poverty is the beast that feeds world hunger. Poverty is the neglected child in a world of inequality and extremes. In a world filled with wonder and beauty, it can be such a mad, mad world, a world where the many suffer.

The Children Pay the Price

2010-02-20T17:07:00.001-08:00

Deserts Eat the Land, The People Eat Little

2010-02-19T17:30:00.000-08:00

One of the major causes of famine, starvation, malnourishment, and world hunger is desertification and its destructive effects. Desertification is defined as the growth or expansion of a desert due to human activity. One of the most drastic examples of this can be found in Africa's Sahel region. The Sahel is a dry grassland region that acts as a transition zone in Africa, transition from Arab to traditional Africa, transition from arid Africa to tropical Africa. It is also home to some of the most malnourished people on this planet.

What causes desertification?

a region with naturally dry conditions, often times hard-hit by extended drought conditions, such as the drought conditions that have been plaguing the Sahel since the 1960's. There have been regions within the Sahel that have been without rain for five years.
removal of vegetation through poor agricultural practices and over-grazing of animal herds. The "unprotected, dry soil surfaces then blow away with the wind or are washed away by flash floods, leaving infertile lower soil layers that bake in the sun and become an unproductive hardpan. Overgrazing destroys valuable plant species, leaving mostly unpalatable ones. Losses of vegetation and biodiversity threaten habitat for other species." (http://www.oasisglobal.net/what_cause.htm)
over-irrigation or incorrect irrigation practices (Go here to see what can happen.)
war and conflict, which can disrupt local agricultural practices. Frequently war refugees will move into "marginal ecosystems", bringing with them native farming practices not necessarily suited for the region.
"Perhaps the greatest cause of soil degradation and desertification is an explosion in world population, particularly in developing countries. Throughout the 1990s, dryland regions experienced a population growth of 18.5 percent, mostly in desperately poor, developing nations [source: GreenFacts.org]. In their daily struggle to survive, these expanding populations have put a deadly strain on their environment." (http://science.howstuffworks.com/desertification1.htm)

So what's the result of desertification?

destruction and loss of vegetation, as well as land degradation and loss of crucial arable land.
loss of food sources, famine, malnourishment, starvation and death.
"flooding, poor water quality, dust storms, and pollution. All of these effects can hurt people living near an affected region. (The Facts of Desertification and United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, 2000)" http://desertificationb.tripod.com/id3.html
ULTIMATE COST: human dignity at the cost of poverty and world hunger.

Let's Feed, Let's House, Let's Give Clean Water to, Let's Give Life to...Let's Start with Just One Life

2010-02-17T18:04:00.000-08:00

Malnourishment by World Food Programme

2010-02-16T18:47:00.000-08:00

Through researching for and maintaining this website, I have come across many helpful and educational websites. While this month's focus has been World Hunger, especially in Haiti, I have found the website hosted by World Food Programme to be one of the most helpful sites. I have learned more about world hunger, have discovered ways to fight world hunger, and have found additional links to other helpful sites. I have only scratched the surface of this organization and website. Another one of my new favorite websites is One.org, which has also highlighted World Food Programme.

Malnourishment at http://www.wfp.org/hunger/malnutrition

"A malnourished person finds that their body struggles to do normal things such as grow and resist disease. Physical work becomes very difficult and even learning abilities can be diminished. For women, pregnancy becomes risky and they cannot be sure of producing nourishing breast milk.

When a person is not getting enough food or not getting the right sort of food, malnutrition is just around the corner. Disease is often a factor, either as a result or contributing cause. Even if people get enough to eat, they will become malnourished if the food they eat does not provide the proper amounts of micronutrients - vitamins and minerals - to meet daily nutritional requirements.

Malnutrition is the largest single contributor to disease, according to the UN's Standing Committee on Nutrition (SCN).

Malnutrition at an early age leads to reduced physical and mental development during childhood. Stunting, for example, affects more than 147 million pre-schoolers in developing countries, according to SCN's World Nutrition Situation 5th report. Iodine deficiency, the same report shows, is the world's greatest single cause of mental retardation and brain damage.

Undernutrition affects school performance and studies have shown it often leads to a lower income as an adult. It also causes women to give birth to low birth-weight babies.

Window of opportunity

The first two years of life are the “window of opportunity” to prevent early childhood undernutrition that causes largely irreversible damage. WFP focuses on the earliest phase of life, i.e. from conception (-9 months) to 24 months of age, providing essential nutrients including vitamins and minerals.

Eliminating malnutrition involves sustaining the quality and quantity of food a person eats, as well as adequate health care and a healthy environment. WFP helps fight malnutrition by treating it -- giving malnourished people the food and nutrients they need -- but also by preventing it.

The Possible Dream

2010-02-15T20:19:00.000-08:00

If we can conquer space, we can conquer childhood hunger.

-- Buzz Aldrin

Day of Love & Giving. Power of Only One Gives Back

2010-02-14T07:59:00.000-08:00

Today in the United States we celebrate Valentine's Day. A day of love and romance. I believe that love is more than candy, flowers, expensive Hallmark cards, and a single day of romantic love. I believe that love is an action, rather than a fleeting feeling. Love is committting yourself to being a better you, willing, no desiring, to help lift up your loved ones. I Corinthians 13: 4-7 best defines what real love is and should always be:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Along this vein, I want to celebrate this day of love by looking beyond my need for trinkets and selfish attention. This day should honor love that is giving, hopeful, and generous. As of today, Power of Only One's Haiti Relief Effor has raised $52. The goal was to raise $100. Today, as a token of appreciation and genuine thanks to those who have helped spread the Power of Only One, I will meet dollar for dollar. $104 will now be donated to the people of Haiti in the name of the Power of Only One and all its supporters.

Happy Valentine's Day. May you know love today. If you are unsure of what gift to get your loved ones, give the gift of life. Donate money in the names of those you love. It is truly a gift from the heart that will let them know just how special they are and it is a gift that will keep on giving.

http://www.wfp.org/

http://www.heifer.org/

http://www.mlfnow.org/site/PageServer

--Power of Only One.

WE are the world, Not Somebody Else.

2010-02-13T11:20:00.000-08:00

Start a blog. Write a song. Sing a song. Make a video. Play a game on FreeRice.com. Send a Tweet. Retweet. Become a follower. Leave a comment. Make a donation to Red Cross. Join One.org. Give to the World Food Programme. Join the Peace Corp. Volunteer. Build a home. Offer a hand. Offer hope. Share you heart. Do something. Do something for others. Do something for others in need.

We are the World. We must come together as one. It's time to lend a hand. Haiti needs our help.

Today's post inspired by those talented singers willing to get involved and to reach out to those in need. I may not sing well (or at all), but God has given me a gift and a call to help those in need. May you, too, be inspired to make a difference.

FREE RICE & FREE EDUCATION:

2010-02-12T16:48:00.000-08:00

FREE RICE

I have found the best website. It is fun. It is educational. It feeds the world, 10 grains of rice at a time. That's right. Play games that increase your knowledge AND actually have rice donated to the world's hungry for each correct answer. You can improve your geography, science, math, and language arts skills by playing simple games. For each correct answer given, this site donates 10 grains of rice to the World Food Programme. Ten grains may not seem to be much, but just think, just like the Power of Only One, a mighty waterfall starts with just a single drop of water. Meeting the needs of the poor and hungry starts with just 10 grains of rice.

Go check out this site. Encourage your school-aged children to improve their brain power. Get everybody you know playing the games. Get involved and feed the poor. It's. That. Easy.

From the FreeRice.com:

"FreeRice is a non-profit website run by the United Nations World Food Program. Our partner is the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University.
FreeRice has two goals:

Provide education to everyone for free.
Help end world hunger by providing rice to hungry people for free.
This is made possible by the generosity of the sponsors who advertise on this site.

Whether you are CEO of a large corporation or a street child in a poor country, improving your education can improve your life. It is a great investment in yourself.

Perhaps even greater is the investment your donated rice makes in hungry human beings, enabling them to function and be productive. Somewhere in the world, a person is eating rice that you helped provide. Thank you.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I really make a difference by playing FreeRice?

The rice you donate makes a huge difference to the person who receives it.

According to the United Nations, a child dies every 6 seconds from hunger related causes.

Though 10 grains of rice may seem like a small amount, it is important to remember that while you are playing, so are thousands of other people at the same time. It is everyone together that makes the difference. Thanks to you, FreeRice has generated enough rice to feed millions of people since it started in October 2007."

Don't forget to leave a comment, become a follower, or to retweet about this site (@LadyWanderlust PowerofOnlyOne Haiti Relief). For each action I will donate $1 to the cause. At this time we have raised $45 for the Haiti relief effort.

The Wall Against Hunger - World Food Programme | The Wall Against Hunger - World Food Programme

2010-02-11T16:52:00.000-08:00

The Wall Against Hunger - World Food Programme The Wall Against Hunger - World Food Programme

A Wall of photos uploaded by supporters of the World Food Programme's mission: delivering the world from hunger. Feed a child in honour of someone you love. Put their photo on the Wall - then send them an original email greeting.

Here's the Plan:

For each person who becomes a follower of this website, including the already existing 10, I will donate $1 to a charity dedicated to improving the lives of those touched by the earthquake in Haiti.

For each person who leaves a comment this week on any post, I will donate $1 to the same charity.

For each TWEET/RETWEET about this post or this website, I will donate $1 to the relief efforts in Haiti. (Just be sure that any TWEET/RETWEET is directed @LadyWanderlust with http://worldaccording2lisa.blogspot.com/ in it to ensure I receive all Tweets).

Spread the world. Raise awareness. Bring Relief to Haiti

Mud Pies: More Than Child's Play for Haiti's Children

2010-02-09T18:46:00.000-08:00

This was Haiti's reality BEFORE the earthquake. Now the situation is even graver. You can help to end this level of poverty, this level of suffering.

Here's the Plan:

For each person who becomes a follower of this website, including the already existing 10, I will donate $1 to a charity dedicated to improving the lives of those touched by the earthquake in Haiti.
For each person who leaves a comment this week on any post, I will donate $1 to the same charity.
For each TWEET/RETWEET about this post or this website, I will donate $1 to the relief efforts in Haiti. (Just be sure that any TWEET/RETWEET is directed @LadyWanderlust with http://worldaccording2lisa.blogspot.com/ in it to ensure I receive all Tweets).

Spread the world. Raise awareness. Bring Relief to Haiti

Putting My Money Where My Mouth Is: Helping Haiti

2010-02-08T18:05:00.000-08:00

After researching Haiti, THE POOREST country in the Western Hemisphere (and now the hardest hit), I realize that I am being called to do more than just publish blogs to help my fellow man. Education is crucial to ending the poverty, but it takes money, especially in Haiti, to bring about real change. Haiti needs our contributions. Haiti needs MY contributions. It will take money to rebuild the basic infrastructure, to provide basic necessities to those who lost everything, and to put food in the bellies of the hungry. It is time for me to pay up.

Many of you may know me as LadyWanderlust on Twitter or as Her Majesty the Blogoddess at the WorldAccording2Lisa. My alter ego, the Blogoddess, is a snarky, flippant, and sarcastic woman who acts as if love were nothing more than a song lyric, men are a nuisance, and life is one big joke. However, behind that facade is a woman who really dreams of making a difference, as a mother, as a teacher, as a blogger, and as a resident of this blue marble. So with this blog, I intend to raise money for Haiti, while raising awareness.

Here's the Plan:

For each person who becomes a follower of this website, including the already existing 10, I will donate $1 to a charity dedicated to improving the lives of those touched by the earthquake in Haiti.
For each person who leaves a comment this week on any post, I will donate $1 to the same charity.
For each TWEET/RETWEET about this post or this website, I will donate $1 to the relief efforts in Haiti. (Just be sure that any TWEET/RETWEET is directed @LadyWanderlust with http://www.thepowerofonlyone.blogspot.com/ in it to ensure I receive all Tweets).

That's it. That's "The Plan." Help me to build up this blog so I can reach my New Year's resolution to help "the ordinary one person become an extraordinary impetus of change by addressing key global issues and empowering individuals with the knowledge of the issues & the means to make change." The more people who follow this blog and tweet/retweet about "The Plan", the more money I will donate to Haiti and the more the message will get out.

Thank you, Lisa

Our 1 Billion to Help the Hungry One Billion

2010-02-07T13:04:00.000-08:00

HELP HAITI NOW.

Haiti Was Hungry Before the Quake

2010-02-06T18:01:00.000-08:00

Even before the big quake, Haiti was in dire straits. It is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Haiti's GDP (PPP) per capita is about $800 with most people living on less than $2 per day, compared to the United States' GDP of nearly $47,000. There is a shortage of skilled workers, 66% of its workforce are engaged in agriculture, and 2/3 of the people are unemployed. If that is not tragic enough, 80% of the people live below the poverty line. Half of this island nation's children do not receive vaccinations and 60% of the population do not have access to basic health care. Additionally, Haiti has a literacy rate of only 50%. It appears to be a nearly hopeless situation.

Who are the hardest hit by this level of poverty? The children. Not only are half of the children unvaccinated, but also nearly 50% of Haiti's children die before the age of fifteen. Many children endure homelessness, hunger, and abuse. Children have become so hungry that they have resorted to eating "mud pies", a mixture of mud and oil baked in the sun. Anything not to feel the pain and suffering starvation. It is estimated that 44 children die HOURLY in Haiti. That was BEFORE the earthquake.

Now imagine on top of all of this poverty and suffering, the insufficient level infrastructure that existed has now been nearly annihilated after a 7.0 earthquake and a 6.0 aftershock. The outcome is dismal. No, impossible. Unless you and I do something to help these people and their children.

"The current situation in Haiti is dire. With the price of basic food staples in Haiti rising 40--50% in the past year, hunger continues to grow and the people are growing increasingly desperate. At Food For The Poor's main feeding center in Port-au-Prince, approximately 15,000 people are fed six days a week--and it's still not enough.

Presently, an estimated 80% Haitians live in abject poverty. The spike in food prices threatens to make things worse. In recent days, the desperation has given way to violence and rioting. Thousands are taking to the streets protesting the crisis.

You have the power to help; the power to change the life. A gift of only $12 can feed a family for a month. Please help: http://www.foodforthepoor.org/. "

Sources of information: CIA Factbook, Wikipedia, & http://www.chrf.org/haiti.html

A Picture is Worth a 1000 Words:

2010-02-05T19:54:00.000-08:00

"African Tsunami" by Alberto Sabat.

Green Hunger

2010-02-04T17:18:00.001-08:00

Hunger is the Hopeless Child of Poverty & Famine

2010-02-03T17:26:00.000-08:00

World poverty, hunger, and famine are intricately intertwined. Simply, one does not exist without the other. Tonight's spotlight will be directed at famine. What is famine? It is a severe scarcity of food on a large scale that leads to extreme hunger, malnourishment, starvation, and often times, death. Dictionary.com defines it as:

1. extreme and general scarcity of food, as in a country or a large geographical area.

2. any extreme and general scarcity.

3. extreme hunger; starvation.

Bread for the World, a Christian organization dedicated to ending world hunger through education and political action, has gathered some staggering statistics on world hunger and famine.

923 million people across the world are hungry.

In essence, hunger is the most extreme form of poverty, where individuals or families cannot afford to meet their most basic need for food

Hunger manifests itself in many ways other than starvation and famine. Most poor people who battle hunger deal with chronic undernourishment and vitamin or mineral deficiencies, which result in stunted growth, weakness and heightened susceptibility to illness.

Countries in which a large portion of the population battles hunger daily are usually poor and often lack the social safety nets we enjoy, such as soup kitchens, food stamps, and job training programs. When a family that lives in a poor country cannot grow enough food or earn enough money to buy food, there is nowhere to turn for help.

In the developing world, more than 1.4 billion people currently live below the international poverty line, earning less than $1.25 per day.

Among this group of poor people, many have problems obtaining adequate, nutritious food for themselves and their families. As a result, 820 million people in the developing world are undernourished. They consume less than the minimum amount of calories essential for sound health and growth.

Undernourishment negatively affects people's health, productivity, sense of hope and overall well-being. A lack of food can stunt growth, slow thinking, sap energy, hinder fetal development and contribute to mental retardation.

Economically, the constant securing of food consumes valuable time and energy of poor people, allowing less time for work and earning income.

Socially, the lack of food erodes relationships and feeds shame so that those most in need of support are often least able to call on it.

Famine is a destructive force that erodes not only the fabric of a society, but also destroys the human spirit. Without food, life is a daily struggle, often time becoming a life without hope. Throughout this month, the Power of Only One will address the issues of poverty, world hunger, and famine. I hope to arm you with enough knowledge and to connect you with many excellent organizations so that you become empowered to share your power of only one.

World Hunger: Every 5

2010-02-02T18:25:00.001-08:00

World Hunger

2010-02-01T16:46:00.000-08:00

Last month's focus was world poverty. World poverty and world hunger go hand in hand, therefore February's theme is "World Hunger." To lay the foundation for a basic understanding, here are some key facts about this issue.

According to Bread for the World:

"An estimated 1.02 billion people in the world go hungry.

Each year, 3 million under-five children die because they are undernourished.1 Far more children live with undernutrition than die from it. For infants and young children, the effects of chronic malnutrition in the early years of life are largely irreversible.

In the United States, over 49 million people—including 16.7 million children—live in households that struggle to put food on the table. That means one in seven households in the U.S. are living with hunger or are at risk of hunger."

Do you understand just how staggering these statistics are? Nearly 20% of the world's population is starving and suffering from the negative effects of malnourishment. 16,000 children die DAILY as result of hunger. Even in our country, with an economy that is ranked as high as number one [using the GDP (PPP)** ], 15% of our people struggle to feed themselves and their families; one-third of America's hungry are the children. I will strive to present you with many other statistics, as well to link you with organizations that fight world hunger. It is my hope that you will find a way you can fight world hunger, one person, one post, one action, one day at a time.

GDP (PPP)**--is gross domestic product converted to international dollars using purchasing power parity rates. An international dollar has the same purchasing power over GDP as the U.S. dollar has in the United States.

WORLD HUNGER

Women & Poverty

2010-01-31T18:27:00.000-08:00

“Women do two thirds of the world's work. Yet they earn only one tenth of the world's income and own less than one percent of the world's property. They are among the poorest of the world's poor.”

--Barbara B. Conable, Jr.

Source: http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2008/10/women_poverty.html

Poverty Is NOT an Accident

2010-01-30T11:53:00.000-08:00

The End of Poverty. A film. A website. A hope. http://www.theendofpoverty.com/dvd.html

"Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings."

--Nelson Mandela

From the website:

"The End of Poverty? is a daring, thought-provoking and very timely documentary by award-winning filmmaker, Philippe Diaz, revealing that poverty is not an accident. It began with military conquest, slavery and colonization that resulted in the seizure of land, minerals and forced labor. Today, global poverty has reached new levels because of unfair debt, trade and tax policies -- in other words, wealthy countries exploiting the weaknesses of poor, developing countries.

The End of Poverty? asks why today 20% of the planet's population uses 80% of its resources and consumes 30% more than the planet can regenerate?

The film has been selected to over 25 international film festivals and will be released in theatres in November 2009. Directed by Philippe Diaz, produced by Cinema Libre Studio with the Robert Schalkenbach Foundation, 104mins, 2008, USA, documentary in English, Spanish, French with English Subtitles."

The DVD will be released sometime in the Spring of 2010. Please sign up for our newsletter to be notified when this happens. Go here.
The End Of Poverty? from Philippe Diaz on Vimeo.

Climbing Out of Poverty--- by Monica at A Pair of Panties & Boxers

2010-01-29T18:03:00.000-08:00

Monica is a fellow blogger, world traveler, and woman with a heart of gold. I follow her blog faithfully. I tease her that I am able to travel vicariously through her words, her photos, and her stories. But this talented writer is more than a world traveler. She is also a teacher and giver by nature. She does not simply go to big cities to see the sites. When Monica ventures to foreign and exotic lands, she goes to experience the culture and meet the people.

Monica also cares about this world and seeks to make it a better place. On one of her world adventures, this traveler-turned-teacher worked to make a difference in the lives of some very special Chinese children.

So come travel with me to China. Experience the love and generosity of this amazing woman. See the faces of the children of itinerant workers hungering for an education. Listen to Monica's story.

Monica talks about how these experiences change her, but I bet--no, I am sure--that she has indelibly changed the people she has met and the places she has been. Monica has changed them for the better.

Go to A Pair of Panties & Boxers to read Climbing Out of Poverty.

Woman Empowered Solve Rise From Poverty

2010-01-28T18:30:00.000-08:00

Friendship Bridge
While wandering the web (and by Googling "hope in poverty"), I have discovered an excellent non-profit, non-governmental organization created to empower woman and their families of Guatemala. By allowing these families to create their own solutions, Friendship Bridge helps to lift them out of the depths of poverty through micro enterprise and education.

The Wisdom of Frederick Douglass

2010-01-27T18:21:00.000-08:00

"Where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails, and where any one class is made to feel that society is an organized conspiracy to oppress, rob and degrade them, neither persons nor property will be safe. "

--Frederick Douglass

From the Streets Straight Into My Heart

2010-01-26T16:57:00.000-08:00

I have just finished watching a great piece from Journeyman Pictures (YouTube): Kenya Kids. This 11 minute video was so powerful that it both brought me to tears, yet left me with hope. It also confirmed what Rolf Gross (phototgrapher) suggested to me when I started this blog, "Don't become a 'colonial missionary'." Regardless of the BILLIONS of dollars than have been funneled into Africa over 50 years, the abject poverty still exists. Until we empower the people of Africa, until Africans embrace the Power of Only One, nothing will ever change and millions will remain in the never ending cycle of poverty. The real solution is in the hands of the Africans themselves, not with the "old white men" at summits who talk about what should be done.

But there is hope. Just experience the strength and fire in the hearts of Henry Kangethe and Elisabeth Nyawira of AMREF, former street children of Kenya. In the hands of those who know the pain and struggle of poverty, there is hope and a plan for a better tomorrow.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnjIgSgKB-M&feature=related

Haiti Seeks to Shape Its Own Future...But It Needs Help

2010-01-25T20:12:00.000-08:00

This is an article found from the The Hindu (http://beta.thehindu.com/news/international/article94936.ece)

Haiti wants to shape its future; needs more aid, tents
Haiti’s prime minister put forward a strong case Monday to the international community for more aid, but made clear that Haiti wants to guide the process and develop its own vision of rebuilding the shattered capital Port-au-Prince and outlying areas.

Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive spoke to foreign ministers from 20 nations in Montreal, where Canada called for participants to consider forgiveness of the Caribbean country’s nearly 1-billion-dollars in foreign debt.

The Haitian government “is working under precarious conditions but it is in a position to assume the leadership role expected by its people in order to launch the country on its path to reconstruction,” Bellerive told delegates.

Before the conference opened, he said he was not in Montreal to “simply ask for help.” “We have a plan,” he said, that calls for the future to be “clearly delineated by the Haitians for the Haitians using democratic means.” The conference paved the way for a donors’ conference in March where monetary pledges are expected. Venezuela, Nicaragua and Bolivia boycotted the conference to protest the presence of 20,000 US military personnel in an aid capacity in Haiti.

In Brussels, European Union foreign ministers agreed to send at least 300 police officers to Haiti to boost the United Nations’ stabilization mission (MINUSTAH). Japan was also considering dispatching more troops. The UN mission, which was seriously damaged by the January 12 mammoth earthquake, has confirmed 82 staffers dead and another 53 missing.

Haitian President Rene Preval requested 200,000 tents before the spring rainy season arrives, the UN mission in Haiti said. As many as 800,000 Haitians need shelter. The government plans to build tent cities outside of Port-au-Prince to house many of the displaced.

Haitian rapper Wyclef Jean, who has helped spearhead fundraising efforts, supported the idea in an interview: “The cleaning will take long, that’s why I say: Start bringing the people out of the city with tents and start to convert the tents into homes.” The World Food Programme said Haiti would need more food — and for a much longer time than anticipated -- in what WFP executive director Josette Sheeran called “the most complex operation that WFP has ever faced.” Much of the food must be transported over bad roads from the neighbouring Dominican Republic on WFP’s 75 trucks.

At least 112,000 people are confirmed dead, and that number is expected to climb. An intense, almost daily series of aftershocks has brought more buildings tumbling and caused more injuries and deaths.

Bellerive called for Haitians living abroad to come home and help rebuild the country. “The catastrophe has escalated the emigration of Haitians. We need people to take courage and return,” he said.

In other developments: -- Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou planned to fly with an aid delivery to Haiti’s neighbour, the Dominican Republic, just a short hop away from Honduras, where he had been planning to attend the presidential inauguration on Wednesday.

** A 21—member Philippine medical team was on its way to help address the growing urgency for wound and trauma treatment. The Haitian government estimates the number of injured at 194,000, many with mangled and crushed limbs.

** Private donations in Britain for earthquake relief reached 46 million pounds (74 million dollars), according to the umbrella aid group The Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC).

** The United Nations Human Rights Council plans to meet on Wednesday for a special session in Geneva on Haiti, to focus on a “human rights approach” to relief efforts.

** The United States plans to create 20,000 jobs by the end of the month in Haiti by hiring people to help with the cleanup, the US State Department’s coordinator for relief and reconstruction, Lewis Lucke, said. Hiring has already begun.

** The European Union said it would not launch a comprehensive plan to facilitate adoptions of child quake orphans. In Washington, the US State Department confirmed that the US has evacuated more than 360 Haitian orphans and expected another 200 children. It was working through adoption centres to resettle them.

The status of these US-bound children was not clear. In Haiti on the weekend, Information Minister Marie Laurence Joselin Lassegue said that the government has put a halt to new adoptions and would only allow children already in the midst of adoptions to leave.

A man leaves after retrieving some documents from the rubble of a collapsed building in the aftermath of a powerful earthquake on Jan. 12 in Port-au-Prince. Photo: AP

Land of Diversity. Land of Suffering.

2010-01-23T20:16:00.000-08:00

Africa. Land of Diversity. Land of Beauty and Grace. Land of World Wonders. Also, Land of Poverty, Famine, Pestilence, HIV/AIDS, and Suffering. This land rich in resources, including 60-70% of the world's gold and diamonds, is also home to the ten poorest nations in the world. Go to Media Global's website to gain further insight about these 10 countries (http://www.mediaglobal.org/page/the-worlds-10-poorest-countries).

Why does this matter? Africa is the fastest growing continent in the world. That means exponentially more children will be born in to a life and suffering of poverty. One report reveals:

"20% of Africa's children die before the age of five... Every day 30,000 children die from a combination of disease- infested water and malnutrition...Water-borne diseases are claiming one child every three seconds. These diseases are the major killers of small children in Africa."
(http://www.missionariesofafrica.org/challenges/orphan1.html)

As the population of this already struggling continent rapidly rises, these and other issues will only worsen. We as fellow global citizens must intervene now. We must all find our starfish, saving them one at a time.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/spl/hi/africa/05/africa_economy/img/africa_map416_income2.gif

It Starts with You

2010-01-22T21:55:00.001-08:00

Sometimes the Gross Domestic Product is GROSSLY Insufficient

2010-01-21T19:33:00.000-08:00

Did you know that United States is one of the eight wealthiest countries in the world? This nation's gross domestic product last year alone was over $14 TRILLION. Depending upon the source--World Bank, IMF, or CIA Factbook--the United States' economy is ranked as high as #4. The GDP (PPP--purchasing power parity) per capita for this land of abundance is about $47,000.

What does this mean? How can this be useful to understand poverty? Let me try to explain.

GDP is the gross domestic product, which measures the total value of all of a country's goods and services that were produced in a year. This number gives economists a means to rank a nation's economy. You add up the value of all the hamburgers sold at Wendy's, co-pays paid to doctors, tickets bought to a Yankees games, each haircut given at Super Cuts, and everything else and you have the GDP (more or less).
per capita = per person
Purchasing power parity (PPP) "allows you to compare the standard of living between countries by taking into account the impact of their exchange rates (Go here for an example.)"
Basically, if you take the total vaule of all the goods and services produced in a single year and divide by the total population, this will be a nation's GDP per capita. The larger the GDP per capita, the more developed the nation--translation: wealthier.
If we divided the American GDP (PPP) of $14 TRILLION by our 300 million people AND if the government were to cut a check for the the amount of our little math problem, every man, woman, and child would receive $46,000. WOW.

Let's put this into perspective. Zimbabwe has a population of 11.3 million people with a total GDP (PPP) of not even $2 billion, making the GDP per capita only $200. That is less than half of one percent of the American GDP (PPP).

Yes, you saw correctly. The United States produces so many goods and services that the nation of a one-third billion has a GDP per capita in the tens of thousands of dollars. That is garishly wealthy. A true gap between the rich and the poor.

Over the next few days I will highlight some of the poorest countries in the world. One of the reference points will be the GDP (PPP). Just to give you a sneak peak...

Did you know that the entire African continent of over 50 countries only produces 1% of all manufactured goods in the world?
Did you the know the ten poorest countries in the world (GDP per capita) are in Africa?
Did you know that Africa, the poorest continent in the world, is also the fastest growing continent? and it's population will double in about 20 years? even with the deaths from preventable diseases, malnourishment and starvation, and the HIV/AIDS pandemic?

How The World Bank Sees It

2010-01-20T04:25:00.000-08:00

Today, I discovered a great site (The World Bank's PovertyNet) that provides a simple and concise definition of global poverty, describes a means to measure poverty, simply explains the trends in poverty, and shares the global goals created to address this issue of poverty. The website is full of data, but it is presented on a level that the everyday Joe can understand. I highly recommend that you spend time on this website as it provides more than just data, it also provides tools and training opportunities to address the global epidemic of poverty.

Here is an excerpt from the site:

"While there has been great progress in reducing poverty, it has been far from even, and the global picture masks large regional differences.

Poverty in East Asia—the world’s poorest region in 1981—has fallen from nearly 80 percent of the population living on less than $1.25 a day in 1981 to 18 percent in 2005 (about 340 million), largely owing to dramatic progress in poverty reduction in China. The goal of halving extreme poverty between 1990 and 2015 has already been achieved in East Asia.

Between 1981 and 2005, the number of people in poverty has fallen by around 600 million in China alone. In the developing world outside China, the poverty rate has fallen from 40 to 29 percent over 1981-2005, although the total number of poor has remained unchanged at around 1.2 billion.

$1.25 a day poverty rate in South Asia has also fallen, from 60 percent to 40 percent over 1981-2005, but this has not been enough to bring down the region’s total number of poor, which stood at about 600 million in 2005.

In Sub-Saharan Africa, the $1.25 a day poverty rate has shown no sustained decline over the whole period since 1981, starting and ending at around 50 percent. In absolute terms, the number of poor people has nearly doubled, from 200 million in 1981 to 380 million in 2005. However, there have been signs of recent progress; the poverty rate fell from 58% in 1996 to 50% in 2005.

In middle-income countries, the median poverty line for the developing world—$2 a day in 2005 prices—is more relevant. By this standard, the poverty rate has fallen since 1981 in Latin America and the Middle East & North Africa, but not enough to reduce the total number of poor.

The $2 a day poverty rate has risen in Eastern Europe and Central Asia since 1981, though with signs of progress since the late 1990s...

The uneven progress of development is worrying. The flows of trade and capital that integrate the global economy may bring benefits to millions, but poverty and suffering persist. Responding to such concerns, governments and international development agencies have begun to reexamine the way they operate. In September 2000, 189 countries signed the Millennium Declaration, which led to the adoption of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The MDGs are a set of eight goals for which 18 numerical targets have been set and over 40 quantifiable indicators have been identified. The goals are:

Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

Achieve universal primary education

Promote gender equality and empower women

Reduce child mortality

Improve maternal health

Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases

Ensure environmental sustainability

Develop a global partnership for development.

While each goal is important in its own right, they should be viewed together as they are mutually reinforcing. Achieving them will require building capacity for effective, democratic, and accountable governance, protection of human rights, and respect for the rule of law. The World Bank will systematically monitor progress in achieving these goals in the countries it assists (see the Millennium Development Goals website for more detail on the MDGs)."

It's All About How You Look At It: Turn Things Upside Down

2010-01-19T04:00:00.000-08:00

"This video was created for the AARP U@50 video contest and placed second. It is based on the Argentinian Political Advertisement "The Truth" by RECREAR."

Go here to see the Argentinian Ad here.

The Power of One Man's Dream

2010-01-18T15:23:00.000-08:00

He had a dream to change the world in which he lived. He is gone, yet, I still believe.

I have a dream to change the world in which I live. To end poverty, suffering, and ignorance world-wide. I may only be one person with only one voice, but I can, no, I choose to make a difference. I dare to dream with him.

Do you believe? Do you dare to change your world with one shared dream?

Words From the Wise

2010-01-17T20:20:00.000-08:00

“Poverty is the worst form of violence.”
--Gandhi

How to Fight Poverty: Some Research

2010-01-16T19:05:00.000-08:00

Here are few sites/articles that I have found that I will be spending time over the next few weeks perusing. I hope you find them helpful and educational.

The Right To Grief

2010-01-15T18:33:00.000-08:00

by Carl Sandburg

To Certain Poets About to Die

Take your fill of intimate remorse, perfumed sorrow,

Over the dead child of a millionaire,

And the pity of Death refusing any check on the bank

Which the millionaire might order his secretary to

scratch off

And get cashed.

Very well,

You for your grief and I for mine.

Let me have a sorrow my own if I want to.

I shall cry over the dead child of a stockyards hunky.

His job is sweeping blood off the floor.

He gets a dollar seventy cents a day when he works

And it’s many tubs of blood he shoves out with a broom

day by day.

Now his three year old daughter

Is in a white coffin that cost him a week’s wages.

Every Saturday night he will pay the undertaker fifty

cents till the debt is wiped out.

The hunky and his wife and the kids

Cry over the pinched face almost at peace in the white box.

They remember it was scrawny and ran up high doctor bills.

They are glad it is gone for the rest of the family now

will have more to eat and wear.

Yet before the majesty of Death they cry around the coffin

And wipe their eyes with red bandanas and sob when

the priest says, “God have mercy on us all.”

I have a right to feel my throat choke about this.

You take your grief and I mine—see?

To-morrow there is no funeral and the hunky goes back

to his job sweeping blood off the floor at a dollar

seventy cents a day.

All he does all day long is keep on shoving hog blood

ahead of him with a broom.

Haiti Needs Our Help. Remember the Power of Only One Makes A Difference

2010-01-14T16:13:00.000-08:00

What can I do to help?

2010-01-13T17:11:00.000-08:00

"What would it cost to help just one person hang on?" Not only do I pose this question to you, my readers, but also it's for me, too. Really, I am asking myself this question. What can I, no, SHOULD I do to help just one person or one family in my own city?

I am so blessed. I have money, not alot, but enough to meet and to exceed the basic needs of my family. Perhaps I could choose to give up Pizza Night just ONE time this month to donate the money I would have spent at Papa Johns to the local food bank or other local charity? Maybe if I skipped Starbucks just two times a week for ONE month and put that money where my coffee drinking mouth was, I might actually help someone meet a basic need for her family. Maybe I might help to bring comfort for just one minute.

Poverty is a reality for 1 out of 8 americans. That means when I look out into my classroom of 25 students, THREE of them are living at or below the poverty level. Their entire family is struggling to put food on the table, gas in the tank, and heat in the house, all the while praying that no one needs to go the doctor or the hospital. God forbid. If they are worried every waking moment about meeting just the basic needs of everyone in the family, no wonder some of them come to school without supplies, homework incomplete, and a chip on the shoulder with the whole world's name on it.

This presentation was sponsored by the Catholic Campaighn for Human Development.

One Man's Trash is Another Child's Sad Reality

2010-01-12T18:14:00.000-08:00

Poverty does more than just snatch food from a child's hand. Poverty robs the child of the joy of youth. It blinds him from seeing the path God has set before him. Poverty steals his future.

Poverty of the Soul

2010-01-11T18:08:00.000-08:00

“We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for is the greatest poverty. We must start in our own homes to remedy this kind of poverty.”

~Mother Teresa

Poverty in the United States: It Does Exist

2010-01-10T18:03:00.000-08:00

Often times, when we think of poverty, we picture starving children in Africa, the slums of Brazil, or the Untouchables of India. Rarely do we picture the the poor living (as well as starving and dying) in our own country, our own cities. But poverty is the reality of MILLIONS within one of the wealthiest countries in the world. Although the United States is ranked #10 in world (based on the gross domestic product per capita-PPP), there exists extreme poverty in our country.

35.9 million live below the poverty line; 12.9 million of those are children.
The poverty threshhold for a family of four is $16, 600 annual income.
The poverty rate varies from 8.7% (suburbs) to 18.5% (inside central cities).
The poverty rate is double or quadruple for minority groups; 12.5-26.1%.
Although there is an abundance of food in the USA, 100 BILLION pounds of food are wasted annually. 15% of this food is still within the expiration date but never opened.
20% of all American food goes wasted, averaging 130 pounds per person ending up in the landfills.
3.5% of all American households experience hunger, often times with the people of these households skipping meals or eating too little. This is 9.6 million people, 3 million being children.

--statistics from http://www.soundvision.com/Info/poor/statistics.asp

It is unimaginable that the poverty levels are this high in a nation so wealthy and abundant in resources and infrastructure. Let's ask ourselves what are simple steps that we can take to make a difference. Perhaps, while at the grocery store we should purchase what is only needed for that week to prevent further waste of perfectly good food. Also, at the store, we could add just a few cans of healthy food to our baskets to donate to the local food bank.

To become actively involved in your community's fight against poverty and hunger, here are a few links to get you started:

http://www.1-800-volunteer.org/1800Vol/OpenIndexAction.do
http://feedingamerica.org/
http://www.serve.gov/

--The Power of One

The Heart of Mother Teresa

2010-01-09T17:28:00.000-08:00

“If you can't feed a hundred
people, then just feed one.”

If The World Were A Village

2010-01-08T17:17:00.000-08:00

If the world were a village, what does the world look like? The Minature Earth Project created a video to let you know the reality of so many in our world. Watch this video. See where you stand. Look at your neighbors. Decide, "What will I do?" Do you reach out or do you just go home, ignoring those "others" who live in your village?

I am wondering. What if we honestly looked at the world as simply just one village, all of us neighbors, just with different experiences? It seems if we looked at those suffering in the world as our neighbors, rather than "those people over there" that we might feel more compelled to reach out, move beyond our comfortable lives to make a difference, to create a better world.

I watch this video, see the numbers and do the math. How heart breaking to realize that so few have so much, while the many have so little, suffering greatly. It is heart breaking that I have done so little to help my neighbors and my neighhbors' children.

Then, I remember change is not impossible, nor is it improbable. Each one of us can light a single candle bringing more light into this world. It takes just one flame of hope to stop the dark.

--Power of Only One

The Power of One

2010-01-07T16:16:00.001-08:00

Making a Difference One Life at a Time: Hearts and Hands International

2010-01-06T15:45:00.000-08:00

I have found another website that I will be spending time exploring over the next few weeks. Hearts and Hands has created an interactive website, including a blog and use of social media, to promote the empowerment of everyday people in becoming involved with children at risk across the globe.

If you look below, I have provided a video clip that will give you a general overview of the organization. I would also encourage you to browse the website. The website details current projects of the organization, provides opportunities for involvement, and provides links with news articles.

--The Power of Only One

Bono's ONE

2010-01-05T20:19:00.000-08:00

I have found another excellent webiste: ONE (http://www.one.org/us/actnow/) co-founded by Bono. It is yet another example of a grassroots movement aimed at ending poverty and preventable diseases, with a goal to "achieve change through advocacy" by working with policy-makers and activists . This non-partisan organization focuses particularly on poverty in Africa. However, their emphasis is not charity, rather ONE emphasizes "justice and equality."

According to the website:

"How does ONE's advocacy work?

ONE members mobilize at key moments - when a critical piece of legislation is up for a vote in Congress, or when world leaders gather at important summits like the G8, or when an emergency occurs like the global food crisis. Online at ONE.org and working on the ground in local communities, ONE members take action to ensure the issues of the poorest of the poor - issues that can often go unnoticed - are heard by our neighbors and addressed by our leaders. By taking part in ONE Sabbath, churches, temples, synagogues and mosques will make a vital contribution to this movement and make a difference in the fight against poverty and disease."

This site offers opportunities to become actively involved in the fight against poverty, as well providing a wealth of information on the key global issues impacting poverty. This interactive site provides opportunities to: lobby Congress, encourage local media participation, and recruit and organize other indviduals to help spread the efforts of this movement. You could do something as simple as writing a letter or making a call to your representative or wearing a ONE t-shirt. Also, if you are interested in having a better understanding as to the causes of global poverty, ONE provides clear and concise information on issues such as: AIDS/HIV, Climate and Development, Water and Sanitation, Debt Cancellation, etc.

I find ONE to be a very interactive and user-friendly site with a very appealing design. It also taps into the power of social media; ONE has a blog and can be found on Facebook, Twitter, & MySpace. It even allows people to subscribe via RSS for One Blog, What Were Reading, and Policy News to help member stay up to date with current issues affecting this movement.

For those of you who feel convicted that poverty is more than a social issue, rather the issues of justice and equality are spiritual in nature, this website even provides a means for you to involve your congregation or a small group within your congregation, through the ONE SABBATH. Although ONE is a secular group "it has deep roots in the faith community."

Here is yet just one more opportunity to explore how to strengthen and to apply your own Power of Only One. I highly recommend you check out this sight for yourself. I plan to spend even more time on it myself, especially exploring the wealth of information it provides. I think not only will the Power of Only One Blog benefit, but also my students will have a richer and better understanding of global issues as I become an even more informed teacher (and private citizen). Looks like I have found another site/blog to add to the Blog Roll.

--Power of Only One

Light Just One Candle

2010-01-04T06:41:00.000-08:00

"It is better to light one candle than to curse the darkness."

--Motto of the American Christopher Society,
derived from Chinese proverb

The Power of Your One Can Fight Global Poverty

2010-01-03T10:17:00.000-08:00

The staggering reality of global poverty:

25,000 children under the age of 5 die each day due to poverty-related causes.
Unsafe water and lack of basic sanitation cause 80% of all sickness and disease, and kill more people every year than all forms of violence, including war. Nearly 900 million people do not have access to clean water.
Nearly a billion people entered the 21st century unable to read a book or sign their names.
Seventy percent of those living on less than $1 per day are women.
Each year, more than 8 million people around the world die because they are too poor to stay alive.
One third of deaths...are due to poverty-related causes

http://www.onedayswages.org/about/our-vision, http://www.urbanministry.org/global-poverty-statistics

However, with the power of only one person, YOU can make a difference. Did you know, through a donation to One Day’s Wages, a ONE-time gift of $100 can provide either 5 people clean water for 20 years, buy 10 people a mosquito bed net to protect against malaria, enroll 2 children in school for a year, or provide a woman a sewing machine and job training?

Perhaps with this ever changing and volatile economy, you and your family simply cannot afford even $10, let alone the $100. That’s okay, too. There is still the power of only one through actions.

Use the Power of Only One to:

Become ONE follower of this blog and pass along its message to at least ONE person.
Write ONE letter to your U.S. Senator or House Representative expressing your desire for global change and an end to world poverty.
Donate ONE hour of ONE day at a local shelter.
Donate ONE dollar at the check-out at the grocery store for the local food bank.

Always remember, "A waterfall starts but with one drop, and look what becomes of that."

--The Power of One

One Day's Wages Fights Global Poverty & So Can You

2010-01-02T20:17:00.000-08:00

I am only one person!
What can I do to help end world-wide poverty?
I am a single mom and have very little money to spare.
I am a busy father of three children; between work and all the kids' activities there is so little time to give to any organization.

Does this sound like you? I get it. I'm a single mom with a full time job and two children who are active in martial arts. It seems there is never enough time or money for all that we need to accomplish in our own lives. But, I bet you are like me and feel the need to contribute to postive change in this world. This is the world we are leaving to our children. Our actions today will be the inheritance of the generations that come after us. I want to make it a better place for not just my children and their future offspring, but all the children in the world.

Thanks to Monica at A Pair of Panties and Boxers I have found a very simple way to help, a way that will have a dramatic and positive impact on the fight against global poverty. One Day's Wages is a movement inspired by the convictions of Eugene and Minhee Cho to make positive change in the world after seeing the reality of extreme poverty in the eyes of the people during their travels. "One Day's Wages (ODW) is an international grassroots movement dedicated to ending extreme global poverty."

Please watch the following video to better understand this great opportunity to be a part of world-wide change, a change that will help those who need it most, leaving a better inheritance for your children.

Today I encourage you to visit One Day's Wages, learn about the movement, and become empowered to make positive, world-wide changes in the fight against poverty with the power of only one day's wages.

--The Power of Only One

The Power of Only One: Day 1--The Launch

2010-01-01T08:25:00.000-08:00

Who am I to DARE to make a difference? I am only one of 6,793,724,593 people on this blue marble. Over 5 billion of these people live on less than $10 a day and live in countries where the gap between the rich and the poor continue to widen. Over 3 billion people live on less than $2.50 a day. 40% of the poor account for 5% of the world’s wealth, whereas 20% of the wealthiest account for about 75% of the world’s income.

Who am I to DARE to make a difference in a world where 25, 000 children die daily due to living in poverty? 28% of the world’s children are underweight and stunted due to malnourishment, most of these coming from Africa and South Asia. Many of the world’s children not only suffer from the malnourishment of poverty, but also live in a world without education. As of 2005, 57 billion primary school-aged children in developing countries were not enrolled in school, 57% these being young girls.

Who am I to DARE to make a difference in the world where the children suffer on daily basis because of extreme poverty? According to globalissues.org: “1 billion children live in poverty (1 in 2 children in the world). 640 million live without adequate shelter, 400 million have no access to safe water, and 270 million have no access to health services. 10.6 million died in 2003 before they reached the age of 5 (or roughly 29,000 children per day).”

Who am I to DARE to make a difference in a world with so much suffering and the odds off success seem insurmountable with global efforts, let alone the efforts of just one person? I will tell you who I am to DARE to make a difference. I am not a company or a non-profit organization. I am just one. One person. One mom. One teacher. One American. One Texan. One daughter. One sister. One friend. One member of the human race who has challenged herself to save the one...one day, one word, one post at time with the POWER OF ONLY ONE.

What was the impetus that compelled me to tap into the Power of Only One? It started with this post at Monica’s blog A Pair of Panties and Boxers. Also, as I did research, I was reminded of and read inspirational stories of THE ONE making a difference. I bet you have all heard the story of the woman on the beach trying to save the starfish one at a time. Someone also walking on the beach challenged her, saying she couldn’t possibly make a difference. The woman responded “But I made a difference for that one” as she threw it back into the sea.

One of my favorite movies, one that I share with my students, is the Power of One, loosely based upon the novel by Bryce Courtenay. In this story, Peekay seeks to make changes of Apartheid–era South Africa. Again, when the character is faced with the challenge that one person cannot make big change, he discovers that “A waterfall starts but with one drop, and look what becomes of that.” Finally, I found wisdom and truth in Mother Teresa’s words, “If I look at the mass, I will never act. If I look at the one, I will.”

There is hope and strength in facing the challenge of THE POWER OF ONLY ONE. I may be only one person who changes only one life on this planet, but it will make a difference. It is my goal to reach each one of you, encouraging you to join me on this journey. Imagine what could happen if each of us empowered just one person to a better life. Oh, what a mighty waterfall of change we could create.

I hope to see you here on a regular basis. Feel free to contact me at powerofonlyone (at) gmail (dot) com if you have any questions, suggestions, or ideas. Here’s to the Power of Only One on January ONE of the brand new year.

--The Power of Only One

Sources:
http://www.globalissues.org/article/26/poverty-facts-and-stats
http://www.globalissues.org/issue/2/causes-of-poverty