REGISTRATION REQUIRED – All book discussion sign-ups announced at the beginning of the semester on the Honors listserv

• Book: HUMANITARIAN AFTERSHOCKS IN HAITI by Mark Schuller
• Discussion Leader: Dr. Emily Sahakian, Associate Professor of Theatre & Film Studies and Romance Languages
• Date: Friday, October 6, 3:00-5:00pm
• Location: Moore Hall 116
• Description: The 2010 earthquake in Haiti was one of the deadliest disasters in modern history, sparking an international aid response—with pledges and donations of $16 billion—that was exceedingly generous. But now, years later, that generous aid has clearly failed. In Humanitarian Aftershocks in Haiti, anthropologist Mark Schuller captures the voices of those involved in the earthquake aid response, and they paint a sharp, unflattering view of the humanitarian enterprise. Schuller led an independent study of eight displaced-persons camps in Haiti, compiling more than 150 interviews ranging from Haitian front-line workers and camp directors to foreign humanitarians and many displaced Haitian people. The result is an insightful account of why the multi-billion-dollar aid response not only did little to help but also did much harm, triggering a range of unintended consequences, rupturing Haitian social and cultural institutions, and actually increasing violence, especially against women. The book shows how Haitian people were removed from any real decision-making, replaced by a top-down, NGO-dominated system of humanitarian aid led by an army of often young, inexperienced foreign workers, and concludes with suggestions to help improve humanitarian aid in the future, perhaps most notably, that aid workers listen to—and respect the culture of—the victims of catastrophe.

Contact: Kora Burton, k.burton@uga.edu.