On the Ground in Haiti

By Michael Boyajian

I recently interviewed two Haitian relief workers who were on the ground witnessing the utter destruction of one of the poorest countries on the planet.  They were noted New York photographer Kevin C. Downs and photojournalist James Helmer.

They were helping with the relief effort and documenting the tragedy through their photography for the sake of future generations.  They could have easily stayed home safe in their living rooms comfortably watching the Grammys on television but instead chose to go into harm’s way to help their fellow human beings.  Downs describes what he saw as “something out of Dante’s Inferno.”

Downs talked about one scene that was burned into his memory of a half naked twelve year old child covered in gray dust digging in the ground for metal to sell for his very existence.  Yet Helmer says “the Haitian people for all they had been through carried themselves with dignity.”  They continued on with their daily routines in an effort to put the horror behind them.

Downs had a chronic cough during the interview from inhaling smoke at the scene of devastation that has yet to subside, an example of the sacrifice he has made in this effort.  Both men worked with a German relief group that was focused on just one Haitian refugee camp.  Downs and Helmer were forced to fly into the Dominican Republic from the United States and drive across the island to Haiti doing the same thing in reverse upon their return.

They report that organizations and governments from around the world are working there in effort to bring what help they can to a people whose suffering can only be imagined by most Americans.  It was a tribute to humanity.  They describe what they saw as life changing that really puts into perspective what we have here in the U.S. and what they have in Haiti.

Just another of many stories coming out of the tragedy yet two more heroes added to the honor roll of the human race.

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