BY CHARLENE MUHAMMAD

CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Back from a recent fact-finding mission to the earthquake-ravaged Haiti, Congresswoman Maxine Waters called on the Los Angeles community Jan. 31 to get more relief to the Caribbean nation — now.

While there, Waters met with Haiti President René Préval and others, who said tents are currently the number-one priority for the country, which was hit with a 7.0 earthquake on Jan. 12.

“If the people are left outdoors, all kind of disease is going to spread,” said Waters, who gave her fact-finding report to a packed room of more than 100 people at the African American Cultural Center in Los Angeles. “Already, they’re bringing the babies into the makeshift hospitals with diarrhea and dysentery. There are many conditions that people are living under that just would shock you ... The number of amputees is mind-boggling.”

Specifically, the country needs at least 250,000 Army-quality tents, fully equipped with toilet and cooking facilities, Waters said.

Waters said she is depending on black media to spread awareness about the needs for tents. She is also urging the Congressional Black Caucus to push the State Department and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to help get the tents to Haiti before the rainy season, which could start in April or May.

“We’re up against some very, very serious situations,” Waters said. “For example, the rains are coming and the people are sleeping outdoors. Everybody’s homeless.

“One million people are in the parks and on the streets, with nothing but little tarps, makeshifts, little sheets ... women are birthing their babies in the park!”

She also told people to phone, fax, e-mail and write letters to their Congress members, and let them know they want an end to all unvetted adoptions of Haitian children.

Waters’ concerns were heightened by the recent arrest of 10 Americans, who attempted to bus 33 children out of the country.

“The children must be protected!” she said. “They must not be given to people simply because they claim to want to do it for humanitarian reasons. If they have not been through a process, you don’t know what their motives are, and you cannot let them go.”

According to The Associated Press, Laura Silsby, a spokesperson for the detained Americans, said they had obtained documents from the Dominican Republic’s government, but sought none from the Haitian government before taking the children, between 2 and 12 years old, to the border.

“Imagine you’re trapped under a building and somebody asks you, ‘I’ll give you the food but give me your children ... Taking them to a foreign, racist land gives them a new problem to cope with,” said Maulana Karenga, professor of Africana Studies at California State University, Long Beach, who was on stage with Waters and also talked about Haiti’s history.

Waters commended Haitian doctors in the Diaspora who converged on Haiti, set up medical facilities, and worked hard with little equipment and supplies, as best they could.

She also praised locals for helping with recovery efforts in Haiti.

“You can be proud from Los Angeles County that the Los Angeles County Search and Rescue team and the firefighters did a good job,” she said. “I was particularly moved by the saving of the 71-year-old woman that that team pulled out.”

To petition the USAID to give tents to Haiti, visit www.usaid.gov or call (202) 712-4810.