For Disaster Relief, Sometimes Smaller is Better

On the afternoon of Jan. 12, 2010 the earth shook violently in a small island nation in the Caribbean. The aftermath shook the collective conscience of the developed world.

Haiti, one of the world’s poorest countries prior to the 7.0 magnitude earthquake, suffered widespread devastation. Death, displacement, and disruption of supply lines were plastered on newspapers and TV screens worldwide. Cracked beyond repair, the presidential palace symbolized a fractured nation.

The world responded.

Celebrities held a massive “Hope for Haiti” telethon to raise money. Text message based giving, where $10 would be added to a cellphone bill, allowed small, impulse donations. Millions of dollars flowed from donors to aid organizations like UNICEF, Oxfam, and, now notoriously, the American Red Cross.

On the Ground

Conduit Mission, based out of Franklin, Tennessee, was a smaller organization helping in the direct aftermath. Conduit’s investment in the Haitian people started long before the earthquake—nearly a decade ago—supporting the people in the city of Jacmel. When the disaster struck, Conduit’s existing infrastructure allowed for immediate assistance, along side the other major aid organizations.

Ben Holeton, who had traveled to Haiti with Conduit before, arrived on the ground in Haiti the day after Port-Au-Prince airport opened back up to commercial traffic, about six weeks after the disaster. “To see places I knew lying on the ground in rubble was definitely a harrowing experience,” Holeton says. “It’s hard to forget.”

Waste

Over five years post disaster, an investigative report released by NPR and ProPublica challenged the narrative released by one of the biggest aid organizations operating in Haiti: the American Red Cross. The report found that, with nearly $500 million raised, only six permanent houses were constructed. This number stands in contrast to the Red Cross claim of sheltering over 100,000 Haitians.

Although the organization was on the ground early providing necessary relief, the report has tarnished the reputation of the Red Cross’s efforts in Haiti. Darren Tyler, founder of Conduit Mission, says the report confirmed what many people on the ground already knew about the Red Cross: they are not equipped for long term redevelopment.

In contrast, Conduit has built 52 homes in Haiti with only a few hundred thousand dollars. Conduit’s relationships with the Haitian people gave them a mandate for action. “These were our friends.” Tyler says. “And, so, when your friend’s house gets knocked down, you want to do whatever you can to help them.”

Holeton was personally involved with building six houses. He says part of a smaller organization’s effectiveness is the ability to adapt. Conduit has the flexibility to change course as needs arise. A large organization, like the Red Cross, is much more bureaucratic and rigid. “They operate like a government,” Holeton says.

Part of that inflexibility stops the Red Cross from looking long term, and instead seeks short-term fixes for problems. The shelters provided by the Red Cross, somehow costing $5,000, were more like plywood tents—no match for the tropical climate and hurricanes common in Haiti. Conduit on the other hand was able to provide concrete houses for a cost of $6,500. Tyler says they are looking forward at how they can innovate the housing, not just replace it. “The theory being: not only increasing the quality of life, but the possibility of life so that they are living differently now,” Tyler says.

While the methods and actions of the organizations are different, the Red Cross’s operations affect the smaller organizations on the ground. As the sentiment grew among locals that large NGOs were not addressing the concerns of the Haitian people, aftershocks rippled through the community Conduit served. Tyler recalls making an unplanned trip to meet with community leaders, who expressed concern. Protestors held signs written in Creole and threw rocks at the building, where they met. Conduit’s financial transparency was able to re-establish calm, but remains a lesson in how organizational reputations can be bundled in disaster areas.

Moving Forward

As the report makes waves in the United States, another concern is how it will affect future disaster relief efforts.

Darren Tyler, Founder of Conduit Mission

“That’s my biggest concern.” Holeton says. “The next time a Haiti happens, or an Indonesia, people are like ‘oh, the Red Cross didn’t do anything. They didn’t do nearly as good as I expected them to last time, so I’m not going to donate any money.’ That hurts.” He and Tyler agree that the relationships Conduit has built with supporters should shield them from financial backlash.

“We just really try to empower our tribe.” Tyler says. “So instead of going wide, we try to go deep.”

This allows Conduit to have a truly global reach. Besides Haiti, the organization operates in Togo, Africa, Guatemala, India, and conducts disaster relief in the United States.

A Conduit

With a stated goal to be “a ‘conduit’ of God’s power, God’s love, and God’s resources,” Conduit focuses on the humanity of the people it serves. With Haiti only resurfacing in the news because of the scrutiny on the Red Cross, Conduit’s tribe has a different perspective. “When I hear talk about what’s going on down there, to me, it’s not just a poor country in the Caribbean,” Holeton says. “It’s my friends and family down there, people that I know and love.”

Conduit is a small player in the humanitarian aid world. If its track record is a sign of effectiveness, the smaller players may end up changing the game.

Wine Coming To Tennessee Grocery Stores

NASHVILLE — A small team of Red White and Food supporters gathered around a TV at the restaurant of the Renaissance hotel in downtown Nashville. They eagerly await polls closing, hoping for success in their seven-year fight for consumer choice.

On Nov. 4, voters in communities across Tennessee voted on a referendum allowing grocery stores to sell wine. 78 municipalities collected enough signatures to place the referendum on the ballot. All 78 passed the measure by a wide margin, allowing grocery stores in those communities to begin the sale of wine July 1, 2016.

It seemed like a simple proposition. 36 other states already allow the sale of wine in grocery stores. Tennessee Grocers & Convenience Store Association launched Red White and Food in 2007 to make Tennessee number 37.

Opinion polls told the TGCSA that wine in retail stores was something Tennesseans wanted. However, the only legal outlet for purchasing wine did not share the public’s sentiment. Fierce opposition from lobbyists representing liquor stores stalled the effort.

“For decades they had this very lucrative, government-protected monopoly,” says Rob Ikard, President and CEO of the TGCSA. “They were going to protect that ground at any cost.”

The liquor store lobby stoked the fears of legislators through traditional southern values to earn “no” votes.

“In other bording states around Tennessee, where grocery stores were able to sell wine, there weren’t children running rampant in the streets drunk,” Ikard said. “So we’ve asked the question, ‘why shouldn’t we be able to do that?’”

Time and time again the liquor store lobby succeeded in killing the effort. In 2013, a bill in legislature did not even make it out of committee.

For convenience, many liquor stores positioned themselves next to grocery stores. (Credit: William Haynes)

Liquor stores in Tennessee dedicate large sections to wine. (Credit: Cool Springs Wine & Spirits)

Gaining signatures for the ballot initiative was key to success. Participating grocery stores allowed petitioners to sit at the entrance of the store. (Credit: Red White and Food)

Governor Bill Haslam signs the bill paving the way for wine to be sold in grocery stores. (Credit: The Tennessean)

In many grocery stores, the first thing a customer will see is a reminder of the wine referendum. (Credit: William Haynes)

Kroger is one of the many grocery stores involved with the Red White and Food campaign. (Credit: William Haynes)

The Process
Despite failing on a legislative level, the Red White and Food initiative continued to raise support from Tennesseans. 2014 brought a new legislative session, and another chance to pass a bill for wine in grocery stores.

With overwhelming support from citizens, the liquor stores “saw the writing on the wall” this year, Ikard says. The spirit and grocery retailers struck a compromise. In March of this year Gov. Bill Haslam signed into law SB 0837/HB 0610.

Instead of immediately allowing grocery stores to sell wine, the law established a framework for individual municipalities to vote on whether or not to allow it. The complexity of the process presented challenges for the initiative. With many steps involved, it would be easy for a supporter to get lost in the shuffle.

“I think a lot of people thought, ‘I thought that was a done deal,’ when it made it out of the legislative body,” says Kroger representative Melissa Eads. “We had to first remind and educate: no it’s not a done deal, now we have to collect signatures. We have to get it on the ballot.”

Red White and Food set up tables in grocery stores across the state, gaining petition signatures to get the referendum on local ballots. This effort yielded 262,247 signatories and landing the referendum on the ballot in 78 municipalities, said a press release from the group.

Nervousness and excitement filled the table of supporters at the watch party. “I’m ready to get a glass of wine,” said one supporter. While the results would not be final until the next evening, early returns pointed to a resounding victory.

After devoting seven years to the cause, unmistakable emotion was in the air. Like college graduates, the supporters were proud of their accomplishment, excited about the future, and closing a long chapter of their lives.

Nashville’s Kurds Speak Out

A community with deep ties to the conflict in Iraq speaks out against Turkey’s roll in the ISIS fight.

Once a quiet community, Nashville’s Kurds want their voices heard on U.S. foreign policy the Middle East.

“Turkey, ISIS are the same,” chanted a crowd in front of the US District Court for Middle Tennessee on a rainy Friday in early October. “Only difference is the name.”

Some waved American and Kurdish flags, while others held homemade signs, begging for support of Kobane.

The conflict with ISIS thrusts a decades old rift between the Turks and Kurds onto the global stage.

As war wages in the Middle East, Kurdish-Americans in the city dubbed “Little Kurdistan” hope for an outcome that includes an independent homeland.

Kurdish rally in front of U.S. District Court for Middle Tennessee Credit: The Tennessee Kurdish Community Council

The Turkish Problem

Turkey has already proven to be a less than reliable partner in the conflict with ISIS.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry attempted to reassure the world of Turkey’s engagement at the Global Counter Terrorism Forum in late September saying, “Turkey is very much part of this coalition, and Turkey will be very engaged on the frontlines of this effort.”

With the besieged Kurdish town of Kobane on the border with Turkey, the Turkish government’s inaction fueled speculation around the NATO ally’s true allegiance.

Kurds in the Middle East claim a Turkish/ISIS link, fearing the government in Ankara is enabling the radical Islamic group.

To complicate matters further, Turkey conducted airstrikes last week on the leftist Kurdistan Workers’ Party, while still refraining from military engagement with ISIS.

It took President Obama directly calling Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to finally open a path through Turkey for Kurdish fighters’ counter assault on ISIS.

U.S. Response

The Obama Administration is dealing with record low approval ratings in his dealing with ISIS. According to a new Fox News poll, 59% of likely voters disapprove of Mr. Obama’s handling of foreign policy, while 57% disapprove of his handling of ISIS.

While the Obama Administration continues its tepid response to ISIS’s advancement, the Kurds will continue to fight for their lives in towns like Kobane, Syria and Irbil, Iraq.

Kurds in Tennessee

Nashville typically evokes images of cowboy boots and honky tonks, not the largest Kurdish population in the United States. However starting 1976, Kurdish immigrants fleeing persecution have found a home in the Tennessee capital.

Seeking low-cost of living and jobs, they found their way to an enclave off Nolensville Pike—an immigrant rich area southeast of downtown. The location allowed for the small community to thrive, without the typical forces in the American South pressuring it to conform.

Now, an unassuming strip mall serves as the de facto city center for “Little Kurdistan.” Kurdish owned restaurants, markets and a salon flank the Salahadeen Center of Nashville—a local mosque.

A market in the Little Kurdistan neighborhood of Nashville Credit: William Haynes 

Free Kurdistan

Retaining much pride for the region they left, the conflict with ISIS has given new life to opportunity to push for Kurdish independence. Through social media, the Tennessee Kurdish Community Council organizes rallies, like the one in front of the courthouse, to raise awareness for the Kurdish plight.

Along side the “stop ISIS” signs were messages to “liberate Kurdistan.” Cries to “Free Kurdistan” are as much a message against oppressive Middle Eastern governments as they are against the terrorist group.

With the United States finally arming the Kurdish militias in the fight against ISIS, it could signal hope that a victory on the battlefield would lead to a sovereign, independent Kurdistan.

Dr. Walid Phares told Fox News, “Kobani has now become a Stalingrad for the Kurds.” While that may indeed be the case, many Kurds are hoping it will be their Battle of Yorktown.