A group of Carleton students, working together with members of the Northfield community, will be host a benefit for Haiti from 2 to 6 p.m. on Saturday, March 3 in the Cave, Carleton’s student-run concert venue. In addition to musical performances, shirts and supplies will be available to tie-dye for a $10 donation, and baked goods will also be on sale. Half of all proceeds from this event will go to the Haiti Justice Alliance, with the remainder going to the Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti. This event is open to the public.
The Haiti Justice Alliance is a Northfield-based nonprofit devoted to replacing our current charity-based perspective on aid towards Haiti with one that emphasizes justice for the Haitian people. Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and is still slowly recovering from a devastating earthquake in 2010. The country also suffers from a variety of man-made problems, often due in large part to ill-conceived external interference in Haiti – including actions taken by the United States. The Haiti Justice Alliance has chapters at both Carleton and St. Olaf, as well as the University of Minnesota.
The Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti is one of six Haitian non-governmental organizations that partners with the Haiti Justice Alliance to work for a justice-based approach to aid in Haiti. The group is pursuing the first ever lawsuit against United Nations peacekeepers for human rights abuses committed by UN troops. Brian Concannon, one of the group’s leaders, has spoken at Carleton in the past, and will be returning to campus again this April.
In addition to tie-dye and food, Saturday’s event will included performances by numerous student musical groups. A capella groups will include Carleton’s Knights, the Accidentals, Intertwining Melodies, and the Knightengales, as well as two singing groups from Northfield High School. Other performers will include Carleton’s Groove Factory jam band, as well as three groups from St. Olaf: the Ted Pretzel Experience, Moon Like Mars, and Brass Camel.
This event is sponsored by the Cave and the Haiti Justice Alliance. For further information and disability accommodations, contact bearakm@carleton.edu. The Cave is located in Evans Hall on Carleton’s campus, and is accessible from Maple Street.
