Poor People Depend on Each Other

Dear President Obama,

Please grant Temporary Protected Status to Haitians in the United States.

My name is Yvonne. I am Love's mother.

Love was my little girl and she is pictured to the right. This picture was taken two years ago.

She was very malnourished when she was a baby. I had no money to feed her. When she was 10 months old, she weighed nine pounds.

The Sister's admitted her into their Malnutrition Clinic in Cite Soleil. She received two hot meals a day and a bath.

She felt better quickly and gained weight. She was discharged nine months later. I was delighted that I had a new little girl.

Love entered the Sister's school this year at three years old and was doing great. She even got one hot meal in the school each day.

However, last month on Saturday, May 16, she fell and struck her right knee. It swelled a little. However, by Sunday, she had a fever and kept complaining about her knee.

The hospital in Soleil was closed on Sunday, so we took her to the hospital on Monday. However, due to a holiday, the hospital was closed so we had no choice but to take her home.

Love died at 11 PM that night.

I lost my little girl.

We buried her in a "paupers' field" in La Pleine, not far from Cite Soleil.

I tell you all of this to try and explain that life in Haiti is very difficult. And seeing one's daughter die with no medical care, after she survived a horrid first year of life, is almost more than I can take.

Haitians living in your country send one billion dollars back to people like Love and me each year. As you know, poor people depend on each other.

Protect my "brothers and sisters" in the US. Let them stay and work for now. You will be protecting us at the same time.

See this slideshow of me and my house in Soleil.

President Obama, we believe in you and we are depending on you.

Sincerely,

Yvonne