Learning from Hurricanes
A Conversation on the Environmental Disaster in Puerto Rico, with:
In September of 2017, hurricanes Irma and Maria led to tragic loss of life and severe devastation on many Caribbean islands, including Puerto Rico and the Republic of Dominica, where Hurricane Maria is said to have been the worst natural disaster ever recorded. As the disaster unfolded, global attention turned to United States relief efforts, which were widely criticized as short-lived and inadequate. In New York City, people of many faith communities that hold close ties with Puerto Rico and Dominica (including both Christian and Afro-Caribbean religious traditions) were overwhelmed by fear for loved ones, and a sense of helplessness. As storms like these continue to strike populations around and within our country and territories, New Yorkers will continue to be emotionally traumatized and wondering what actions, if any, they can take to help people that are sometimes very far away.
We talked with Baba Tony and Mr. Soto about New York’s faith and civic responses to disasters such as these, and how faith communities and civic agencies can help minister to the trauma of people here at home, while empowering them to take effective actions to assist those in need.
ICNY: What were your initial personal responses when you first realized the magnitude of the destruction that these hurricanes were wreaking?
JONATHAN SOTO: Concern for my family and loved ones in Puerto Rico. There was no way to communicate with people in Puerto Rico during the first couple of weeks after the hurricane. I felt anger when the President minimized the obvious destruction that took place. Thousands of lives were lost, yet he misled the public when he stated that the response was going well. One could imagine how many lives would’ve been saved if the federal government acted with the urgency it displayed when responding to disaster in the continental US.
ANTONIO MONDESIRE: After an initial visceral speechlessness, I had to deal with sadness and anger over the loss of my first cousin, Lorraine Montenegro, an integral link in my maternal family who had begun a new post-retirement chapter in Puerto Rico when medical complications in the wake of Hurricane Maria pushed her into the next world. This personal lost made me reflect on the seven levels of “ISESE” (“Traditionalism”) (for my wife and I), which are primal relationships all sentient beings have with the Grand Universal Creation, that Ifá advises we appease first and foremost. ISESE is defined as: OLODUMARE: THE ALMIGHTY, Ori (one’s own head), mother, father, reproductive organs, maternal lineage, and paternal lineage. Our lineages are suffering trauma. My wife and I want to participate in healing that.
ICNY: What kind of organized responses were most effective in meeting the needs of devastated communities in the Caribbean? Government? Nonprofits? Faith Communities?
ANTONIO MONDESIRE: My direct experiences were with A) grassroots individuals and nonprofit organizations in the tight Puerto Rican diaspora, B) media personalities, C) faith communities required to heal the moral, spiritual and physiological injuries imposed by the hurricanes, and D) local government (borough, municipal and New York State) agencies who performed guided by a moral and ethical compass, with political astuteness. Sadly, the federal response continues to be a disappointment.
JONATHAN SOTO: The most effective responses were those that were collaborative and sought expertise across different sectors. Effective organizations sought direction from subject matter experts in disaster response. Many communities were eager to help, but in times of disaster, a helping hand could turn into an impediment. An example of this was seen in the well-intended but misguided attempt to collect goods to be transported to Puerto Rico. Collecting and sending items to a disaster zone creates logistical nightmares and leads to an inefficient use of resources and labor needed to respond to emergencies. In the aftermath of a disaster, the most efficient support consists of sending financial resources to groups already doing work on the ground.
ICNY: What about the needs of people here in New York City who were emotionally or spiritually traumatized by the crisis? What actions were taken by faith community leaders to address the spiritual trauma within their communities here in New York City?
JONATHAN SOTO: Many families were uprooted from the only homes they’ve known, and were displaced to a city that was unfamiliar to them. Houses of worship were generous with their time and resources. They welcomed survivors into their communities by providing critical spiritual and emotional support. Several faith communities offered individual and group counseling services to displaced families, provided recreational spaces to children, and opened up their kitchens to families living in shelters unable to cook hot meals. Houses of worship provided critical cash assistance to families that needed money for food and housing.
ANTONIO MONDESIRE: Some needs are consistent in NYC, on the island and throughout the diaspora, such as moral and spiritual injury, PTSD and other traumas that are managed by compassionate care.
ICNY: How was your own response to the devastation and/or trauma (in the Caribbean and/or NYC) influenced by your faith?
ANTONIO MONDESIRE: Through divination, Ifá instructs us to investigate so as to discover the deeper meaning of these intense processes that are defining turning points for generations to come.
JONATHAN SOTO: Scripture speaks clearly about the right of displaced people to prosper in places they have either fled to or have been brought to by forces of imperialism. I see this clearly in Nehemiah 29, where the prophet writes a letter to the exiles from Jerusalem, encouraging them to build homes and prosper in a foreign land. He states that to the degree that exiles displaced by forces of imperialism prosper, so shall the cities they live in prosper.
There are similarities between forces of imperialism seen in the Old Testament and our modern economy that destabilizes our climate. Climate change is increasing the intensity of storms, and vulnerable populations are saddled with its externalities, which displace them out of their land and into foreign cities. Puerto Ricans fleeing from the destruction caused by climate change find themselves exiled in NYC, since many of their home communities have not recovered. However, they have a right to establish roots in this new city. I am encouraged when I read this scripture, and it encourages my community to work towards rebuilding their lives in a new place.
ICNY: Baba Tony, what spiritual resources from the Ifá tradition can help us grapple with this and other environmental disasters?
ANTONIO MONDESIRE: Through the divination process (if “Ayewo” – defined as “investigation, deliberation” is indicated), directs us to perform Ebbo (divinely instructed work), we can work to convert “Osobo” (an inauspicious situation) into “Ire” (auspicious blessings). Boriken (the indigenous name for Puerto Rico) is a majestic manifestation of Ile Aye (Mother Earth). It means the Great Land of the Valiant and Noble Lord,” which has more spiritual power than the colonizers’ name “Puerto Rico” (Spanish for “Rich Port”).
ICNY: Looking ahead, how can religious and civic leaders best respond to future storms or other disasters that impact New Yorkers and their loved ones in the Caribbean? What can New Yorkers do to help each other in such times?
JONATHAN SOTO: A critical resource for future storms is found in the informal and formal networks created in the aftermath of these hurricanes. These networks should be maintained through periodic disaster preparedness and emergency response trainings. Additionally, financial support in the aftermath of a disaster is key to ensure that people impacted on the ground have access to the resources they need. Faith communities engaged in missional work should create disaster response funds that can be activated when needed.
ANTONIO MONDESIRE: Upgrade our own self-awareness and self-care protocols for emergency preparedness. There are many organizational resources for this. To start this process, we need to step out of our comfort zones, overcome resistance and inertia with this subject area, and face that disasters can happen here as well as anywhere else. Remember Hurricane Sandy. Above all, Ifá encourages us to strive for vertical alignment with THE ALMIGHTY “in Heaven” and “MOTHER EARTH.”
ICNY: Finally, what should this disaster in Puerto Rico prompt us to consider regarding the future?
JONATHAN SOTO: Civic leaders should consider the policy implications of climate change and how it contributes to the phenomenon of “climate refugees”. NYC is the home of many diasporic communities, and when disaster strikes in any part of the world, displaced people will come to NYC for both shelter and support from their communities.
ANTONIO MONDESIRE: We should think about the words of Astrophysicist Neil de Grasse Tyson – whose mother was of Puerto Rican descent: “Earthquakes, tsunamis, tornadoes — traditionally ‘Acts of God’ on Insurance Forms. But as climate-change continues, and coastal flooding from hurricanes worsens, the Forms might now include ‘Acts of Humans’.” Our MOTHER EARTH is responding to the aggregate and accumulated hubris of her children in ways to wake us up. The human race needs to heed this call to consciousness, extract from the distractathon, overcome the cognitive dissonance that keep so many of us from recognizing what’s going on in our world. In Ifá, this means raising of our consciousnesses to discern universal unifying natural law principals – the unity of nature of which we are an integral part of.
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RESOURCES:
Grassroots individuals with nonprofit organizations performing in key roles (noteworthy examples included but not limited to):
- Teresa A. Santiago, Founding Member, Chairwoman Emeritus of Comité Noviembre mobilized. Estoy Con Puerto Rico, (I am with Puerto Rico), this hurricane relief effort was a robust consortium of Puerto Rican leaders and organizations
- David Galarza representing Casa Pueblo – an exemplary community self-management project committed to protection of natural, cultural and human resources on the island
- Juan Cartagena President and General Counsel of Latino Justice PRLDEF
- Melody Capote, Executive Director of Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute (CCCADI).
Media personalities (WBAI FM worthy of honorable mention):
- Marysol Cediera – CON SABOR LATINO – Montuneando con Marysoi consistently provides culturally competent music and issues of the Latino community. Her compassionate leadership through the healing power of our music brought many together
- Felipe Luciano – host of LATIN ROOTS with his explorative journey through the transformation of Latin music and culture has provided tremendous moral support for the required renaissance of Puerto Rico.
- Gary Null of PRN.FM and Dr. Roy Speiser brought invaluable critical awareness about the water crisis in Puerto Rico with eyebrow raising facts that requires ongoing attention.
- Master musician Bobby Sanabria together with Elena Martinez, visionary Co-Artistic Director of Bronx Music Heritage Center (BMHC) consistently contributors to Puerto Rico’s rebirth – on the island and the diaspora.
- Mike Glick who created – with compassion and commitment — In Concert for Puerto Rico on the Upper West Side
- Howard Jordon of Jordan’s Journal
Faith communities that are on and off the radar continuously offer support work in the open and in private. On the radar are the many faith communities with institutions and organizations. Off the radar and lesser known traditions such as Ifa / Olosha (Orisha) communities do work continuously.
- Oba Ernesto Pichardo, President of the Church of the Lukumi Babalu Aye
- The Rev Carlos Alejandro – ACPE Certified Educator, APC Board Certified Chaplain
- Rev Dr. Sam Cruz of Union Theological Seminary and Trinity Lutheran Church
Local Government agencies:
- Ruben Diaz, Jr. – Bronx Borough President
- Governor Andrew M. Cuomo – “We will continue to support the people of Puerto Rico until the island is rebuilt and recovered.”
Preparedness Resources:
- NYC Emergency Management Community Preparedness Resources
- Ready New York
- New York Disaster Interfaith Services
- New York State Citizen Preparedness Corp
Additional Resources:
- Comite Noviembre’s Humanitarian Mission to Puerto Rico – December 2017
- Comite Noviembre “Estoy con Puerto Rico” fundraising campaign
- “Centro Voices” produced by Hunter College, covering the current affairs, history, arts and culture of Puerto Ricans in the United States.