Put Together Quickly

(Photographer/Peter Pereira)

A Photographic Benefit for the Survivors of the Haiti Earthquake

Update : While working on this magazine I completely forgot to mention that San Francisco photojournalist Lane Hartwell and myself put this together with the help of Derek Powazek in under 40 hours.

By now you have heard of the devastation caused by the massive earthquake in Haiti. Reports are still coming in, and the full measure of the damage is still not known. Hospitals, residences and government buildings have collapsed or have been heavily damaged. In interviews, Haitian officials have asked all friends of Haiti to please provide any assistance possible to the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. They are in desperate need of medical and disaster relief supplies.

Several photographers including the iconic photojournalist Mary Ellen Mark, have donated the use of one or more of their works to help create this issue as a fund-raising photography magazine to benefit Haiti with all proceeds to be donated to the American Red Cross International Response Fund. The title Haiti: Onè Respe comes from a traditional Haitian greeting meaning "honor and respect."

It includes images of Haiti taken over the last two decades and with the larger essay from Peter Pereira taken as recently as this past November. We were saddened to hear that the school from that essay which is also on the cover was destroyed in the earthquake (we still have not been able to find out the condition of everyone in the photos). These images show the Haitian people living in spite of extreme poverty and these "before the earthquake" photographs will become more important as a contrast to the graphic and violent images we are seeing coming out of Haiti right now.

The issue is available now at MagCloud for $16 with $12 going to the American Red Cross International Response Fund and $4 to cover the printing costs for each issue. Thanks to MagCloud and HP for dropping the printing costs for this project!