There is no better exercise for your heart, than reaching down and helping to lift someone up.
Bernard Meltzer
Girl in Haiti who lost her leg in the earthquake, the Red Cross/Red Crescent provided her with counselling to deal with psychological trauma (photo: Olav Saltbones, IFRC, flickr creative commons)
May 8 is World Red Cross Day, which recognizes the birthday of Jean Henri (Henry) Dunant, the founder of the International Red Cross. 2012 is the 184th anniversary of Dunant's birth. Dunant established the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in 1863 and the first Geneva Convention in 1864 was based on his ideas. Dunant received the first Nobel Peace Prize in 1901 for this important work. Why write a post about the Red Cross on a blog about trauma and PTSD, you may ask? Because Red Cross volunteers respond to disasters of all kinds, from "natural" disasters like earthquakes to man-made disasters like war. The quality of the Red Cross response to any particular human disaster can make a great deal of difference to the lives of those caught in traumatic events and may even prevent the development of PTSD for some people.
Originally, the Red Cross was started to deal with the trauma of war. The founder of the American Red Cross, Clara Barton, worked as a nurse in the American Civil War and later successfully lobbied the U.S. government to support the International Red Cross. The Red Cross also had a large presence in World War I, with many people, including American writer Ernest Hemingway, working as Red Cross ambulance drivers. Most of us also associate the Red Cross with responses to such recent disasters as the earthquakes in Haiti and Japan and other natural disasters around the world. (photo: helping a wounded soldier into an ambulance, circa 1918, National Library of Scotland collections)
However, this post isn't intended to provide a history of the Red Cross. I'm sure there are plenty of other resources that do a great job of that. I'm more interested in reflecting here on how this international organization has facilitated people helping each other under the most horrific conditions. There are almost 100 million (yes, million) Red Cross volunteers in countries around the world. Without such an organization, I'm sure that people would still help each other. However, under extreme conditions it would be difficult to do this on an ad hoc basis, all by yourself or with your neighbors. If you were trying to help in a war zone, for example, without the "red cross," you'd obviously risk being shot or killed. The Red Cross's reputation wasn't built overnight and the Red Cross, as with any group of people, undoubtedly has its flaws. Nonetheless, without it, people caught up in terrible situations would face even worse trauma. And even though the Red Cross couldn't stop the genocide in Rwanda or the Holocaust, it served the invaluable function afterwards of helping survivors locate family members. (photo: Red Cross volunteer in India, IFRC, flickr creative commons)
Woman in Bangladesh talking to a Red Cross volunteer about climate change (photo: Amir Jina, flickr)
What I find even more interesting than the work that the Red Cross does in disasters and wars, is the work they do in the areas of health care and mitigating climate change. Red Cross volunteers and paid professionals work around the world on campaigns to help prevent and treat such diseases as AIDs, tuberculosis (TB), and malaria. The Red Cross also helps women and children with nutritional support in disaster zones and refugee camps. In countries hardest hit by climate change, such as Bangladesh, Red Cross volunteers are working on projects to help mitigate damage that has already happened and study ways to prevent future damage related to climate change. All of this work can prevent trauma, in the sense that it can prevent parents from dying of disease and leaving orphaned - i.e. traumatized - children behind and, in some cases, this type of work can even prevent more people from becoming climate refugees. I'm not sure how long this preventative work has been going on, but it is so important.
Check out the video below. Yes, I know Bono doesn't exactly have the reputation as one of the world's most humble people and, in a way, this clip is an ad for the Red Cross. Despite that, however, it contains some powerful footage people helping each other during disasters. Sad and inspiring and, at times, overwhelming.
Something to think about: the Red Cross helps with "public" disasters. Who helps with private disasters, such as sexual violence, domestic abuse, child abuse, etc.? Sadly, these smaller, hidden disasters create just as many - maybe more - trauma survivors and people with PTSD than some of the larger more visible disasters. Watch for future posts on this public vs. private trauma.
Red Cross Day is part of a larger celebration of the Red Cross that lasts until May 12 and is recognized in many countries around the world.
