Everyone on the field on Super Bowl Sunday has a different motivation. Giants DE Jason Pierre-Paul, who is Haitian, will be proudly playing for both his family and for all the people of Haiti, who have been through so much.
On January 11, 2010, a majority of the citizens in the capital city of Haiti were living in poverty and squalor. Seventy percent of people in Haiti were living on less than $2 per day and 86 percent of the people in their capital city, Port au Prince, were living in slum conditions – mostly tightly packed, poorly built concrete buildings. Half of the people in Port au Prince had no access to latrines and only one-third had access to clean tap water.
On January 12, 2010, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck near Port au Prince, and 3.5 million people were immediately affected. Two-hundred and twenty thousand people died, and over 300,000 people were injured. Four thousand schools were either damaged or destroyed. Almost 190,000 homes were badly damaged and another 105,000 were completely destroyed. One and a half million people were instantly homeless.
In a few short weeks, only 710 miles away from the terrible death and destruction, one of Haiti’s most accomplished sons prepared to play the biggest football game of his life. Pierre Garcon was preparing to lead the Indianapolis Colts onto the field in Miami with a Haitian flag in hand as his team prepared to battle the New Orleans Saints in Super Bowl XLIV.
The moment wasn’t lost on Garcon. He had worked hard all week trying to bring awareness to the region and to help raise money for the recovery. Jonathan Vilma of the Saints is also Haitian, and did similar work during the extensive big game hype.
The Star Telegram got these comments from Garcon, “To make it to the Super Bowl is very tough, but to be here with everything that’s going on in Haiti, it means a lot for me and the Haitian people that are dealing with it. I don’t think most people knew I was Haitian before this happened, but now they know. Everyone now knows I’m Haitian and that I speak Creole (the language of Haiti). I’m very proud to represent Haiti.”
Today, much of Haiti remains in squalor and the small Caribbean country still faces years of rebuilding just to get back to the level they were at before the devastating earthquake of 2010.
A USA Today report published on the second anniversary of the disaster details many of the challenges still facing Haitians today. Hundreds of thousands of Haitians still live in miserable conditions. Over 500,000 Haitians still live in tents, few have access to water, 60 percent are jobless and the world’s largest cholera outbreak has killed 7,000 people and infected 500,000 more. Over $4.5 billion pledged by governments for reconstruction has yet to be disturbed.
On Sunday, only 1,680 miles away from a country still struggling to cope with its greatest disaster, one of Haiti’s most accomplished sons again prepares to play the biggest football game of his life. Jason Pierre-Paul is preparing to represent Haiti as a member of the New York Giants in Super Bowl XLVI against the New England Patriots.
JPP, as he is often called, with a sense of intimidation and respect, has had a breakout season for the Giants. Born in Deerfield Beach, Florida, JPP went on to play his college football in nearby South Florida and was eventually selected by the Giants with the 15th pick of the 2010 draft (held only a few months after Garcon and Vilma represented Haiti in the Super Bowl).
As a rookie, JPP showed promise playing in all sixteen games and recording 4.5 sacks. This season, Pierre-Paul emerged as one of the most dominant pass rushers in the league. He has become one of the few from his position who can dominate a game from start to finish. Many have speculated that if the 2010 draft was done over today, Jason Pierre Paul not Sam Bradford, would be the first pick of that draft.
JPP record 16.5 sacks for the Giants, added 65 solo tackles, one safety, six passes defended and two forced fumbles. In his rookie season, JPP started none of the Giants 16 games, this season he has started the last 12 (and all of the playoff games).
Pierre-Paul has not lost track of his roots. He is proud to be a Haitian and discussed representing the country with Pro Player Insider while preparing for the Super Bowl in Indianapolis.
Pierre-Paul said, “I play hard for them [the people of Haiti].” He went on to add, “I play hard for my family the most and first of all I play for God.”
Like Pierre Garcon and Jonathan Vilma at Super Bowl XLIV, Pierre-Paul will get to represent his country on the world’s biggest stage. NBC is hoping that over 100 million people tune in to watch this year’s Super Bowl.
Imagine what could be accomplished if each viewer donated a dollar to help a nation still in desperate need of our support.
For more information on how to help Haiti you can visit the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund at http://www.clintonbushhaitifund.org.
Interview by Mike Freedman.
References
http://www.dec.org.uk/haiti-earthquake-facts-and-figures
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/07/garcon-and-vilma-opponent_n_452759.html
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/story/2012-01-11/haiti-earthquake-recovery-slow/52509422/1
http://www.nfl.com/player/jasonpierrepaul/496843/profile
I would say donate to JP HRO Sean Penn’s organization or any other grassroots organization.