China: After the quake, hoping for aid

From inside and outside China, concerned citizens are helping, and putting their hands out to help the victims of the devastating 7.9 in the Richter scale earthquake that leveled out industrial cities, transforming them into refugee camps where people are living under plastic bags, trying to find out their relatives and remake their lives. Four different videos bring us perspectives on how people are dealing with their losses all around the world, and how reaching out to help others could help help ease the pain.

From Current TV, Clemwilson brings us an overview of the Earthquake for anyone wishing to catch up with the with the statistics and images of what has been going on since the May 12th earthquake.

Selen Hsu in Beijing records the situation at the Jiuzhou Stadium in Mianyang, Sichuan Province, where hundreds of children and teens are being sheltered along with teachers while they manage to get back together with their parents. As she states “everyone is looking for someone”, and many are willing to give a hand even in dire circumstances, such as adopting any of the approximately 4000 orphans that could result from this crisis.

On YouTube, California High School sophmore Calvin Tong has uploaded a video and explained his intentions to form an organization to receive donations and that he himself will travel to China this coming 25th of June to hand over the proceeds to help out orphan kids get back on their feet and into a normal life:

I am Calvin Tong, a 10th grader attending high school. I am organizing a organization called China Relief Fund. The main objective of this group is collect donations to help the victims of this quake. Our main goal is towards the young children who lost their parents and have no one to take care of them. On June 25th 2008 I will depart to China to personally go to the students that survived this disaster. The profit will be going to the children so they can attend school again and organize their lives. Part of the donations will be cash, the other part will be for their basic necessity. It ranges from food and water to sleeping bags and shelter. Please open your hearts and donate to the children who need a future. With your help they can go back to school and continue on with their lives.

And finally, a memorial event organized by the North American Guqin Association to honor the victims of the earthquake took place in Union City California, with a representation of a melancholic 200 year old song, aptly named Memories of Old Friends by Yi Guren. Here, footage of a 2005 concert of master Li Xiangting playing this moving song:

2 comments

  • qwerty133

    certainly the chinese want foreign aid, as they use to be, taking it for granted.
    just wonder how much a small portion of the money will be used for disaster relief, and the rest go to their space/military programs.

  • Knights

    If China does not accept aids, people like qwerty133 bark “abuse of human rights” if she accepts aids, you people bark misuse of funds. . .

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