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Migration and Haiti Updates: Senegal Opens Doors as Washington Commuters Vote
January 26, 2010
Senegal, the ancestral home of many Haitians, has offered to accept for resettlement as many Haitians as want to come.
“The repeated calamities that befall Haiti prompt me to propose a radical solution – to take measures to create somewhere in Africa . . . the conditions for Haitians to return,” Senegalese president Abdoulaye Wade announced.
According to the World Bank, Senegal has an annual per capita income of $1,772, about $600 more than Haiti. Per capita income in the U.S., according to the same 2008 World Bank table, is $46,716.
Meanwhile, in Washington, the Express, a commuter tabloid owned by the Washington Post and distributed for free at Metro stations, is asking readers to vote today on this question:
Should the U.S. ease its immigration laws for Haitian quake victims?
Keeping in mind that such polls have no statistical validity, because of the sample selection bias, it’s nonetheless diverting to see how the answers stack up (“No” is currently at about 70%, with “Yes” at 30%). Washington Metro riders may enjoy seeing how people at their stop voted. Unsure of your answer? Read Michael Clemens’ “Reactions to my proposal for a new visa to the United States” and his Op-Ed in Sunday’s Washington Post and then vote!
One Response to “Migration and Haiti Updates: Senegal Opens Doors as Washington Commuters Vote”
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January 27th, 2010 at 5:20 pm
I’d be surprised if Senegal actually did anything to live up to Wade’s promise. He is likely just trying to gain int’l attention (yet again).