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In this Sept. 14, 2008 file photo, Haitian-born singer Wyclef Jean, right, speaks with flood victims in Gonaives, Haiti. Jean was in Gonaives as part of his foundation's Yele Haiti aid activities, after four tropical storms hit the country within one mont
Credit: AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa, file
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Wyclef Jean was born in Haiti, and he hasn't forgotten his people. He's issued a call for help after a devastating magnitude 7.0 earthquake, and several strong aftershocks, hit his home country on Tuesday. The quake leveled poorly constructed buildings on the Caribbean island, burying thousands in rubble, according to reports. More than 100,000 people are feared dead, CNN says. Jean, a musician, rapper and record producer, isn't a late-comer to Haitian relief, either. He founded the nonprofit Yele Haiti, formerly the Wyclef Jean Foundation, in 2005 to fund projects in education, health, environment and community development in Haiti.
Jean is urging people to use their cell phone to text "Yele" to 501501, which will automatically donate $5 to the Yele Haiti Earthquake Fund. Or, visit Yele.org and click on DONATE.
"I cannot stress enough what a human disaster this is, and idle hands will only make this tragedy worse," Jean said in a Wednesday statement on his blog. "The over 2 million people in Port-au-Prince tonight face catastrophe alone. We must act now."
Yele means "a cry for freedom." Wyclef, a former member of The Fugees, coined it in a song.
The Haiti cause has caught on quickly.
"Yele" and "Help Haiti" were recently "Trending topics" on Twitter.
Other musicians to join the call for donations to relief organizations like Jean's include Coldplay singer Chris Martin and Glastonbury Music Festival organizer Emily Eavis, who are urging people to donate to Oxfam International, notes looktothestars.org.
Let's all reach into our pockets for these folks in Haiti. Even without the quake, they live in one of the least-developed, poorest countries in the world.
$5? That's not much to ask. Give more if you can.
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