An Army of Compassionate People Can Change The World

After spending years in the shadows of a civil war rife with man-made tragedies, I think it is fair for me to say that I know and understand what suffering is. I have also worked alongside the world’s bravest soldiers of global social justice and have learned that those stuck in the shadows can come out from behind them to find bright, hopeful futures ahead of them.

I believe from the bottom of my heart that with the right vision, the right leadership and the energy and creativity of all of us working together, the world can be a better place.

There was a time when I was living in darkness, isolated by the many preventable tragedies that have silenced and decimated millions of lives in places like my home, Burundi, as well as Rwanda and Congo.

Through such a personal journey, where survival seemed almost impossible, I arrived in New York to find friends who opened their doors for me: a stranger, homeless in a country where I did not know anyone and did not speak the language. Those friends taught me one crucial lesson: compassionate people have the power to change human misery.

Once I had learned this, my main concern was to determine how we, this army of compassionate people, might come together to not only build a worldwide movement for social justice but also use the same philosophy that Burundians and Rwandans call Ubuntu, or “What makes us all humans (dignity).” Or in Haitian creole, tout moun se moun.

As Jim Kim, who co-founded Partners In Health (PIH) once told me, with success comes a responsibility to make sure that others can follow.

After years working at PIH, I ventured to take the philosophy of Ubuntu and apply it in my own community in Burundi, a country still struggling to recover from 13 years of civil war.

This fight for global justice will be won by an army of compassionate people who think globally and who come together and understand the world as it truly is today.

In 2006, we started building a clinic in the rural area of Kigutu. In the first nine months, our staff saw and treating more than 16,000 patients. Since our doors opened in December 2007, we have seen approximately 28,000 patients and our numbers only continue to grow.

The Village Health Works clinic in Burundi is a living testament to what is possible when dedicated and determined individuals unite to benefit the lives of others—no matter the distance or supposed difference. Community members in Kigutu (the same people who had been killing each other with machetes and machine guns for more than a decade) came together to talk about peace, volunteer their services, and build their own clinic. Some, who lived near the clinic, even hosted patients who traveled miles seeking care in our clinic.

Witnessing their involvement, it became evident that human suffering, illness and disease are not someone else’s problem, but the responsibility of us all.

I will never forget this Burundian woman who came to help build the road leading to our clinic. She had a child who was sick, her only surviving child of the five she had birthed. I asked her why she came to work with a child this sick, and she said to me, “Instead of staying at home watching my baby die, I would rather come and join others because at least then my contribution can save someone else’s child.”

Her child was eventually treated for malaria. Days later, the woman came to me and said “The medication you gave my child was the greatest gift a mother could receive. Never doubt for a single minute, this work is much loved and has a more precious element than you know.” I asked her what was the more precious element. She said, “Ending the crisis, the crisis can end. People have been talking and working together.” “Crisis” is the word Burundians use instead of “genocide.” VHW is not just building a clinic, we are building peace.

Indeed, peace happens when people see a hope for a better future, when their children have what they need to go to school, when their families have food, shelter and access to quality and dignified healthcare. I believe, from the bottom of my heart, that with the right vision, the right leadership and the collective energy and creativity of compassionate people, the world can be a better place.

The fight for global health has begun, but it will not be won by the works of one one organization alone. Nor will it be won if we, as a society, do not change our way of thinking. We cannot continue to follow yesterday’s ideas and beliefs and spread such false allegations as Africans cannot take HIV drugs because they cannot tell Western time or an entire continent of the Africa is defined only by darkness and tragedy. This fight for global justice will be won by an army of compassionate people who think globally and understand the world as it truly is today.

Many Americans now feel uncertain about their futures. But for millions throughout the world, whose futures have always been burdened by extreme poverty and illness, that feeling of uncertainty is the norm. Yet, with the right philosophy and the right people, diseases such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and human misery can be beaten. Challenges are inevitable and can be very isolating, but to give up is unforgivable.