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A Letter from Steerage to James Cameron and the cast of 'Titanic'

A Letter from Steerage
to James Cameron and the cast of 'Titanic'
14-15 April 2014
the 100th anniversary of Titanic's sinking

Dear Mr. Cameron:

On this, the 100th anniversary of Titanic's demise, I wish to appeal to your better nature.

Once again I challenge you, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Celine Dion and the powerful companies you are associated with, to join me in honouring the memory of the Haitian engineer, Joseph Laroche, the only black man to die in the tragedy.

Today I watched a documentary entitled 'Final Word with James Cameron'.

Your final words Mr. Cameron moved me, and I quote:

"...

Part of the Titanic parable is of arrogance, of hubris, of the sense that we're too big to fail...

There was this big machine, this human system that was pushing forward with so much momentum that it couldn't turn, it couldn't stop in time to avert a disaster...

if you want to make it a microcosm for the world, you have different classes: first-class, second-class, third-class, while in our world now you have developed nations and undeveloped nations; you've got the starving millions who are going to be the ones most affected by the next iceberg we hit, which is going to be climate change."

You eloquently spoke of humanity seeing the iceberg ahead but, like Titanic, can't turn "because of the momentum of the system: political momentum, business momentum."

You spoke of "too many people making money out of the system," and continued:

"...

those people, frankly, have their hands on the levers of power and aren't ready to let them go. Until they do, we're not going to be able to turn and miss that iceberg and we're going to hit it."

Such a powerful metaphor and as clear a warning to humanity today as the multiple warnings signalled to Captain Smith about icebergs ahead on the night the unsinkable Titanic sank.

You also predicted, and I concur with you, that when we hit the iceberg: "...

the rich are still going to get their access to food, to arable land, to water and so on. It's going to be the poor - it's going to be the steerage - who are going to be impacted.

And it was the same with Titanic."

But, Mr. Cameron, as you know, the poor and the hungry are already being impacted by the effects of systemic greed and global politics that favour the rich and dominant that have their hands on the levers of power.

Their pain and suffering is now, though it will, indeed, be intensified as the iceberg of global warming continues to suffocate our fragile biosphere.

After such eloquence that seemed to be building to a powerful prophetic call to action, your final words imploded and offered no lifeboat of hope or inspiration, especially for new generations of Titanic enthusiasts.

You concluded:

"...

I think that's why this story will always fascinate people; because it's a perfect little encapsulation of the world and all social spectra.

But until our lives are really put at risk by the moment of truth, we don't know what we would do. And that's my final word!"

Your final word?

Earlier you talked about how, after 20 years of investigation, it was time now for you to "pass the baton and move on to some new challenges." But what baton are you talking about?

Is it the baton of forensic archaeology and the ongoing exploration of the rusting wreckage of Titanic's maritime graveyard at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean?

Mr. Cameron, please don't let this be your final word. We all understand why you would wish to move on to new challenges, but before you do, let your last word be one of inspirational action.

In addition to all you have done and said regarding Titanic, and as a post script to your moving last words, I ask you to direct your attention, and the attention of your cast and companies, to Haiti's humanitarian plight in honouring the memory of Joseph Laroche.

Let us, together, show new generations who are fascinated by Titanic that we can help redeem the tragedy by imitating the sacrifice that so many made that night, including young Laroche, to save their fellow human beings.

On 10 April 2012, the 100th anniversary of Titanic's maiden voyage, I wrote to you, your cast and companies, to ask you too help honour the memory of Joseph Laroche.

I asked you to support the efforts of the Irish humanitarian organisation Haven (www.havenpartnership.com) that is building small but dignified homes for Haitian people, still suffering the effects of the 2010 earthquake.

I repeat my appeal on this sombre night when we remember the 100th anniversary of Titanic's sinking.

I am asking you to match the Irish and world public, euro for euro, up to €5 million euro, from profits realised from the re-release of Titanic the movie.

With €5m we can build 1,000 homes in Haiti (at a cost of €5,000 per home).

Hopefully with your help and the worldwide public, we can double that, and reach towards the halfway point of our overall target of 10,000 homes by 2014.

Before you leave the Titanic story Mr. Cameron let your last word be a real call to "Action!" for the next 100 years.

Action that you lead by example.

Shift our focus beyond the corroding wreckage of Titanic.

Encourage us to try and change the collision course we are on. I invite you to join - and to encourage your cast and the worldwide public to join - a practical demonstration of human solidarity by the people of Ireland, who built Titanic, in writing a new parable of hope.

Let us remember the heroism of the young Haitian engineer, Joseph Laroche, who saved his wife and children.

Let him be our inspiration.

And let our engagement be motivated by immense respect for the people of Haiti, the first Black Republic, who were deliberately and systematically forced into steerage by powerful nations, condemning it to become the poorest country in the Western World.

Titanic nations who had their hands on the levers of power and who wanted Haiti to fail because their own economies were being fuelled by the very slavery Haiti had ended.

I hope for your favourable and generous response.

Yours respectfully,

Don Mullan
11 Hillsbrook Crescent
Perrystown
Dublin 12
Ireland

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