Wednesday, October 03, 2007
Is there any sense in all of this?
Now that I started posting about Ernest and Michael again, I remembered a comment I got from someone who is much more interested and involved in development education adn coporation than me. I actually don't remember his name. We had just met at the airport on our way to a meeting of GLEN, the Global Education Network of Young Europeans. He had been to Burkina Faso and so we been chatting about West Africa. When I finally told him about Michael and that we were paying his school fees, he look me up and down and told me off.
His argument was quite elaborate, but basically went like this: By giving money to a boy like Michael, we were creating a feeling of apathy in the ones who receive the money, because they kind of owe their well-being to some rich white guys. Plus, we make it harder for development workers like him, because we were creating some sort of expectation. Like when you feed animals and they get used to it and demand it over and over again.
I have to admit that his way of talking, his irony and his cold blooded attitude did unsettle me somehow. But he made a point and though, intuitevly, I decided not to give in, his argument has left me with quite some doubt about what we do, be it as insignificant as possible.
His argument was quite elaborate, but basically went like this: By giving money to a boy like Michael, we were creating a feeling of apathy in the ones who receive the money, because they kind of owe their well-being to some rich white guys. Plus, we make it harder for development workers like him, because we were creating some sort of expectation. Like when you feed animals and they get used to it and demand it over and over again.
I have to admit that his way of talking, his irony and his cold blooded attitude did unsettle me somehow. But he made a point and though, intuitevly, I decided not to give in, his argument has left me with quite some doubt about what we do, be it as insignificant as possible.
Labels: development work
