Monday, November 22, 2010
Practice "voluntourism" and call it charity work
Ian Birrell of The Observer writes about the problems that arise when affluent tourists use their money to "make a difference" in the lives of the poorer people they ecounter in developing countries. Oh they make a difference all right. Just not in the sweet fantasy way that they were expecting.
Read the whole article at The Observer. And if that link no longer works, then you can access it here at ONTD_Feminism.
Truly a brilliant read.
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Keeping children in intentionally squalid conditions or separated from families is appalling.
ReplyDeleteThere need to be guidelines and standards for this kind of work so that "volunteers" don't cause more harm.
R.G.- Definitely, there should be guidelines and standards, but the tricky part is... who gets to decide where the lines get drawn and how well will they be enforced when the hands with money expect to be able to "buy" the experience they want. Tricky business if you ask me.
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