I’ve decided to publically reflect on this article (The White Tourist's Burden by Rafia Zakaria), seeing
as I am in the midst of a “voluntour.” This
article makes many valid points. I say
this because most, if not all, have crossed my mind, and I see his point very
clearly. Before traveling to a foreign
nation, I had a stigma about teaching English to kids. I had the thought, “As an outsider, I don’t
want to be pushing my native language onto another culture…that just doesn’t
seem right.” Furthermore, a fellow
traveler explained, “Some of these programs that allow Westerners to come in
and teach English don’t even have proper training programs.” “There’s no way I would let my kid learn
English, or any subject, from someone with absolutely no experience teaching
anything.” I agree. I wouldn’t allow my kid to learn under such
circumstances either. After very little time at RHO Appleseed my opinion about
teaching English has shifted. Though
keeping their native tongue is necessary in order to keep their culture
alive…learning to speak, read, and write in English will open so many more
doors for these children. True, I am not
trained, I have no credentials, and I am learning as much or more than these kids. But even after such a short period of
time experiencing such poverty…it is very obvious how limited life for a child
of Zambia can be. Opportunities are
virtually nonexistent for those who didn’t complete their education. If I can teach just one kid to learn how to
read, I’ve done something I can be proud of. Moreover, I feel comfortable saying this kid is better off.
One of the main points the author makes is that voluntourism is becoming
a profitable business. There’s an idea with a negative connotation that individuals of more affluent
nations feel pulled to “change the world.”
When I admit, I have felt pulled to create positive change in a big way,
I understand that my presence in Zambia will not change the world. My presence, for a limited time, will put a
few smiles on a few faces. It may even
help a kid learn how to read. I can't hope for anymore; I am an outsider looking in on a bad situation.
The author
states that Jack mentions his trip abroad at any chance he gets, as a way to
feel like he’s “done his part for society.”
I hate that bullshit. If a guy
continues to tell you he’s a nice guy, repeatedly and overwhelmingly…he’s not a
nice guy. Jack is trying to build himself
up from the outside in. Since I can remember, there was a part
of me that had a desire to go to a third world country and touch lives of those
less fortunate. Why this feeling came to be? Maybe I’m a part of a generation
that seeks a different kind of understanding.
Maybe it’s a personality trait.
Maybe I watched too much Oprah growing up. The desire was there though. I will say, I was smart enough to not buy
into a scam that made me pay a large fee to participate in their “Giving Back”
program. I want to be as specific as
possible while generalizing just the right amount. Did that make sense? Do you answer to those who ask you why you do
what you do? Do you even know why you do
what you do? Even if you didn’t ask or
don’t care I feel obligated (because of this article) to tell you that I am here
because I want to learn. I want to
experience other cultures and get to know the people that live here. I want to learn about what it was like
growing up here. I want to have
conversations with people that have lived here their entire lives. I want to know their beliefs, their values. Why? Because so much of my life has been
experiences of and with people that think the same way I think, that do the
same things I do, that grew up in similar ways, that held similar family
values. So much of my life has been
comfortable. For so many things I am grateful, but I will tell you this, I was
ready to feel uncomfortable. I was ready
to throw myself outside of my box because that is the quickest and most
effective way to learn.
There’s another point he makes about fleeing the country
because it’s so much easier to volunteer at an orphanage (which fulfills our
desire to give back) than it is to even attempt to tackle some of the problems
we have in America. Completely valid
point, and for those who are trying to escape personal life or a
crumbling society, I say do as much good as you can for people who may want or
need your help. Even if you go abroad to
fulfill some desire to give back, you’re voluntarily making yourself
uncomfortable and you will most likely learn something from it. But for me, I am not escaping a personal
hardship or turning my back on a crumbling society. I'm doing this to help in any way I can. I’m doing this to grow as a human being. And with growth and knowledge of alternative
perceptions I have a better understanding of myself. Which in turn allows me to have a better
understanding of what I am passionate about, which will lead me to work that I
will be more productive in, and therefore become a better contributor to
society (global or domestic). Maybe I
grew up with some complex about changing the world. But my very wise, very opinionated uncle told
me this: People won’t change the world,
the world will change us. Think about
it.
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