Enjoying this very much--I'll be reading the readings you mention!
What I mean by latent or future harm are some of the sorts of attitudes you mention in your piece on dos and don'ts for the do-gooder industrial complex--namely, that "wow, it's hard to be poor" might become "these people definitely need saving, and the benefits of all that we have." I'm afraid that awareness of material richness might translate into a we-know-best mentality, with the logic being, "we have to know best, don't we? since our lives are so much better and theirs are so hard?"
What I liked in your dos-and-don't article was your emphasis on being the sidekick, not the boss, and listening to what people themselves say about what they need. Complementing a consciousness-raising exercise with presentations on initiatives of local people (in whatever locality) themselves would help remind students that poor people are not passive victims. A couple of stories I've been impressed by are this story ("The Magic in Letters") (http://thisibelieve.org/essay/59634/) of Chameli Waiba, who organized to get a bridge built so her children could go to school, and this story (http://www.npr.org/2013/05/02/179275392/lady-mechanic-initiative-trains-women-for-the-best-job) of women training women to become mechanics in Lagos, Nigeria. Another story is this one (http://www.irinnews.org/report/90002/bangladesh-spreading-the-floating-farms-tradition) of floating gardens to increase arable land in Bangladesh. Interestingly, if you search on "floating gardens Bangladesh," the top hits are from aid organizations, and if you look at their pages, you'd get the impression that this technique was an outside invention brought in to Bangladesh. The page I linked to, though, points out that these floating gardens have been used in parts of Bangladesh for hundreds of years--just not in all areas.
Here's a story (http://www.bostonfed.org/commdev/c&b/2015/spring/posner-reconsidering-the-need-for-personal-loans.htm) from closer by that I mean to promote on my blog in the near future: it's the story of a guy who set up a microloan organization here in the United States, to help people who don't have many resources get loans without having to turn to payday lenders and other predatory lending schemes. This guy listened to his clients, and gradually his mission for his organization changed--I like this because the guy is definitely providing a benefit, but he's also letting his clientele guide him. He seems like a good example of exactly the sort of do-gooder you'd like to encourage your students to be.
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momijizukamori
Re: Thanks for welcoming me into your community
Date: 2015-03-07 09:11 pm (UTC)What I mean by latent or future harm are some of the sorts of attitudes you mention in your piece on dos and don'ts for the do-gooder industrial complex--namely, that "wow, it's hard to be poor" might become "these people definitely need saving, and the benefits of all that we have." I'm afraid that awareness of material richness might translate into a we-know-best mentality, with the logic being, "we have to know best, don't we? since our lives are so much better and theirs are so hard?"
What I liked in your dos-and-don't article was your emphasis on being the sidekick, not the boss, and listening to what people themselves say about what they need. Complementing a consciousness-raising exercise with presentations on initiatives of local people (in whatever locality) themselves would help remind students that poor people are not passive victims. A couple of stories I've been impressed by are this story ("The Magic in Letters") (http://thisibelieve.org/essay/59634/) of Chameli Waiba, who organized to get a bridge built so her children could go to school, and this story (http://www.npr.org/2013/05/02/179275392/lady-mechanic-initiative-trains-women-for-the-best-job) of women training women to become mechanics in Lagos, Nigeria. Another story is this one (http://www.irinnews.org/report/90002/bangladesh-spreading-the-floating-farms-tradition) of floating gardens to increase arable land in Bangladesh. Interestingly, if you search on "floating gardens Bangladesh," the top hits are from aid organizations, and if you look at their pages, you'd get the impression that this technique was an outside invention brought in to Bangladesh. The page I linked to, though, points out that these floating gardens have been used in parts of Bangladesh for hundreds of years--just not in all areas.
Here's a story (http://www.bostonfed.org/commdev/c&b/2015/spring/posner-reconsidering-the-need-for-personal-loans.htm) from closer by that I mean to promote on my blog in the near future: it's the story of a guy who set up a microloan organization here in the United States, to help people who don't have many resources get loans without having to turn to payday lenders and other predatory lending schemes. This guy listened to his clients, and gradually his mission for his organization changed--I like this because the guy is definitely providing a benefit, but he's also letting his clientele guide him. He seems like a good example of exactly the sort of do-gooder you'd like to encourage your students to be.