Helping (Warning...More Soapbox)

Yeah...not so good at photoshop

After writing some meandering reactions to Merwin's poem yesterday, I got to thinking about this idea of "helping" those in need. Helping is quite tricky I think. For some of us it means sending money to the shelter where we adopted the dog that turned us into a crazy dog lady. For others, it is volunteering as a mentor, working for a non-profit or participating in a fundraiser for a medical charity. But sometimes I think we can get onto dangerous ground. When we don't acknowledge the varying cultures of those we want to help or we provide a solution to a symptom of the problem instead of tackling the problem itself, we may not be doing all good.

Here's an example. Toms Shoes. Great slip on, comfy shoes that are understandably really popular right now. I love these shoes (and really, really want a pair of red ones) but I am resisting buying them. Toms utilizes a "buy my product and we'll donate" business plan. For every pair of shoes a consumer purchases, they send a pair to a needy child in Africa. On first thought, this sounds innovative, entrepreneurial, and downright awesome. But what about the children in Africa who actually don't need shoes? As Americans, it's impossible for us to imagine that a shoeless culture could be functional, but maybe, just maybe, this is okay there. (I admit that this could be a bit of a reach, but am using it as an example of disregarding cultural differences when directing our support.) Even more importantly, Toms chooses to address a symptom of a problem, in this case, shoelessness, instead of the larger problem itself (poverty). They may do more damage than good by putting African shoemakers, cobblers, and other employees out of business. If you take away jobs, you create more poverty.

I don't want to criticize those who find value in this because trust me, it's not as if I think I'm changing the world one little budding ballerina at a time, but like with Merwin's poem or the need for more equity, I hope for more understanding. I know I'm naive about "fixing" the world, but if more people stopped to think about what we're dealing with we might get somewhere better, faster.