Dollars & Destitution
The sun beats down on a market in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti as thousands of individuals conduct their daily business routines. The streets are not only tightly packed with consumers, but also cars from thousands of non-governmental organizations, known in the poverty industry as NGOs. Because The Western World has been providing “aid” through these various organizations in countries such as Haiti, Nigeria and Ghana since World War II, many wonder why these “third world countries” are still below poverty levels.
I recently saw the popular documentary Poverty, Inc., and it completely transformed the way I view the industry that is attempting to feed the world. Many of us understand charity from the giving end. We participate in food and clothing drives year-round, especially during the holiday season. However, Poverty, Inc. exposes the hidden side of the receiving end through 200 interviews in 20 different countries.
Poverty, Inc. first appeared in 2014 under the direction of Michael Matheson Miller. The documentary won upwards of 50 international film honors and numerous other awards for its exposition of the global aid industry’s corruption. Haitians depend on one of the most widely cultivated grains to fuel both their economy and society: rice. After the 2010 earthquake 15,000 tons of United States subsidized rice were
shipped into the country and freely distributed throughout the marketplaces, feeding much of the starving population. This seemingly country-saving act, however, had a harsh outcome. Haitian rice farmers, who have to charge for their product in order to profit, cannot beat the free, U.S. produced products. These farmers and shop owners are forced into destitution and ultimately become the receivers of NGO aid. Nothing can beat free.
Poverty, Inc. deems past U.S. attempts at foreign aid as paternalistic, stating that they restrict economic growth in the poorer countries they are “saving.” The documentary explicates this with the popular song “Do They Know It’s Christmas.” The song questions African’s knowledge of the holiday season portraying them as helpless. This, along with heart wrenching television productions, convinces people to write a check to organizations that they think can solve world poverty. This money fuels NGOs and ends up being detrimental to the economy on the receiving end.
Fueled by good intentions and the profits of shoe lovers who want to make a difference, the popular company TOMS has sent 10 million pairs of shoes overseas in the past seven years.The TOMS campaign sends one pair of shoes to a third world country for ever pair of shoes purchased in the U.S. The idea seems life changing for the shoe receivers, and it is, but for all the wrong reasons. The free shoes displace the receiving country’s shoemakers, crippling their business.
Despite extensive corruption and confusion in the poverty aid industry, the search for solutions is progressing. It all comes back to the simple “teach a man to fish” story. If companies in third world countries are taught innovative strategies and technologies, they may be able to enhance their business and fuel the economy. The support of entrepreneurship without writing a check is an attainable action that could potentially reform the aid industry and efforts to end world poverty as a whole.
Poverty, Inc. does not condemn writing a check for a foundation or participating in a local food drive. Instead, it provides an innovative response to tackling world poverty that many people overlook. According to Miller, society has cheapened the word charity to mean the action of writing a check. It is less about what material items you give to others, and more about the respect and knowledge you give them.
The idea of poverty as a business can be confusing. The first time I heard the negative effects of global aid programs I did not want to believe them. I thought of the many food drives my community has participated in and assumed that those efforts were put to waste. This assumption, however, is incorrect. The day-to-day community works can have extremely beneficial results.
Viewers watched Hurricane Matthew destroy the streets of Haiti. This natural disaster has facilitated a call for financial action by many service organizations. While Poverty, Inc. tells viewers to think twice before donating to a global charity, it does not say we should sustain from all donations. We can maximize the potential to combat the effects of natural disasters by researching charities and providing monetary support to those who focus on charity as a form of providing love and facilitating community growth, rather than pumping in excess subsidized goods.
Poverty, Inc. is framed with Machiavelli’s statement, “The reason there will be no change is because the people who stand to lose from change have all the power. And the people who stand to gain from change have none of the power.” As millennials, it is easy to assume that we are powerless. However, if we focus on what we can do in our community, our efforts have the potential to make a difference.
