Category: White Savior Complex

ICTs for Volunteering – Or Volunteering for ICTs?

  By , ,

The traditional one-to-one relation between development and economic growth has given way to a more holistic understanding of the term that encompasses social, environmental and economic wellbeing. Among other theories, Kleine’s approach proffers the idea of development as the freedom of choice – personal, social, economic and political – which a person may value most. In this context, ICT4D work as invaluable catalyzers for human advancement to help people achieve different ‘degrees of empowerment’ regarding choice capabilities. Needless to say, the volunteering sector has been at the cutting edge of ICTs in their strife to ameliorate community life conditions, taking into consideration their impact on the quality and quantity outcomes of volunteering agency.

Continue reading

Stop filming us: a documentary film about white saviorism

  By ,

STOP FILMING US: A documentary about white saviorism  

The documentary film ‘Stop filming us’ was released earlier this year and is now being presented in several locations (such as the Human Rights Film Festival Berlin, the Africa museum, Congo in Harlem and several Dutch universities). In the film we see Dutch filmmaker Joris Postema in Goma (Democratic Republic of Congo), where he follows three young Congolese artists. They talk about their struggle and frustration with the western dominance and their city being portrayed as dangerous. Postema’s position as a western filmmaker is being questioned. The movie is intended to create a dialogue between the Congolese reality and the Western perspective. The question however then rises whether a western filmmaker can really give an honest and Congolese perspective. How do the Congolese feel about these white saviors? And are they actually doing something good when trying to do good?  Is it even possible for a western filmmaker to leave the stereotypical and western thoughts behind?

Continue reading

Thinking about taking a gap year to volunteer? – Read this first

  By , ,

Taking a gap year and going abroad to a developing country to volunteer has for a long time been a vital and character forming rite of passage for many conscious and well-meaning youths of the Global North (the term mainly refers to the developed countries of Europe and North America but also Australia and New Zeeland). The desire to be of service and to make a difference in the life of those less fortunate is admirable and should be encouraged. But in our endeavor to do good and help others, we often convince ourselves that we need to travel to a remote village in the Global South – you guessed it, the term refers broadly to low income, less developed regions of South America, Asia and Africa – to build a school or teach English, even though we might not be native English speakers ourselves.

Continue reading