I’ve been surprised how many times in the last couple weeks, or even in March, that I’ve said or thought, “That’s just like in Martinsville [or Philly] when…” Poverty touches every town in every country. Usually the problems look alike, sure they have different faces and different depths, but rarely is the situation truly unique. People tell me how remarkable what we're trying to do here his, how noble it is, and I appreciate those comments...but just because I traveled to another country doesn't make addressing these problems necessarily "better" or "more" than facing the ones at home, in my opinion. **I'm not trying to downplay the problems here with this post, I'm just trying to highlight that poverty isn't unique to one or a handful of nations.
For instance. Last night I was told a story of Guatemalan mennonites smuggling drugs under their caps, because who would be as insensitive as to search the cap of a sweet mennonite lady? Immediately, I thought of Martinsville. Many of you know this story but as a short recap: in 2005 the sherriff, several police officers (including my DARE officer), the pastor of the largest regional Baptist church, and several civilians were indicted for laundering money, machine guns, and selling drugs that had been pulled off the streets. Cops and pastors: Same thing.
For instance. Government corruption and inefficiency. Well, we all know the US isn’t immune to that! It’s far worse in Guatemala – we need only look at the two leading candidates in the election: Sandra Torres - who is divorcing the current President so she can “marry the people of Guatemala” (it’s illegal for close relatives to serve as President) - and Otto Perez Molina - a former military big-whig responsible for a significant amount of death in the country. I don’t think I need to provide examples of corruption and inefficiency for everyone…go read a paper. Same problems different aesthetics.
For instance. Homelessness and alcoholism. They go hand in hand everywhere. While telling me how the boys I'd spent the day with were sons of at least one if not two alcoholic parents, my teacher went on about the drunks that slept in the streets, lost their homes, and left their families in destitution. She was shocked when I said the same thing happens in the US, in big cities and small towns. There are homeless people everywhere, we just do a better job of hiding it in the States. Sure, changing geography doesn't fix these problems - that's not the silver bullet; tough love has an important role. But tough love includes love, don't forget that when you pass the homeless guy laying on the grate for warmth.
For instance. Schools. Where to begin? My private school, Carlisle, has served me well, but the school is crowded and good teachers difficult to keep. However, high standards have kept the school performing well above average. Unfortunately though, this high standard is inaccessible by much of the community – a place suffering from one of the nation’s longest and highest unemployment rates – creating a dual society. The public schools do have high performing programs, but the caliber of teacher and funding from elementary through high school, when college and scholarships become pivotal for disadvantaged students, are sometimes lackluster. Rural, poor and minority populations achieve significantly lower than majority and urban populations. Dropout rates remain high. In Philadelphia the adult illiteracy rate hovers around 24%. The problems in Guatemala are similar: Rural schools suffer lower learning and achievement than do city schools. Indigenous populations are worse off than the majority population. Private schools are inaccessible to much of the population. Funding for school programs is low. Same thing.
*An interesting note on education here. My teacher told me that while the students in private schools achieve higher marks and often have more success after school, their actual learning is generally lower. Private schools are known to be easier than public schools. Corruption fuels these schools and marks are paid for instead of earned. She noted that when she was in school her friends left the public school because their grades were poor and attended private school, where they were among the best in their class. Yet their reading and language skills, both in Spanish and English, were significantly less than her own.
Poverty is poverty is poverty. Sure, the poverty in indigenous communities in the highlands of Guatemala, among tribes in Congo or slums in Bangladesh is far far worse than the poverty faced by welfare recipients in the US. But that doesn’t mean it’s not poverty, does it? Maybe if we stop glorifying the poverty in these far away places, that so few of us can truly touch, we can change the conversation. Maybe then poverty becomes what it is - poverty, the same at its core around the world: people lacking basic human capabilities. Then, instead of tossing aside poverty in our own communities because it's not poor "enough", we can cause real change at home. This is not to say that the extreme problems abroad aren't just that, extreme, but we can't all tackle the problems of potable water in Sub-Saharan Africa. We just can't. But just because we can't do that, we shouldn't forget the problems families face at home either, even if they don't seem as bad. We need people all over the world to focus on the extreme problems we know so much about, it's vital, but if you have another path in life, that doesn't mean poverty is erased from your reality, because it exists in every corner of the world. We all have our part, some larger than others, but we all have our part.
In Guatemala I’m constantly reminded to support the local artisan or farmer instead of the mass-market stores/restaurants. I’m reminded that while it might feel unfair to spend Q20 more per boat ride just because I’m white, that $2.75 means a lot more to them than it does to me, so I shouldn’t get upset. I remember that I’m luckier than literally billions of people…I need to leverage that luck, not exploit it. Sure I think I’ve earned a few luxuries and I’m not ashamed of that, but we should all be careful about how we use our money and resources, where we use them, and who we support. Think about the poverty in your town – you don’t have to come to Guatemala to find it. The solutions can be small - there's no silver bullet - and we all have a role. Go support a farmer’s market, join a Board or do pro-bono work, buy the Contributor a few times a month in Nashville, or help out the teachers at the local school.
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