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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Volunteer tourism is awful, I will give you that. [/quote]

So what’s your solution? How else can the nonprofits caring for orphans, educating children, providing desperately needed healthcare, food, whatever survive without this funding stream?

Icymi: the government isn’t equipped to provide the funding or services…despite buckets of money from the US government. Locals aren’t equipped to step up.

I suppose your solution is simply that Americans should send money instead of volunteering AND giving money, right? That would be nice. But the reality is their business model relies on tugging on heartstrings to prompt volunteers to not only donate long term but also help with fundraising through their own networks.

All of this matters.

Unless you have a better solution, pp? [/quote]

Whatever you need to tell yourself to justify volunteer tourism is ridiculous. It is gross, predatory, oppressive, manipulative and feeding into your savior complex.  Want to help these nonprofits? Donate your money. You don't need a trip to pat orphans on the head and take their picture. Just donate. FFS it isn't complicated. [/quote]

What about church groups doing mission trips to bring supplies, provide healthcare, build homes or hospitals AND donate $$$$$?

What about lawyers showing up in groups to provide pro bono asylum assistance?

Do you only take issue with orphanages? Even if the mission trip/tour group brings critically needed supplies (more easily transported by a group so as to avoid theft by the government or cartels) and large cash transfers?

What about schools? [/quote]

No, I don't only take on orphanages. The entire volunteer tourism industry is BS. You don't need a trip to make yourself feel better. Mission trips are completely awful ways to try to convert people to their religion, disguised as help. Want to help? Leave the religion out of it. Completely.

Pro bono lawyers do asylum work here in the US. I do it. I don't need a volunteer tourism trip to do it. So enough with your BS. I actually volunteer, regularly, for decades, in my community. I get my hands dirty, I'm invested, I am bought in. I don't need to pay a company to take me to Haiti to bring school supplies, paint their school for a week, and take some photos of some very poor children, post on FB, and leave. [/quote]

So, the mission trips I’m familiar with partner a church here with a church-based group abroad. There’s no active conversion because the locals are already bought into the religion OR there simply isn’t a religious aspect. All the money, supplies, services, etc. benefit people who otherwise would suffer. The support simply isn’t there otherwise.

I’m a lawyer whose entire career has been dedicated to human rights and anti-poverty work. My org works around the globe. We do immigration work through partnerships with other orgs and volunteers. It’s highly impactful at both the systemic and individual levels. I see both sides of this complex issue; the money matters, and volunteers bring the money.

I think the orphanages are the most problematic, but the issue isn’t the volunteers. If orphanages are the solution to meet the basic needs of thousands of children and the government can’t fund them and regulate them, then what’s the solution? “Just give” doesn’t meet the need, which is why they went this route in the first place. I’m sure there’s a better way to regulate and protect, and I hope there’s more systemic problem solving and infrastructure building developed to better equip families to stay intact.

[/quote]

You can pat yourself on the back to up your ego for all the work you do with that colonialism attitude that you know better and are their savior. We are talking about volunteer tourism. Good luck justifying.  Volunteer tourism is wrong. 100% wrong. [/quote]

I’m curious how you define volunteer tourism?

All mission trips are evil?

All pro bono trips are evil?

What about Doctors Without Borders? A relative did a stint with them in Africa. He had to fundraise and pay for the opportunity to live and volunteer there for a decent stint. Wrong? Or, okay for doctors but not lawyers?

Truly curious. [/quote]

You know exactly what volunteer tourism is. Have fun in your strange world. Bye. [/quote]

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