Zombies, Joseph Kony, and the White Savior Industrial Complex

I have been thinking about the Zombie Apocalypse lately. A lot. I mean, I even asked my husband what would be the best physical location for our survival from the zombies. I was thinking, barricade ourselves in the basement. He said, go up; zombies can't climb. OK, says I, but we will have to wait until our neighbors are dead or abscond because our staircase is too wide open to barricade (in case they learn to climb). We will have to commandeer one of their easier-to-barricade homes. Then it occurs to me, ZOMBIES AREN'T REAL. And I have just had an entirely pointless, but fun and nerdy, conversation.

Why do I spend so much time thinking about zombies? I blame the recent season finale of a zombie-infested TV show. But I think zombies (and shows about them) inform us about what would happen if we take certain negative aspects of our present society to their logical conclusion. Like, what heinous creatures people (namely, I) could become if threatened, or if our resources dry up. Or, how choices aren't always clear cut between right and wrong, good and evil (shooting your friend may be a blessing if the alternative is that he is going to become a zombie).  But the zombie threat also makes me think about the strength of the human spirit, how hope always seems to spring new, how goodness always seems to come out in unlikely places and times - sharing of resources, helping children, comforting the grieving, offering a cold drink or cool rag to the suffering.

I have also been doing a lot of thinking about Joseph Kony, and the organization Invisible Children, which has been working to bring his heinous crimes to light. And, about the backlash that has said the White Savior Industrial Complex should MYOB, because all the white Americans just want to appease their own guilt and are doing more harm than good. It frustrates and saddens me. Yes, I know that poverty (and its resulting vulnerability - yes, I think the LRA problem is about poverty) is complex; poverty is more than just a lack of money. It involves generations of structural sin, unjust power structures, habitual evil, a lack of infrastructure including education, healthcare, and shelter from natural disasters. Poverty wasn't created in a day, and it won't be solved in a day. Or even a generation.

The LRA is a lot like the Zombie Apocalypse - at least to those who experienced it. Homes destroyed, families torn apart, parents killed by the hand of their children, refugees seeking shelter and places to hide. Jesus was all about helping the poor - you can't read Jesus and gloss over that (see Matthew 25). Jesus condemned unjust structures, but he called individuals to see the need in front of them and respond. The problem is, in today's global economy, the whole world is in front of us - all the time. And once made aware of the issues, Jesus is pretty clear - it then becomes our responsibility. What's a white girl to do? I can't stop the Zombie Apocalypse. I also can't sit on my hands and do nothing; my faith won't let me do that. Neither do I want to be part of something that causes more harm than good in the name of trying to help. But I really think that the White Savior Industrial Complex language was created by someone - or a group of someones - who were criticizing those who were at least trying to do SOMETHING, because they (the language creators) felt guilty about dong NOTHING and wanted to appease THEIR OWN guilt. Granted, there are a lot of people out there who want to throw money at something and walk away, thinking they have done their part. But I think there are many, many more who genuinely want to help. Wess Stafford, President of Compassion International, is fond of saying that if poverty were just a problem of money, he truly believes that the good people of the world would have solved it by now through their giving. But it's more complex than that.

Which brings me back to the question - what's a white girl to do? Here's what I know:
1) There ARE good people out there, doing the right thing. They are asking local communities what they need and doing their best to respond. Think Haiti after the earthquake. Think Mother Theresa in India. Sometimes the right thing isn't so hard to spot.
2) Have some simple rules for doing good: Team up with an organization that has a proven track record for doing it right. Compassion International. International Rescue Committee. Amnesty International. Check (a) the financial track record of the organization - how much given goes to actual programs? (b) does the money actually do what the organization says it is going to do - do they get results? and (c) what is the policy for involving the people of the area in the decision making process?
3) Let's talk nice to each other. I admire Jason Russell (recent psychotic break notwithstanding) and Invisible Children for making a promise to an abused and suffering boy (Jacob) and then striving for 10 years to keep that promise - making mistakes, working with what they have, trying to get past who they were as white Americans to reach out to someone. I think that, after 10 years, we can safely say that they put the White Savior Industrial Complex ideas aside, lost a little of their naivete, and got down to the business of being committed. How many of us can say that?

I think it's important for all of us to strive to reach beyond our own cultural, class, and racial limitations. Because, first and foremost, we are humans. Sometimes the issues are really complex. And then, sometimes, it's really clear. Like, right in front of us.

A Picture of our Just-A-Minute Moment

My Just a Minute moment - I just ran across this picture and thought I'd share!

Sometimes I get so jazzed by what people are doing...

Sometimes I get so jazzed by what people are doing in the world to make a difference. I got a letter the other day about what's going on at my daughter's Compassion child's development center in India. Here's a sample:

Girls don't have to get married in arranged marriages before age 18, because Compassion takes care of them.

Kids get to sleep off the pavement, because Compassion provides them a mat and bedding. The sleeping bags shelter them from the rain and cold, too.

Kids get one full meal a day, which they never had at home.

Kids carry clean water home from the Compassion center; otherwise they would have none, or would have to walk miles and hours each day to get water.

Kids have drug addicts, alcoholics, child abusers, and criminals for parents. Compassion provides them with Christian mentors who show them another way. Every child hears about Jesus.

OUR LETTERS ARE CHANGING THE WORLD. A 12th grader almost dropped out of school because of failing grades. One letter from a sponsor kept the child in school.

I want to change the world. I am doing it every day, through Compassion.

B.

Ministry can happen - in just a minute

I used to have lots of time for ministry. I didn't think I had lots of time for ministry, but I did. I was a stay-at-home mom, and I did ministry at church, in the community, and through Compassion International. Then grad school happened. Then kids' college bills happened. Now I work full time at a demanding (and fulfilling) job, my husband also has a demanding (and fulfilling) job, and I just don't have the time to give like I used to. But my heart is still there, in wanting to give, in desiring to follow Jesus in reaching out to the least of these.

I still sponsor 7 kids through Compassion International, and support their Child Survival Program and complementary interventions. But I struggle to be a good sponsor, and write letters.Wess Stafford's new book, Just A Minute, is convicting me that I need to take a little time to write those encouraging letters.

Just a Minute by Wess Stafford

My Just a Minute moment? Happened in Rwanda (see my other blog) when I met Uwezo, and we were supposed to be playing Uno, but he really wasn't all that interested, and so I started to build a house of cards (a talent my brother Randy and I used to perfect). It fell over after a bit, and he said through the translator, "do that again." So we spent like a half hour building a house of cards. It was a little thing, but it was a teaching/learning moment that really bonded us. I think it showed him I cared about him as a person, about what he was interested in. He and I still communicate by email, even though he had to leave the Compassion program in order to help his family financially, as many older students do.

So my solution to not having a lot of time for ministry? Start this Blog. And I will fill it with random thoughts about faith, life, growth, the busy-ness of our culture and how God calls us in the midst of it, and in spite of it. I will try to be honest, and I welcome your thoughts.

If you don't have a lot of time for ministry, I encourage (challenge) you to check out Compassion's program. You can start here, with children who have been waiting for a LOOOONNNNG time for a sponsor. PLEASE, PLEASE check it out. Just click on the yellow line below. I also added a video link - it's only a minute long, worth your time! One minute could change your life, and theirs.

SPONSOR A CHILD WHO HAS BEEN WAITING 6 MONTHS OR MORE!

http://vimeo.com/29264488

Challenge to you: What One Minute changed your life? What One Minute did you give to someone else that changed their life? Let me know!

B.