The White Savior Complex: The Dark Side of Volunteering | Kayley Gould | TEDxLAHS

[kellykerr]

Give a community free shoes. You just put the local shoemaker pit of business. One thing that most of them need is water. Clean drinking water.

[MimyMagnolia]

I live in Africa. And is true... Volunteers come thinking they know better and have solutions... But they end up disappointed and disappointing those they're helping.

[goenglishjpn]

I've been a volunteer. I did a lot of volunteering in Miyagi after the big earthquake and tsunami in 2011. I was there for months. I never paid money to go there and I never received anything for my work there either. Most of the other volunteers were broken or damaged people in some way; people who had been divorced, lost their kids, messed up in school or became homeless and were living in tents. They had nothing, but they were there for others. To help. No other reason. I almost never talk about it. Even people close to me don't know. When I meet people whose parents have splashed huge amounts for them to go to places like Nepal or Mozambique, they usually can't wait to tell me and have loads of photos of their time there. I don't think I have a single photo from my time in the disaster zone. I don't think I am any better than the people who go on these tourist type volunteer missions, but there seems something fundamentally different. I don't know.

[bikohousebuyer]

When the white man came to Africa, the white man had the Bible and the Africans had the land. When the White man left Africa, the Africans had the Bible and the White man had the land.

[jonathanrossmusic]

I think a LOT of white people need to watch this. There’s an enormous uprise in White Savior mentality, and it does far more harm then good. Some are even competing against each other!
Kayley seemed nervous (UNDERSTANDABLE). She did a great job, and public speaking is very tough, especially in front of a large audience on a large stage. Nice work, Kayley! Thank you for sharing your experiences with us!

[antonioramirez]

I didn't realize you were a senior in high school until the last few minutes of your talk. That took me by surprise because you sounded like a professional. Good job!

[deniseblanchard]

This young woman does an incredible job!!!! To those of you who’ve focused on her nervousness, SHE’S IN HIGH SCHOOL!!!! Even if she weren’t, she does not speak for a living! You try getting up in front of a group of (mostly) strangers and speak into a microphone - and know your being filmed for a talk that can reach global audiences- and then criticize her for the mild shake in her voice! My knees would be shaking so bad I wouldn’t be able to stand — I’m 65 and have spoken in front of community college classrooms, and it took me quite awhile to do so without being nervous!
Now, back to the topic. This speaker does an excellent job of organizing her points for why and how this type of volunteering can go so wrong. She also talks about what people who want to volunteer in developing countries can do to truly help! She couldn’t be more right about doing research before committing your time or your money to organizations in need. I’ve talked to people who’ve done it wrong and people who’ve done it right. The ones who’ve done it right know they are going to these countries as a guest - not a savior who goes mainly for the praise and gratitude they EXPECT both from the people in that developing country and the people who they tell about their volunteering when they get home. They know why they’re there and know a lot about the organization they’re volunteering for! They also go with the intention of helping people get back on their feet, so they can continue on their own once the volunteers have left.

[sthitapragnyadeshpande]

People in developing countries have been saying this for decades.
Fascinating that it takes a white girl in ted for people in the western world to start being aware of it.
Most volunteering is about organizations (international and local) making money out of naive volunteers. This is true even of the largest organizations in the UK and USA. For developing countries, it is worse as the peopel they claim to address are far more deprived of basic necessities of life.
Source: Personal experience of a few years of working in local and international NGOs. Including at UN level.
I was reminded of this when I saw Malala in the Allen show, and saw the latter giving her laptops, when that is the last thing that the youngsters in NW Pakistan need (think electricity - most parts of the Indian sub continent do not have the electricity to charge laptops! Books woudl have been a far more sensible and useful idea. And peace - away from the bombs that keep exploding even week.)

[jeanp]

When a homeless person asks you for money and you give them food instead, you do make a choice for them and act like a saviour by implying that they Will "misuse" the money for drugs and alcool when in fact, it could be to pay for a room in a hotel, for menstruel pads, clothing or whatever...

[kellyj]

Everything said is so important! I wanted to join the peace cor as a teenager and had no idea how disillusioned I was. I think a more critical look at these type of volunteer trips is so important, and even an introspective look at why we feel compelled to take these trips. I'm proud of you girl ❤ Keep making a difference!

[vdpearson]

This was an excellent presentation. Good job! Thank you for bringing forth such eye awakening information.

[TwinCitiesFancy]

You're only in high school? Thank you for bringing this topic to the younger generation. Well done. Critique for next time : maybe use more antidote or site sourced facts from big business. It may make this less power point like and more relatable for the average person.
Thank you a million times for talking about privilege. This will be shared. 😊

[vidascupcakes]

This does exist in our local communities. Like the other side of the tracks. It makes me sick and tired of being sick and tired. We need people who have gone through similar experiences all the way around. Stop putting people of privledge to help disadvantaged youth! STOP.

[John-midx]

She seemed very nervous and it detracted from her talk, but her points are well thought out and she got her point across.

[butterchuggins]

This one needs to be shared. Great talk.

[richardmunyao]

Wow... Thank you. This really made me think

[francoperalta]

This woman talks about white savior complex or any savior complex in terms I could understand. Everyone else who talks about this just comes off ingrateful, not correct in what white saviorism is or about the context they label it on, or presumptuous about the "saviors" mindset. But this, pants a clear picture and this woman makes excelent points on what is wrong and talks about the fine line between compassion and pity and other faults that are easy to fall into.

[bagdaja]

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.

[richardmunyao]

And what do the saviours do, when the community realizes they don't need saving?

[Pseudononymous]

It is so awesome that she used this platform to talk about something so important. I’m glad I found this video!