“The problem is that no matter how good your intentions, eventually you want to kill someone yourself.” (Cain 193).

In “Emergency Sex”, all three of the characters presented experience substantial development over the course of their journeys. Of the three, the character I believed experienced the most significant growth was Kenneth Cain. Partly because of this, Cain is also my favorite character of the three. In the beginning he is easily the most relatable. He has huge aspirations for his studies concerning his thesis paper, as well as his future; “the truth is that this is the first time in my life I have been implicated in anything bigger than myself. I want to go” (Cain 10).

Right away, Cain comes off as a very likeable character; he’s about to start his studies concerning his thesis which he is extremely passionate about, albeit very dangerous as well. In the very first chapter he is trying his best to stay professional but can’t stop thinking about how attracted he is to the woman he is staying with in Israel. After sealing themselves off in a room and putting on gas masks to stay protected from the missiles being dropped he eventually makes his move. This scene is great because depicts the harsh inhuman realties of war outside the US contrasted with the unintended all-too-human feelings of attraction towards the people around us.

“I just watched a missile land, and people died. They’re bleeding and burning right now. That Scud hit and killed people. I keep repeating it all in my mind to keep it all real […] This is ridiculous. I’m in a sealed room with the door open and my gas mask half off thinking of adolescent sex.” (Cain 16-17).

While in Cambodia, Cain seems to be having the time of his life. He’s staying in a house filled with humanitarian workers from all over the world, meeting new and interesting people left and right. One scene when he’s having a party at his house helps to show his general disbelief at how much fun he’s having. “This is the best party I’ve ever been to, and it’s my house. I never dreamed I’d attend a party like this, never mind host it” (Cain 65). Cain has the time of his life in Cambodia, but moods quickly change when he begins working in Somalia.

Cain’s outlook on his journey immediately transforms after an ambush on a courthouse in Mogadishu during a ceremony he attends. This is the first time Cain is experiencing the violence that always been present in the regions around him. What was first fear turns into anger. There are many different ways that fear manifests itself in the human mind; with Cain, his fear has become so extreme that he expresses his longing for violence during the ambush. “I want to kill the boss. I want to drag him out into the line of fire headfirst and watch his body buckle and jerk as the bullets hit him. I want to watch him bleed to death.” (Cain 150). For a number of days after the attack he feels numb, in a total state of disbelief. When Cain finally goes to Rwanda and later Liberia, he conveys this feeling of hopelessness. After everything he’s witnessed combined with everything he’s tried to contribute, he’s seen more bad than good.

“I think I’m actually starting to understand. I was hell-bent on being an effective humanitarian in Cambodia and Somalia. But a naïve fog is finally lifting. Revealed is a train wreck of illusions, the depravity of someone else’s war, the futility of a competence stillborn there. To understand this you have to become this.” (Cain 219).

Kenneth Cain started humanitarian work in a number of different countries, leaving most of them with a feeling of hopelessness, almost depression. He tried to do good, but after witnessing events like the ambush in Somalia and the genocide in Rwanda, his faith in humanity was weakened. At the end of his moral career, Cain decided to reflect on his experiences by writing about them. “I am a witness. I have a voice. I have to write it down.” (Cain 290). Cain is able to look back on the past decade he experienced and acknowledge where there was success and failure. Cain stays working at the UN and is hopeful for what the future holds and the role he will play in it.

Arcaro, Tom. “Moral Career.” 2013. Audio.

Cain, Kenneth. “How Many More Must Die before Kofi Quits?” The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 03 Apr. 2005. Web.

Cain, Kenneth, Heidi Postlewait, and Andrew Thomson. “Emergency Sex and Other Desperate Measures.” London. 2004. Print.

“Will the Lord reject forever? Will he never show his favor again? Has his unfailing love vanished forever? Has his promise failed for all time? Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has he in anger withheld his compassion?”

– Psalm 77:7-9

How does God let bad things happen to innocent people? This is a question that I, as a person of faith have to ask myself every time I open a newspaper and read about the newest and most horrifying human event to present itself in the news. Andrew Thomson, the United Nations peacekeeper who identifies most strongly with faith in the book, Emergency Sex, is forced to consider this question time and time again as he encounters atrocities in such places as Bosnia, Rwanda, Cambodia and Haiti.

Andrew was born and raised in New Zealand and his parents had worked as Christian missionaries in the Solomon Islands and Fiji. He was raised in a Christian household and over the course of his life had developed what could be described as a strong Christian faith. He chronicles his father teaching him how to pray and affirming to him that the God they prayed to was a just and merciful God, saying, “My father taught me [sic] when I was a boy…he would kneel beside the wooden bed, showing me how to pray to a good God” (108). Many years after learning how to pray from his father in August of 1993, he writes, “It’s been over twenty years since I prayed besides my bed with my father. But as I take my first steps on Haitian soil, I’m still answerable to those beliefs…” (108).

Then, in 1995, he was sent to Kibuye, Rwanda. Rwanda was the site of the massive genocide of the Tutsi’s by Hutu militias, who were then given refuge by the United Nations. It was Andrew’s task to exhume bodies that were in mass graves in Kibuye. His “…team had been digging for weeks… pulling out corpses under a screaming sun” (234). The area he was tasked to unearth was the site of a massacre ordered by the Hutu governor after ensuring innocent Tutsi civilians refuge, only to then call for their death by his Hutu forces. The dead that Andrew was encountering were “…unarmed civilians, mostly women and children, almost all of whom died of blunt or sharp-force trauma” (235). The irony of the situation, despite the appalling circumstances surrounding the massacre was that the killings had all occurred in a church and it was here that he truly began questioning the presence of God. Still in Rwanda in February of 1996, Andrew reflects on the killings, writing, “This is one church where a lot of prayers went unanswered” (243). At one point, he climbed up the three-story bell tower of the church, perhaps to shorten the distance between himself and a seemingly uninterested God, and reflected. “Above is God, below are hundreds of cadavers stacked like cordwood between the pews and the altar… After many hours I decide God was here, maybe not far above where I’m sitting now, watching and listening. He heard all the desperate prayers, from the kids and the half-dead women, from the believers, the doubters, and the nonbelievers… And God just pissed all those prayers back down to earth, leaving everyone to die” (243). It is at this point that Andrew comes to the same question I voice at the beginning of this essay. “This can’t be the same God I prayed to as a missionary kid or at the communion rail as a medical student. This is a pitiless stranger and to pray to him up here in this bell tower would be absurd” (243). He later on comes to the conclusion that it is people who commit the wrongdoings against their fellow man and that God is not responsible for stopping genocides like the one he witnesses the aftermath of, reassuring himself of the conviction that the God he worships is a God that is Good. It is only people who can put a stop to the darkness penetrating the earth. Coming to this understanding, Andrew climbs down the bell tower, and puts his work gloves back on. In what could only be described as a devastatingly raw act of worship, once again undertakes the task of pulling cadavers from the dirt. Of this, he says, “…not the body and blood of Christ for my sins but ten more cadavers. It’s salvation through exhumation, a new creed” (244).

Andrew is not alone in experiencing a crisis of faith after exposure to some of the greater cruelties present on this earth. Mother Teresa, often hailed as one of the greatest women of faith in history, found herself struggling as she came to terms with what she perceived as an unfeeling and silent God as she began working with the poor and sick in Calcutta, India. Letters written from the year 1949, when she began working in Calcutta, until her death, were made public in 2007 in which she describes an incredible darkness and an unutterable feeling of being “unwanted” and unloved” by God. She says in one letter, “I am told God loves me, and yet the reality of the darkness and coldness and emptiness is so great that nothing touches my soul.” Mother Teresa witnessed some of the most destitute populations present at the time and as a response, came to question the goodness and presence of God. And yet, in the face of all of this, she and Andrew both fought on and continued to tend to those, both dead and alive, who it seemed God had abandoned. Despite their crises of faith, he and Mother Teresa took on the responsibility of being those who would seek to put an end to the darkness they witnessed on earth in an answer to a silent God.

Works Cited:

Cain, Kenneth, Heidi Postlewait, and Andrew Thomson. Emergency Sex (and Other Desperate Measures): True Stories from a War Zone. London: Ebury, 2004. Print.

“Episode 4: Andrew Thomson.” ENOUGH ROPE with Andrew Denton. ABC Australia, 2011. Web. 18 June 2013. <http://www.abc.net.au/tv/enoughrope/transcripts/s1336474.htm>.

Holy Bible: New International Version. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2005. Print.

Moore, Malcolm. “Mother Teresa’s 40-year Faith Crisis'” The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 24 Aug. 2007. Web. <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1561247/Mother-Teresas-40-year-faith-crisis.html>.

Although many American college students talk about “saving the world” and “helping those in need”, it is just as likely to see that same student wearing a pair of Nike tennis shoes that were made by Chinese child laborers. In American culture, as it is popular to keep up with the latest style, it seems equally as popular to seem engaged in the issues of the world. However, it does not seem that someone interested in the well being of the world would purchase goods from a company known to exploit its workers. In American culture, it seems people only accept the role of global citizenship when it is convenient for them. When helping others is going to inhibit personal style or success, then the duties of global citizenship are pushed to the side. In Western countries like America, it is very common to see our needs as superior to other countries around the world. The influence of ethnocentrism, or “the belief in the superiority of one’s own ethnic group”, can create sense of separation between the “us” and the “others” (Wordnet). In trying to help the “others”, we often blur the lines between what we believe is best of them and what they actually want and need.  Below is a chart that highlights how certain beliefs or tendencies can contribute to ethnocentric behaviors.

Some of our ethnocentric attitudes highlighted in this chart come from traits and ideas we deal with everyday. In the article “Beyond the Pledge of Allegiance: Becoming a Responsible World Citizen”, Dr. Tom Arcaro discusses the overlapping definitions of patriotism, nationalism, ethnocentrism, and racism. Arcaro asks us to consider “can you be patriotic without being nationalistic? Can you be nationalistic without being somewhat ethnocentric? Can you be ethnocentric without being somewhat racist?” (7). He sites the Pledge of Allegiance, a pledge American students recite everyday, as an act of patriotism. But doest it instill more than that? Does it imply we protect our country and hold American and its citizens above all other citizens of the world? In this way, ethnocentric attitudes in our society seem almost inescapable, and therefore play an extensive role in humanitarian aid.  

Because many of these attitudes can be found in both donors and volunteers in aid industries alike, ethnocentrism has a profound effect on the effectiveness of humanitarian aid. No one in the aid industry is asking if the recipients of aid are satisfied with the care they receive or if the care is fulfilling all of their need. And, sadly, that doesn’t seem to be a concern for most aid organizations. Instead, they are more concerned about their image as it is perceived by donors and the Western community.

Ethnocentric tendencies in humanitarian aid can often be linked back to donor interests taking priority over the actual needs of victims. Aid organizations bring care to victims suffering all over the world through whatever services the donors believe will be most beneficial. However, very rarely are the victims ever consulted as to what kind of aid they would find most helpful. For many westerns, it seems the goal of providing aid is to make themselves feel accomplished by providing the services they feel are most necessary, which are likely not the services victims need most. In her book War Games, Linda Polman discusses how MONGOs delivered useless aide items to many areas of crisis. Polman sites examples of shipping “frostbite medication to victims of tropical disasters, and starving Somalis received laxatives, slimming cures, and electric blankets” (49). In these examples, donors are unaware of the true needs of the victims. They provide ineffective aid, wasting both time and money.

When reflecting on the work of MSF, Caroline Abu-Sada recognizes that motivations for people within this organization “largely depend on personal paths rather than general trends” (38). She continues to suggest that “the organization as an institution must assert its own motivations, which its members are expected to adopt” (38).  With unity in motivation, it is more possible to address the needs of victims rather than focus on personal interests. Aid donors are often so blinded by their own interests and fail to see the larger causes of suffering. Cole explains that unseen by most Westerners, “beyond the immediate attention that he rightly pays hungry mouths, child soldiers, or raped civilians, there are more complex and more widespread problems”(Cole). In this way, the ethnocentric attitudes of Americans can of understanding what assistance can be provided and what goals are unrealistic . Instead, Americans become caught up in the idea of “saving the world” when in actuality, they can not even accurately access the needs of the victims they are giving aide to. In Teju Cole’s article The White-Savior Industrial Complex he comments on how ethnocentric attitudes of westerns, specifically Americans, hinder the effectiveness of humanitarian aid. Cole comments that contrary to the current practices of the aide industry, “there is the idea that those who are being helped ought to be consulted over the matters that concern them” (Cole).  Abu-Sada agrees that the opinions of the victims are often overlooked. She explains that “perhaps because of excessive confidence in the power of humanitarian organizations, there has been a tendency to neglect these negotiation processes” (63). And after these aid organizations feel that their work is complete, they leave that specific region to visit another suffering area of the world. But after humanitarian aid has been deemed “complete”, who decides if the humanitarian work was effective or not? Who decides if the needs of the victims were actually met? Cole agrues that personal interests of the donors, such their emotional needs, play a large role assessing the effectiveness of an aid project. He explains that sites of humanitarian aid are “a liberated space in which the usual rules do not apply: a nobody from America or Europe can go to Africa and become a godlike savior or, at the very least, have his or her emotional needs satisfied.” (Cole).

To address situations like these, Abu-Sada argues that mutual respect for a cultures and an attitude of humility must be utilized when providing aide. Abu-Sada recognizes that “international staff do not always have a good understanding of the political, economic, and cultural contexts in which they work” (62).  She goes on to suggest that “MSF should get back in to the habit of negoticating with the parties involved: politicians, ministries of health, and local people” (63). Overall, it seems that ethnocentrism seems to really create a lack on communication between victims and aid providers. By making the needs of victims a priority, aid industries could be much more effective in their distribution of aide.

Sources:

Abu-Sada, Caroline. In the Eyes of Others. MSF-USA, 2012. Print.

Arcaro, Tom. “Beyond the Pledge of Allegiance: Becoming a Responsible World Citizen.” 13 June 2013

Cole, Teju. “The White-Savior Industrial Complex.” The Atlantic. 21 Mar. 2012. Web. 12 June 2013. <http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/03/the-white-savior-industrial-complex/254843/2/>.

Polman, Linda. War Games: The Story of Aid and War in Modern times. London: Viking, 2010. Print.

“WordNet Search – 3.1.” WordNet Search – 3.1 Web. 13 June 2013. <http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=ethnocentrism>.

http://louisetarayao.blogspot.com/2012/12/media-and-ethnocentrism.html: http://louisetarayao.blogspot.com/2012/12/media-and-ethnocentrism.html

Finding aid is becoming more and more of a problem for those that need it. In the Democratic Republic of Congo the MONUC had similar colored vehicles to MSF, which caused confusion among the local population in seeing if MSF was actually neutral or not (“In the Eyes of Others…” 10-11). However, MSF’s own ethnocentrism has left them not understanding the people that they are helping, which caused the study discussed in In the Eyes of Others. Working past that ethnocentrism that is engrained within all of us was MSF asking questions to those who they were trying to provide support, and I appreciated that they did this more qualitatively than quantitatively, because I feel like representing these people into number form would not be an improvement, but reducing their answers to words may give us a more complete view. MSF says that how their organization is displayed is affected by other humanitarian aid organizations and politics that are not acting as how they believe they should act, and that they can make change on their own. But isn’t part of the problem discussed in War Games is that organizations and governments are not working together? That the solution to some of these problems is getting everyone on the same page? By working together, asking questions and seeing the effects of what is happening, people can make a better impact on the humanitarian industry than trying to fix it solely as one organization. Trying to fix it all as a single organization seems ethnocentric to me as well. The people MSF and other humanitarian aid organizations are trying to help feel distant from them because they are trying to apply their culture to another culture, which is bringing in bias. The local people cannot understand why MSF chose their name, what it means in French, or even the buildings they use because they are so unlike their own (“In the Eyes of Others…” 25).

“6- Feverish worry over that awful African warlord. But close to 1.5 million Iraqis died from an American war of choice. Worry about that” (Cole).

“…the new paradigm of the “war on terror” has replaced the post-Cole War paradigm of the 1990s. This shift saw the radicalization of certain political actors and the politicization of humanitarian aid…” (“In the Eyes of Others…” 11). Humanitarian aid has changed from it neutrality, even against its own will. As I discussed before, the imagery of humanitarian aid organizations have been tampered with in order to cause confusion among those who need help, and ethnocentrism looms over these agencies. The War on Terror is silly when you think about it. Americans in response to 9/11 declare war on an ill-defined groups called “terrorists”. It is hard to find where you apply this term as well. Can a terrorist be someone who is an American? They cause “terror” and horrific acts, why can they not be called terrorists but foreigners can? This is American ethnocentrism at work, and Kam and Kinder have done a study on how the War on Terror is fueled by ethnocentrism, which they found to be true according to their analyses of interviewed opinion as well as election data (Kam and Kinder).We as Americans think we are the best, “free” and richer than the rest of the world, and that it is our place to step in to other countries and tell them what is wrong without understanding the whole situation and who actually is even guilty. If we were truly invested in making the world a better place, we would work without military influence and instead talk before impulsively acting. This all relates to humanitarian aid because as we see with MSF, they believe, like America, they can do better than everyone else. We must share our ideas on all levels to make the world a better place.

“5- The White Savior Industrial Complex is not about justice. It is about having a big emotional experience that validates privilege” (Cole).

The White Savior Industrial Complex is an idealism that has been engrained in our country’s past, and is held strong in our ethnocentric present. Even this picture below shows many modern movies that depict white people of a certain privilege helping minority groups within this country make a stand. Who says that these minority groups could not work past their problems without Caucasians having to lead the way? As Cole said in one of this tweets (which is quoted above), helping these other people in need comes from a place in which white people want to feel emotionally better about their actions in the world, and reminds them of their own place. These movies that are shown below create emotional responses in people as well, and the trend of seeing white people in a spot of privilege is reenforcing this idea of ethnocentrism. It is not surprising that these ideals are translated into all actions we do since they seem to be unconscious for the most part, and therefore we can see this in humanitarian aid. When looking at the Radi-Aid website after watching one of their videos, their own goals are as follows: “1. Fundraising should not be based on exploiting stereotypes…2. We want better information about what is going on in the world…3. Media: Show respect…4. Aid must be based on real needs, not “good” intentions…” (“Why Africa for Norway?”). I feel like their satirical presentation of this information will catch people’s eye and allow for more people to realize the ethnocentrism that is being used within the aid industry, as well as their everyday lives. “If you don’t finish your food, that’s some that won’t go to the starving kids in Africa” is something that I’ve heard plenty of times throughout my life, but there are not just starving kids and people in Africa, but everywhere across the globe.

Works Cited:

Cole, Teju. “The White-Savior Industrial Complex.” The Atlantic. N.p., 21 Mar. 2012. Web. 13 June 2013. <http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/03/the-white-savior-industrial-complex/254843/>.

“In the Eyes of Others: How People in Crises Perceive Humanitarian Aid.” In the Eyes of Others: How People in Crises Perceive Humanitarian Aid. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 June 2013. <http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/publications/book/perceptions/>.

Kam, Cindy D., and Donald R. Kinder. “Terror and Ethnocentrism: Foundations of American Support for the War on Terrorism.” JSTOR. Cambridge University Press, May 2007. Web. 13 June 2013.

Polman, Linda. War Games. London: Penguin, 2010. Print.

“Why Africa for Norway?” Africa for Norway. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 June 2013. <http://www.africafornorway.no/why>.