I Was on Facebook the other day in a group about gym-going and a black lady posted a question about working out. It was evident that English wasn't her first language, so I clicked through to her profile out of interest and had a look at some of her posts.
One of them I remember was where she had laid out some new purchases or something on her bed. What struck me, though, was that the walls of her room were corrugated iron. I wish I could have sent her £50 or something right then, without sounding like a patronising twat. Not a life changing sum, but maybe it would have helped her in some way.
This TED talk [1] about seeing how the rest of the world lives was very insightful for me. Anna Rosling Rönnlund (Hans Rosling's daughter in law) went to 264 homes of varying income levels and took photos of beds, stoves, toys and other standardized goods. When sorting by income level, you can spot globalized trends by income regardless of nationality.
Oh yeah, Dollar Street (what that talk is based on) is a great project!
"In the news people in other cultures seem stranger than they are.
We visited 264 families in 50 countries and collected 30,000 photos.
We sorted the homes by income, from left to right."
What about engaging her in a get-to-know-you conversation? Maybe you'd discover a different way to help (or how to send the money! :) ). Maybe she has something to offer you!
One of them I remember was where she had laid out some new purchases or something on her bed. What struck me, though, was that the walls of her room were corrugated iron. I wish I could have sent her £50 or something right then, without sounding like a patronising twat. Not a life changing sum, but maybe it would have helped her in some way.