Mission Season

Well folks, mission season is officially upon us. That's right, the time of year in which planes into Honduras suddenly fill with gringos in matching t-shirts.

Since I spend a lot of time at the airport I have a front row seat to the comings and goings of the mission groups. I sometimes really struggle with the conversations I overhear, and the t-shirt slogans I see, about all the good they are coming to do for the "poor Hondurans." The amount of pity people seem to bring with them for this country and these people.

I also really wonder about the long term impacts of this type of do-gooder tourism. I know lots of good projects and things are done, but what is the impact on communities that have an influx of gringos here to help them whether they want it or not. Frequently, on projects that they themselves haven't identified as being priorities. What happens to these projects when a group doesn't come back?

Now, don't get me wrong, I can see the irony too. Here I am. In Honduras. Judging Thinking about mission trips and the ethics of it all. I don't separate myself, by any means. Regardless of the length of time I am here, I am still an outsider, coming into another country to "do good work." And, one day, I will leave here and go back to my cushy life in the US.  I recognize this completely and openly. One of my goals here has always been to consistently check my motivations. To make sure I'm not here to just make myself feel better or because I feel pity for the people I'm working with.

I'm not trying to say mission trips in themselves are bad, or that people who do mission trips to poor countries are evil. I just hope people are checking their egos at the gate. Recognizing that our country is to blame for a great deal of the current situation. That many of the luxuries we get to enjoy, come at the expense of poorer countries.  The best current example: drug trafficking here is not out of control because Hondurans have a 1,000 dollar a day drug habit. That one is on us. Need further proof? Google US involvement in United Fruit Company. We have a lot to make up for.

Okay, that was a bit deep for a Saturday morning. Not exactly sure why I chose now to write about this topic. Maybe, I just spent too long at the airport yesterday. Still, I bet this isn't the last of this topic