Stop – it is not a human zoo
Disrespectful and insensitive moneyed tourists often force locals in poor nations to oblige to selfie demands.
‘‘Unbelievable!’’ I scoffed when a shuttle van full of tourists (Were they African? Middle Eastern? Maybe Caribbean?) point and stare before parking outside an inner Auckland primary school. Out they hopped, barged in to the classroom and began photographing the Year 2 class.
No questions – just click click click with their Canons and Nikons. They hung around the playground and waited for interval. Outrageous. What will the PTA say about these strangers playing paparazzi with our little cherubs?
Truly unbelievable – because this never occurred. If ever it did, the headlines and talkback radio rage would be that these tourists are, at best, rude and invasive and, at worst, something more sinister.
However, if you relocate the characters in this made-up yarn to a poor country on the other side of the world, suddenly this story becomes a reality. A cliche. Wealthy tourists snapping away with cameras worth more than the child’s family may earn in a year. No questions. No context. No permission.
When in Kenya, our tour briefly visited a Samburu tribe’s school. I told myself this was a cultural exchange (punctuated by awkward silences and misinterpreted questions) rather than a camera-friendly human zoo enclosure.
We asked questions, listened to singing and chanting of their ABCs. Their overwhelmed teacher filled in the gaps.
But a fellow traveller missed all of this as she complained about the lighting in the shack of a classroom. ‘‘Damn! All of my pictures look terrible, it’s too dark in here!’’ she moaned as she picked her favourite students to photograph and adjusted her lens. I didn’t see many smiles. This photo shoot was not going well. I cringed. It wasn’t just the kids looking uncomfortable now.
We were treated to a performance by Samburu warriors. Their version of the school dance where younger males attract a date by jumping higher and higher as others chant and sing and the sun sets over the Kenyan highlands We were in awe. Well, some of us were.
The elaborate costumes and facial