January 6, 2008 1:42 PM
KayakGirl said...
I'm reading Tom Brokaw's book about the 60s, 'Boom', and he talks about how aid to blacks in the 50s-60s undermined the black family structure. It removed the historical 'grandma' structure by saying mothers couldn't get aid if they were living at home with their moms. How can we avoid undermining traditional Ethiopian family structures while providing aid to them? I read lots of TINMWY (edited by Angela to let you know that she's referring to the book There is No Me Without You by Melissa Fay Greene) over the weekend and read again and again about aunts, grandmas, dropping off babies at the orphanages b/c they couldn't afford to care for them, or because they didn't want them out of fear of aids. How can we keep those babies at home with their relatives and encourage the families to raise them?
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It's such a multifaceted issue, but I agree, it is key. Most of the time, children in an extended family situation in Ethiopia are not treated the same way as birth children, and this can be a problem. However, if an outside agency can support them in terms of food and school expenses, it becomes a situation with less resentment and can work longer term.
Another issue is the idea of blood and seed. A woman who loses her husband, if she wants to re-mary, will often have to give up her children because a new husband's family will reject the children of another man.
I believe these mindsets, though deep, can be influenced over time in a positive way - we just need to ask more questions to find out HOW it can be done in a culturally relevant way.
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