So does having economic privilege result in a feeling of entitlement? Once again rather than the arts, I am going to use my experience in Mali to inform the question.
Last Monday, Cisse, my guide, and I drove to Djenne a city about 500km from the capital Bamako – leaving at 4am and getting back around 11:30pm. Each way took about 6 hours (enough time to sleep and write these blogs).
Figure 1: Cisse on right
The trip was comfortable. The road was paved and truck drivers pulled to the side to let others pass. The scenery was surprising for sub-saharan Africa. Although much of Mali is desert, the parts around the Niger River are lush and the crops feed much of the country. The contrast of the red earth with the green landscape is striking.
Figure 2: Landscape outside of Bamako
Along the way, were numerous guard and toll stops. The guards did not hassle the drivers nor were they looking for bribes. I am sure there is corruption in Mali but it was not obvious to me. One of the most organized stops was a Cholera checkpoint where everyone was supposed to wash their hands and shoes.
Figure 3: Mandatory cholera station along the road
The Djenne Mosque is a mud structure, the largest in the world, and a UNESCO Heritage Site. It is located on the original site dating back 1000 years, but the recent structure was reconstructed a hundred years ago.
Figure 4: Djenne Mosque
The market outside of the mosque takes place every Monday, and has been occurring for centuries with people coming from Burkina Faso, Niger and Mauritania to exchange goods.
Figure 5: Marketplace on Mondays
The setting provided an opportunity to reflect on privilege and entitlement. Imagine a 2x2 grid with the dimensions of “privilege” and “no privilege” on one axis, and “entitlement” and “no entitlement” on the other. We can imagine people falling into each of the four boxes:
• No privilege – No entitlement: Almost all the parents in the hospital queue in Bamako would fall into this category.
• Privilege – Entitlement: The Greeks and Americans seem to have this in spades
The corners of the grid seem to be the uncommon categories:
• Privilege – No Entitlement: These are people who continue to work hard, earn and contribute to society, even though they have enough money to live quite happily. A few people seem to fall into this box – Warren Buffet, Mike Bloomberg, George Clooney, Bill Gates.
• No Privilege – Entitlement: I thought it would be hard to find examples of this, but I describe one below.
At various points throughout our road-trip, there were kids trying to sell things. One rather entrepreneurial boy was selling rusty tin cans recreated into cars, bicycles, and dumptrucks. They were made by his “brother” and though a fascinating toy, I was a little frightened of typhoid. After my typical “merci non”, he surprised me by asking for a “cadeau”, or present, in French. Somehow the tourist culture has led to a dependency amongst the population where they expect items like bic pens or paper as a present – for not doing anything. Giving out pens was a practice I followed in India, but I now realize this is leading to an unhealthy reliance. This was one of the few examples I have seen of No Privilege – Entitlement outside of aggressive children beggars in India which have their own story (see Slumdog Millionaire).
Heartwarmingly the Malienne culture is trying to break the habit. Waiting for the ferry to Djenne, a 2-year old boy came up to me and started engaging. He was playing with two empty Fanta cans; I poured a little bit of my juice into his can which he drank with relish; when he came back for more, his brother batted him away. I didn’t take pictures of the boy or the children at the hospital, because it seemed to intrude on privacy.
Figure 6: Ferry to Djenne (truck fell into water trying to get on ferry)
Although privilege doesn’t always imply entitlement there does seem to be a strong correlation. I don’t have a solution to the issue (by no means advocating communism), just hoping that by being more aware we can choose a better path.
October 2, 2011
