Vince dot com

It is very common here to hear cat calls at groups of women walking down the street, to see sexes fall into common stereotypes of domestic duties, and for people to scoff at a woman’s professional career. I’ve even seen a drive-by pinching from a guy on a motorcycle to an unsuspecting college age girl walking too close to the curb.

Here is another recent example:

I was riding in the back of a pickup truck with a Nicaraguan male acquaintance. It’s significant to note that he was happily married with a 2 year old daughter. We were driving through a reasonably touristed city on a Friday night, and as a result several groups of well dressed white women were walking down the streets, on their way out for the night.

Being in the open bed of a pickup and in plain view of the gaggles of tourists, my Nica companion decided to give a whistle. He then explained to me that girls like being called at; using the Spanish word that roughly translates to ‘cat-call’. He continued the whistles or shouts, as a demonstration for my benefit, asking me to follow along.

While I realized that this is something that often goes on here in Nicaragua, being directly confronted with it I couldn’t oblige. I told him frankly that I don’t believe that any girls ever liked or responded to being cat-called. He assured me that while some girls have ‘bad attitudes’, most ‘normal’ girls liked it.

We ended our conversation, me still in blatant disbelief and disapproval, and we moved on to other topics.

Ten minutes later we picked up two young female hitchhikers (hitchhiking in the back of pickups is very common here), aged 25-30, and my friend then asked them what they thought of cat-calls. Of course, they both responded that it is normal and they don’t mind. My friend then looked at me and smiled.

I guess it’s a cultural thing then, maybe being brought up around it makes it seem more ok, but it undoubtedly makes foreigners feel uncomfortable (okay so not me specifically) But is something like this okay to accept as a cultural difference?

I will say that I’ll be happy to return to the way we do it in the states, and while I’m reluctant to claim ‘our way is the right way’ when it comes to ‘cultural’ differences, on many issues there is definitely a right and wrong side of the line… even though the line itself is sometimes pretty blurry.

Question of the Day:

Machismo: cultural difference or disrespect for women? Post comments!

As the girls left and walked away, my friend yelled – in Spanish, of course – “Bye precious!”

I recently stumbled upon a couple articles that related to some of the things I've talked about before.

First, here is a very interesting article from the New York Times opinion section on bananas (discussed in an earlier post) that makes the surprising claim that they will soon jump to $1/pound. It also makes some interesting insights into the economies behind locally grown and imported fruits. The reason this is important enough to post on a blog that is supposed to be about Nicaragua is that food and where it comes from is more apparent here. You often buy beans, rice, and fruit on the street not far from people who grow them. Apples are rare, because they have to be imported. Why then, are we able to buy bananas cheaper than apples? It is sometimes because fruit companies (and coffee companies and textile companies) can get away with exploiting their workers in countries (like Nicaragua) where there are less rules and regulations in order to produce goods cheaply. This article paints a very informative picture of that situation with one popular fruit.

Yes, We Will Have No Bananas


Next, here are two articles from Brave New Traveler on the topic of the homeless, and whether or not to give them money. This past week, as I was walking home from the store two little boys* asked for the 2nd half of my juice. I refused. Afterwrad I read these two articles. Be sure to read the comments section at the end of the second article, there are some interesting first hand stories.

10 Ways You Can Help Street Children Without Giving Money

The Dilemma With Street Beggars

When it comes down to it though, the reason that I usually don't give simply because it is awkward. It is easier to ignore them and pretend they don't exist than to acknowledge them and pull out your wallet. I'm not saying it's right, I'm saying that I don't have time to evaluate the situation and determine if I believe them, or if it will benefit them more by me giving or refusing, so I panic, and walk away.

Question of the Day
After reading the two articles above, what do you do when confronted by a street beggar, a child with an obvious disability or health problem, or someone who just wants a dollar? Do you believe some and not others? Do you give out of pity? What are your excuses to give or not to give? What will benefit them more?

Vince

*After a long struggle with the first boy, me repeatedly saying no but laughing and talking to the kid the whole time, obviously too friendly to allow him to give up, he finally left. I just couldn't give a stern 'no' because he was kinda cute/funny. Not 20 seconds later a second boy approached, and 'here I go again I thought...' ready for another long battle. Not 10 seconds after the boy approached, looking straight up at me, he ran face first straight into a telephone poll and fell. His friends laughed and he got up and ran away embarrassed. I hated to laugh, but I did... alot.

Not much to say about the Nica life, just letting everyone know I'm alive. I'm working on a different project now, a solar food dryer, and I could go into details but I won't.

Also, I'm visiting the community where the other UD students live, and one of the boys there calls me Chente (short for Vicente, and the Spanish equivalent of the Italian Chenzo). I think I like it :)

I also think I can see a marked improvement in my Spanish, it's definitely improved since I've arrived.

Finally, yesterday marks the halfway point, exactly five weeks left; which seems like barely enough time to finish what I need...

To leave all of you with something to do, since I don't have any good Nicaraguan stories, I think I'll open for discussion a small debate we had between us volunteers lately. Obviously we're all here working on renewable energy projects, and most of us plan to return to a career in a related field. At group lunches yesterday we got on the topic of environmentally and socially responsible businesses, and how and why they do (or do not) exist.

Weather or not you believe in global warming or you shop at wal-mart, when it comes down to it business make decisions every day that directly and severely affect the lives of workers, their families, and the environment (which lead eventually to the health of those same people). Sweatshops are on the rise in Nicaragua (and exist all over the world); pesticides, weather or not they hurt the earth (or you), in the long run, can have very negative affects on the farmers who use them; and food prices, trade regulations, and the economic situation of many farmers put people in a poverty cycle that they do not have the ability to get out of.

So, what's a human to do? On one side of the argument is that you should shop sweatshop free, buy organic, buy fair trade, buy locally produced foods, encourage companies to be socially responsible, and act accordingly and mindfully in your own business or career. If enough people do this, the market will demand more responsible business practices. I feel that's on the idealistic end of the spectrum.

On the other side is the practical side, that in the end people make decisions based on their bottom line. Even if one person does those things, in order to make a significant difference you have to make it economical to make good decisions - through laws, taxes, tax credits, and policies. This is more on the practical side of things. The problem with this is that government is slow, and this mindset gives people the excuse to get away with as much as they can as long as it's legal, and to let the government decide what is right or wrong.

So, what do you all think? The last time you bought a banana, it probably cost less than $0.50 because the farmers who picked it were paid next to nothing. Their kids can not get a student loan to go to school, and they have almost no chance at a better life. We have fair trade coffee, and England has fair trade bananas, but for the banana lover in the US, what are you going to do? Wait for policies to improve? Tell your friends not to eat bananas at the risk of sounding like a jerk (disclaimer: if anyone thinks your a jerk for that don't be their friend)? Eat the banana because you feel useless? Or is it too distant a problem to even worry or care, when you're worried about keeping your own family healthy?

In your job, if your company is morally or ethically unacceptable, some people feel they don't have the option to quit; they have to worry first how to provide for their own family, but the loss in your quality of life would still put you leagues above MOST of the world - in terms of living conditions, career opportunities, and health - so what do you do?

Acting as an example (as small as your impact may be) or blaming the system (but pushing for a better one): what do you think, readers? Leave comments!

-Vince

P.S. I like bananas too...

EDIT:
As for me, I'm going to (try to) do both.