Stop Poverty Porn!!!

This Guinness commercial is above par. Period.

Why is a beer commercial that portrays a group of poor man who played dress up be something remarkable? Because it managed to successfully destroyed the said description.

I really, really hate poverty porn; the way people emphasize poverty on media (video, writing, pictures, etc) that tug the heart string of the viewers and made them go: "Oh poor, poor, poor thing...!!!". And with this the transaction would swiftly commenced as follow: some money would be given in exchange for the self-satisfied feeling ("oh I am such a good person") of the donor/giver. It's the old "buy and sell" kind of thing, just that. And it's not just poverty. I've seen commercials for pet adoption with the same theme, where the pets look so miserable and sad and lonely and somehow whoever made the commercial thinks that it would drove the people to adopt. I mean like, fuck you. If I am thinking about adopting a pet I'd want to see some lively action on the advertisements: jumping, barking, clawing, mischievous even. There is no way I'd want to give donation and/or adopt a pet who'd look like it'll be dead soon, or having more emotional issue than I do (and that says a lot!). Sounds cruel? Probably. But I am willing to bet that the vast majority of people think like I do, that we ain't got time for some sappy sadness in our life. Nobody does, to be exact.

That is why this Guinness commercial is so awesome. Instead of the regular "I'm poor but I want to be something" routine (which put the Sapeur into the 'unfortunate dreamer' role), they kicked it up by making a video where the Sapeurs are proud with what they are. There are just enough scene to show that these men don't have a lot of money, but the video maker did not highlight their poverty; it instead become a subtle background for the whole video. The video maker give these Sapeur a sense of pride and dignity; which we so often see robbed from other poverty-related advertisement and video. And they are not the only one, this commercial that highlight the water-distribution in a poor village in India also done the deed. It was not about how poor the subjects in the video were, but it was about themselves as a whole. And thus, their pride and dignity remain intact.



I worked with a non-profit NGO once in Bali. They exploit how poor the people they wanted to help to get more donation, and the announcement for their 'graduates' was down right disturbing: sprinkled with the word 'disadvantage' as if these people were from a lower quality of life than the wealthy donors. Think about it, how sick is it if you want to help people because you feel you can, because you feel you have the power to do so? I know there are a lot, and I mean A LOT of people out there who helped others just because they feel that it was the right thing to do; but sitting there in the fancy restaurant with other fine diners that dressed top-notched and hear the chairwoman said that they have successfully gathered this amount of money for this poor boy etc etc etc made me questioned their motifs. The reason these poverty porn exists is to feed on this emotion, this demand, to feel that the donors are somewhat better off than the poor guy because they can help the poor guy. It is sick and ugly, and it needed to stop.

As a citizen of not-so-developed country, I can say that there are a lot of people who is interested in making this poverty porn, one way or the other. It is time to stop. It is time to stop allowing ourselves as Indonesian to be portrayed as poor, uneducated fools with low quality of life just for a handful of dollars. It is time to stop for the filmmakers or charity organization to stop relying on poverty porn to make that handful of dollars. Quality of life, just as quality of a person, does not lie on how educated they are or the amount of money they have. I have been told for so many time how "lucky" I am to be in US, which I found offensive because I think I have a better and more fulfilling life back in Indonesia than I am in US with all its amenities and perks. That poor boy in shabby clothes that had to walk miles to school in the rain and have little (or no food) is probably happier and have a more in-depth grasp of the world than the little rich girl with her drivers and walk-in closet and iPhones and such.

Remember: Just because someone has less than you it doesn't mean he/she is a loser, a poor person that deserves your help. Instead, congratulate him/her for being a survivor. Help him/her if you like, and I think you should, because what better way to spend your money etc than to bet on a winner? If these people with 'disadvantages' could live a somewhat normal day-to-day life with their already limited resources, imagine what they could do with your help? This should be the approach for any charity/filmmakers, to give the subject their pride and dignity instead of putting that big humiliating stamp of "poor people" by focusing on their poverty only. Stop poverty porn. Enough is enough.