Today we went on a tour of the Medina. It was amazing to see all of the markets, the chaos of the very narrow and very busy streets, the grandeur of the architecture and the friendliness of the people. Our last stop was at a tannery. Morocco is famous for its leather, and looking at the shops it is easy to see why. But the tannery dashed any hopes I might have had for buying the leather sandals I had in mind.
I usually don't buy leather goods. I'm a vegetarian, and I think that if I am not willing to eat an animal I should not wear it, either. I don't like causing suffering of any kind, if I can avoid it. Seeing the tannery made me realize just how much human suffering goes into the processing of leather. The men work one of the hardest jobs on earth, not just because of the physically taxing nature and low pay, but, I'm sure, because of the smell. As visitors, we were handed mint to help us manage just the brief tour we were given, but I'm sure that I simply could not handle working in such an environment. Forget the cows. How can I now go to a shop and haggle over the price of sandals, now that I've seen what people have to go through to make them? I can't. I'm sure if I had toured a Chinese factory or a clothing sweatshop I'd be writing about the immorality of my laptop or my scarf, but as it is this is what I saw, these are the images that will haunt me if I try to buy something. The overwhelming inertia of the whole system has me in one of those strange, dark moods. It is usually so easy to pretend that my privilege, my affluence, is not coming on the back of people exploited and impoverished by my lifestyle. Today I can't. I know it isn't realistic to believe that every one can be economically equal, or that every one should have an opportunity to go to school and sit in air-conditioned rooms and argue about politics or linguistic theory, but today, right now, I just can't get past the shame of living in a world where I get to have these things and so many others do not.
Sorry to be so depressing. I'm sure in a week or two I will have forgotten, and maybe then you'll all still get those leather souvenirs I promised you. Right now I just have to sit a moment and wonder if this must be accepted because it cannot be changed, or changed, because I cannot accept it.
I usually don't buy leather goods. I'm a vegetarian, and I think that if I am not willing to eat an animal I should not wear it, either. I don't like causing suffering of any kind, if I can avoid it. Seeing the tannery made me realize just how much human suffering goes into the processing of leather. The men work one of the hardest jobs on earth, not just because of the physically taxing nature and low pay, but, I'm sure, because of the smell. As visitors, we were handed mint to help us manage just the brief tour we were given, but I'm sure that I simply could not handle working in such an environment. Forget the cows. How can I now go to a shop and haggle over the price of sandals, now that I've seen what people have to go through to make them? I can't. I'm sure if I had toured a Chinese factory or a clothing sweatshop I'd be writing about the immorality of my laptop or my scarf, but as it is this is what I saw, these are the images that will haunt me if I try to buy something. The overwhelming inertia of the whole system has me in one of those strange, dark moods. It is usually so easy to pretend that my privilege, my affluence, is not coming on the back of people exploited and impoverished by my lifestyle. Today I can't. I know it isn't realistic to believe that every one can be economically equal, or that every one should have an opportunity to go to school and sit in air-conditioned rooms and argue about politics or linguistic theory, but today, right now, I just can't get past the shame of living in a world where I get to have these things and so many others do not.
Sorry to be so depressing. I'm sure in a week or two I will have forgotten, and maybe then you'll all still get those leather souvenirs I promised you. Right now I just have to sit a moment and wonder if this must be accepted because it cannot be changed, or changed, because I cannot accept it.
Kels, I carry some images like that, too. eg. A womnn in Africe walking 5 miles down a steep path into a crevasse with a 5-gallon jug on her head, a child on her back, one on each hand, and one in her womb; a 10-year old girl in China sitting 16 hours a day weaving a rug in a semi-dark room (dark so the colors don't fade)... and we can't walk across the lawn without stepping on a plant or an insect... and I cannot accept it and I haven't been able to change it.. ...
ReplyDelete...and we must not accept it, we must continue to work together towards holding those in power accountable or kicking them out of office;
ReplyDeleteand demanding the rights of everyone, women, children, and men, as equal world citizens.
Every One of us can and must make a difference. Find the way for you; whatever you do, it beats giving up or giving in.