Living in Delhi India in the early to mid-eighties, it was common for many Indian middle-class households to hire children--mostly young girls-- as young as 11 or 12 to act as live-in servants. Usually, they were low caste and often from the nearby mountains, as mountain people were considered more honest and docile. Surely their parents sent them.
The Ahujas, my landlords who lived downstairs, always had one. I would see the unkempt child mopping the driveway or washing clothes. Mrs. Ahuja, a loud Sardarni, would regularly scream at the hapless child.
Like you, if I had "reported" it, nobody would have done anything about it because it was a socially accepted behavior at the time--and in any event technical violations were easily addressed with a bribe.
Maybe I'm rationalizing to myself, but all I would have accomplished is getting us evicted from the upstairs of the Ahuja's house. I also wonder what kind of life she left.
I saw lots of really inhumane stuff in India--much, much worse than in any country I have lived in or spent significant time in. Though I worked for my then sister-in-law (who did labor organizing for poor women with SEWA), when it came to individual instances, all I did was watch.
As I'm sure you know, Sarah, there are two world in Mexico, First and Third. Unfortunately, no matter how we feel about the injustices we see, we are still "foreigners", and Mexicans do not like our criticism. Revenge is definitely a just fear, and crime generally goes unsolved. You did the right thing by writing about it. Who knows whom your article will touch? It's a tough read, and I can only imagine seeing the situation in person and feeling helpless. I hope you are feeling better.
Multiply this particular feeling of helplessness by a few billion and we have the state of the world. I am an oldster and have come to recognize the need for humility, even as I try to keep my eyes open to opportunities to do good that call for my particular energy, ability, and availability. Not always satisfying, but realistic I think. And I am reminded of the classic movie Chinatown - a lesson in humility when the protagonist discovers that his attempts to do good have created a disaster due to forces beyond his control. We could try to pull someone out of a bad situation - and then what? Their situation may become even worse. None of this is meant to say we should just ignore what is going on, but rather a recognition of our own limitations. (Sigh) It is painful to witness suffering and hard not to feel culpable when there is nothing you can do.
You have done good for humanity as a journalist by writing about these issues. Sometimes we can help the individual, sometimes we can help work towards awareness and future improvements. Thank you for writing honestly and humanely.
I watched ¡Viva Mexico! A couple of months ago, that's how I work on my Spanish, and because I was working on my Spanish, I kept stuffing down my incredulity at the plot! I fully expected things to shift, or twist; I was really shocked by the time I got to the end, at the haplessness of it all.
So I'm imagining you at the Hacienda, and how incredibly surreal it must've felt and been! I'm glad to be able to read your story. In all likelihood you got Covid from your sister. And that's what made you ill on the ride home. All in all, punishing events. Be well.
Living in Delhi India in the early to mid-eighties, it was common for many Indian middle-class households to hire children--mostly young girls-- as young as 11 or 12 to act as live-in servants. Usually, they were low caste and often from the nearby mountains, as mountain people were considered more honest and docile. Surely their parents sent them.
The Ahujas, my landlords who lived downstairs, always had one. I would see the unkempt child mopping the driveway or washing clothes. Mrs. Ahuja, a loud Sardarni, would regularly scream at the hapless child.
Like you, if I had "reported" it, nobody would have done anything about it because it was a socially accepted behavior at the time--and in any event technical violations were easily addressed with a bribe.
Maybe I'm rationalizing to myself, but all I would have accomplished is getting us evicted from the upstairs of the Ahuja's house. I also wonder what kind of life she left.
I saw lots of really inhumane stuff in India--much, much worse than in any country I have lived in or spent significant time in. Though I worked for my then sister-in-law (who did labor organizing for poor women with SEWA), when it came to individual instances, all I did was watch.
The world is full of people beyond our help. So, we help those we can.
As I'm sure you know, Sarah, there are two world in Mexico, First and Third. Unfortunately, no matter how we feel about the injustices we see, we are still "foreigners", and Mexicans do not like our criticism. Revenge is definitely a just fear, and crime generally goes unsolved. You did the right thing by writing about it. Who knows whom your article will touch? It's a tough read, and I can only imagine seeing the situation in person and feeling helpless. I hope you are feeling better.
Multiply this particular feeling of helplessness by a few billion and we have the state of the world. I am an oldster and have come to recognize the need for humility, even as I try to keep my eyes open to opportunities to do good that call for my particular energy, ability, and availability. Not always satisfying, but realistic I think. And I am reminded of the classic movie Chinatown - a lesson in humility when the protagonist discovers that his attempts to do good have created a disaster due to forces beyond his control. We could try to pull someone out of a bad situation - and then what? Their situation may become even worse. None of this is meant to say we should just ignore what is going on, but rather a recognition of our own limitations. (Sigh) It is painful to witness suffering and hard not to feel culpable when there is nothing you can do.
You have done good for humanity as a journalist by writing about these issues. Sometimes we can help the individual, sometimes we can help work towards awareness and future improvements. Thank you for writing honestly and humanely.
I watched ¡Viva Mexico! A couple of months ago, that's how I work on my Spanish, and because I was working on my Spanish, I kept stuffing down my incredulity at the plot! I fully expected things to shift, or twist; I was really shocked by the time I got to the end, at the haplessness of it all.
So I'm imagining you at the Hacienda, and how incredibly surreal it must've felt and been! I'm glad to be able to read your story. In all likelihood you got Covid from your sister. And that's what made you ill on the ride home. All in all, punishing events. Be well.
That doesn't sound like a good trip at all. Sorry you are feeling bad.