13 years old. Wide-eyed, totally confused about my inner self and drenched in the blackest of the blackest goth attire because, hey, it’s the year 2000 and nu-metal has completely engulfed me. Stomping forwards in my ruby-red cracked DMs with no real grace through the streets of London, Brixton, I’ve just pulled myself out of the darkest, sweat-inducing, beer-flowing walls of the Academy. I’m high on the electrifying riffs of Slipknot and dizzy from all of the thrashing and mayhem. I charge like a baby rhino towards the tube to return home, because my parents have warned me, people ‘are going to rob me for every penny’ here. Head down, ploughing through, ascending the concrete station steps, nearly there then…
‘Hey! Yes you! Hello! All major credit cards accepted here! Visa, Mastercard, American Express, all cards are warmly welcomed’
People pass each other without any recognition everyday. Everyone has an intricate, complicated, rich story about who they are and how they came to be. Whether you choose to register others, is a decision made in a split second and then you’re gone…or you decide to open up your blinkers and halt. The guy’s presence, his energy, his attitude, his sheer comical value: something within him grabbed hold of my blinkers and ripped them right off.
Propped up against the stairwell’s walls, this homeless guy and his dog are beaming with light and pulling me in. Without any hesitation, I give him £10 from my newspaper round job. The £10, a minute ago, I was protecting like the Queen’s jewels.
That was the first time I ever gave to someone begging for money and since then, countless people have asked me for that £10 again.
To give or not to give?
On any given day, travellers are faced with the decision of whether they should stop and give money to the people who ask for it. It’s everywhere, whether it be outside that pub in the middle of nowhere, in the craziest city or on the most beautiful beach.
Some people are blazingly obvious when they ask for money. They’re crouched on the street, walking through the carriages of the subway holding signs, singing, parading their child around, or in one case I saw in China, using a megaphone to proclaim how much they need the money. Other ways are more subtle. On tours, the guides have told me they’re not earning enough and need more. Tricycle drivers in the Philippines have told me they cannot feed their families and to give them extra. Cambodian children have tried to sell me postcards and bracelets then ask for more, saying their parents will beat them if they don’t bring home enough.
It’s a difficult situation and the angel and the devil on each of your shoulders can begin to get heated and battle it out with each other.
The angel
‘I have more money than them / I could do a good deed today / It’s just *** pounds / They look pretty goddamn hungry, tired, in need / This sucks, they need help / Be a nice person / They’re telling the truth / They’re genuine / My friend has just given them something so don’t look like a cheap-ass now, give them some money too’
The devil
Don’t get robbed blind / They’re connected with the mafia / They must be making loads of money / They have enough money in their pot, they don’t need mine / Do they think I’m that stupid? / Don’t fall for that one / I can’t believe they’re dragging their kid round like that / They’re gonna spend it on drugs’
Should I give money to beggars whilst travelling?
It’s a tough one to answer but here is what I think:
Don’t give them the money.If they’re hungry, give them food (apart from the milk scam in Cambodia which I sorely learnt about in Siem Reap!) If they’re cold, give them some warm clothes. Once you give them money, they’re gonna keep asking for it and this can bring on a lot of different problems. Heard of people purposely being disabled in order to beg for money? Not cool. Heard of kids not going to school but begging instead? Not cool. It’s a never ending viscous circle and I feel that as tourists, we need to think carefully about our impact on other cultures and the relationship that we have with locals.
To put things into perspective, here’s a cautionary tale about what happened to me in Coron Town in Palawan, Philippines. All the kids I met wanted to hang out, play and practice their English. They never asked for anything from me. Then, one night, I was walking down the street and a young boy approached and said, ‘Give me money’. ‘What?’ I replied. ‘Give me money’ he insisted. My heart sank, because this is the start of something bad. If one tourist gives that kid money, he’s going to keep asking and all of his mates are going to cotton onto the fact that they can do this too. That is going to spread like wildfire and before you know it, everyone is asking and depending on you. Coron has been ticking along nicely so far, why disrupt that and turn it into something it shouldn’t be?
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Spot on Miss Cake. While nobody is saying become a heartless A-hole, don’t contribute to the beggar culture by robbing them of their ability to do something more productive with their time, hands, and minds. Great post spoken with honesty!
Oh, how I do wish these problems were easier to solve….
Thank you! I always try my best to be up front and honest, glad you enjoyed the post!
Definitely agree! As heartbreaking as it is, it’s doing more harm than good!
We never, never,never give anything to kids. If you do as a traveler their mom and dad will just keep them begging instead of pulling them off the street to go to school. We were at one place in Cambodia where they had signs up saying the kids are sent over here to take your money. They have a home and they should be in school. It was great to see.
I wholeheartedly agree with you David. The kids should be in school and as long as we keep giving the money, the parents are going to be more motivated to keep them where they are.
This was a really interesting post. Money is just a means to an end, so might aswell give them what they really need instead of money.
I agree. We really need to address the problem from the bottom up. Will we ever get there? I would love to think so but change starts with us and our actions are just as important as the big guys!
This is the weaker side of India, that even kids are forced to beg for money even at that when they themselves dont know the meaning of currency . Here some people caught kids from remote areas and force them to beg on the street and if kid object , those people cut down his/her body part.
Yes. I agree if those kids won’t be able to collect that much money as they were instructed then they have to pay for it in what manner you never know.
But on the other hand, when they saw a foreigner they always demanded more.
As an Indian, I always prefer to give less money and give more food and clothes. Because I know those kids hardly get good food and clothes.
Good question. One I’ve struggled with myself (so sorry for the long reply). It is hard to see someone in need and just turn a blind eye. In China I was especially heartbroken over the children begging, however, my local Chinees friend pointed out their handler, the one who actually gets all the money and forces the children to beg. Often they need much more than money. They need help getting back on their feet (if possible). I do believe that those of us blessed with more than food on our table should give to charity. I try to research and make sure that the charities I give to actually spend most of the money on helping the people who need it. I don’t have endless funds so I want to make sure every cent counts.
I have just finished an empowerment tourism trip with Hands on Journeys in India and I really do feel that I’ve found an answer to this. People who want to make a change definitely do need help getting back on their feet. You can’t teach a man to fish if he’s starving. Give them the tools…then they can empower themselves to make long-lasting, life-changing decisions. I highly recommend checking out Hands on Journeys for the amazing work they are doing <3