I wasn’t able to make it to an event during development week at UBC, but as it happened, an interesting video came up in my news feed around that time which got me thinking about development issues. It is my perception that development agendas have come a long way: people have a more nuanced sense of what the word means in different contexts; how it can be a catalyst for very positive change, yet also detrimental if wielded unwisely… although perhaps that is the biased perspective of a GRS student!

The video which caught my attention was entitled, “Adopt-A-Dane Foundation. Africa is rescuing old people from Denmark.”   In it, the founder, Jackson Nouwah, echoes the worries expressed by many Danes on Facebook and on other social media platforms: that Danes are spending too much money on Africa and not enough on their own aged community members. He says, “Old people are not a burden, they are a wonderful gift – in Africa we cherish our old people.” He goes on to state that despite their many social and physical problems in Africa, according to Facebook posts, it seems elderly Danes are worse off. So the African communities are rallying together to adopt Danish seniors and welcome them into their communities with open arms.

The video is satirical, and was funded both by DR-P3, a Danish radio station, and Danmarks Indsamling (DKI) (which is an aid organization) in order to raise awareness about development issues. It was also sparked by the “jewellery bill” that, “would permit Danish officials to confiscate valuables from refugees” (Huffington Post, 2016). This bill obviously drew considerable attention and criticism, as Denmark is known to be “one of the richest countries in the world per capita” (Huffington Post, 2016).

The video was certainly provocative, and I am surprised it did not receive more attention from the media and social media networks. But perhaps the reason it did not stems from some of the discussions we had about Ujjal Dosanjh’s post, “The Silencing of the white men of the west!” In some ways, discussing this video may bring up tensions that are uncomfortable and difficult to navigate. Why is it so ironic to think that African countries might be able to help people from wealthy European nations? It’s definitely contrary to our doctrines and the perspectives we have grown up with. I felt the video imparted a provocative statement about how development affects our world, and its power and financial/resource imbalances. This video should have received more attention and discussion than it did.

Bellware, K. 2016. “Satirical Video Urges Africans To Rescue Old People From Denmark. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/adopt-a-dane-video_us_56b0eac9e4b0a1b96203d453