Who's to say?
Most often, I eat lunch at a nearby south Indian fast food outlet which is 5 minutes away from my office. The road leading to it takes me through slums and narrow winding roads. I spend about Rs. 20 on average for my meal (50 eurocents). The restaurant is small, clean and with no seating space. One buys their food ala McDonalds and stands their plates on granite platforms lining the sides of the walls, quickly runs through the meal and leaves. The interior of the restaurant is kept spotless and clean; plates are removed as fast as they are emptied, spots of curry or bits of food are mopped up instantly and glasses are disposed into plastic trays and taken to the wash. Its a great place to eat for a quick & clean meal...cheap & tasty.
But off late I have begun to enjoy the food less. Plates, spills and glasses are wiped, picked up and removed by 2 or 3 young boys ostensibly "working" in the restaurant. The boys can't be more than 14 years old. They aren't legally allowed to work which makes things worse for them. Going by what usually happens, they must be kids brought in from a town in one of the outlying districts of Karnataka state, sent by their parents to earn some income. They would get a place to sleep at night (usually the same floor on which I stand and eat my lunch), they would get 3 meals and any income they would earn would be sent directly to their parents. These kids would almost never pick up a cricket bat on the streets, wouldn't know the meaning of a holiday.
There's many questions here: Where do you stop enforcing your moral standards and temper it with practicality? I feel increasingly uneasy eating as the kid goes about his bleak existence. Because I don't go up to the manager and speak on this issue, am I just another of the herd...going about my life without living the values I claim to work for? Or am I just being practical in accepting the sad yet ultimate truth that we can't change the world. Or am I just reverting to my elitist roots, metaphorically rolling up my car window and driving on whilst nodding my head in sympathy at the sad state of affairs that exist today...forgetting about them the moment I am in my favourite coffee house?
Is there a right answer? Or for that matter, is there even a right question? As hard as I try to distance myself from the work I do, its a struggle at the best of times. How this struggle manifests itself in my daily life, I shall write separately. For now I don't feel so good about that lunch I just had because a spoonful of helplessness is the most bitter of tonics to swallow.
But off late I have begun to enjoy the food less. Plates, spills and glasses are wiped, picked up and removed by 2 or 3 young boys ostensibly "working" in the restaurant. The boys can't be more than 14 years old. They aren't legally allowed to work which makes things worse for them. Going by what usually happens, they must be kids brought in from a town in one of the outlying districts of Karnataka state, sent by their parents to earn some income. They would get a place to sleep at night (usually the same floor on which I stand and eat my lunch), they would get 3 meals and any income they would earn would be sent directly to their parents. These kids would almost never pick up a cricket bat on the streets, wouldn't know the meaning of a holiday.
There's many questions here: Where do you stop enforcing your moral standards and temper it with practicality? I feel increasingly uneasy eating as the kid goes about his bleak existence. Because I don't go up to the manager and speak on this issue, am I just another of the herd...going about my life without living the values I claim to work for? Or am I just being practical in accepting the sad yet ultimate truth that we can't change the world. Or am I just reverting to my elitist roots, metaphorically rolling up my car window and driving on whilst nodding my head in sympathy at the sad state of affairs that exist today...forgetting about them the moment I am in my favourite coffee house?
Is there a right answer? Or for that matter, is there even a right question? As hard as I try to distance myself from the work I do, its a struggle at the best of times. How this struggle manifests itself in my daily life, I shall write separately. For now I don't feel so good about that lunch I just had because a spoonful of helplessness is the most bitter of tonics to swallow.
posted by Abs @ 5/16/2007 02:46:00 PM
3 comments
3 Comments:
"is there a right answer or for that matter a right question"...think you hit the nail on the head...maybe you could talk to the owner...ask about their education and conditions...maybe there is a way that the customers can get together and help get them in school? who knows...you never what you can achieve till you try!
I think the only question we should try and answer is, if the kid doesnt work there, where will he get the 3 meals a day. Education is necessary, but first thing the kid needs is food. The same question about the children who make fire crackers (which some refuse to use during diwali as the industry promotes child labour) but again, question is, if people stop using crackers becoz of this reason then these very child labours will not have food to eat. And eventually will choose a wrong path for their necessities. What we should/can do is bring a balance between work and education for these children. Ideas by Zozo is a good start.
Zozo: Yes one could potentially speak to the manager, try to get to the bottom of the issue and yank it right out.
XCL: If the kid doesn't work there, he would be in a shelter home providing him food and having access to some of the life skills development programs the place I work for right now offers.
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