Working Abroad...

Last week I found myself on the defensive. I was kind of caught off guard. How, I was asked, can I justify wanting to work outside of the US when there are people in America who lack healthcare. To me, this isn't an "either-or" situation, but a both. I was pretty annoyed at the time. And today, I read this passage from the book "Not On Our Watch: The Mission to end Genocide in Darfur and Beyond." It's graphic, and very disturbing.

". . .we met a woman, Amina, cooking on the ground. She had fled her village during an attack. Her husband had been shot as soon as he left their hut. She had two of her children on her back and the other two in her arms as about twenty Janjaweed chased her on camels. First they ripped her five-year-old, Adom [sic], from her, and when she stopped running and begged for her child, they told her they would shoot her. So she continued running away from her village that was up in flames. The Janjaweed then tossed Adom into the fire. He was screaming and calling her name, but she just kept running. Despite her speed, her seven-year-old, Asam Mohamed, was then taken and shot, once in his side and once in his back. She was never able to bury her children."

I wish I could have had that passage on hand when I needed to defend my desires to work in these environments. We have healthcare, and basic rights in this country. There are people who have neither. Tell me they don't need some help from us...

Argh!
Brian