There Is Only One Saviour This World Needs

Picture this: A White 20 something American goes to (insert any African country here). They hope to make a difference in the lives of young, poor, Black children in a 2 week missions trip. Through hundreds of village selfies, they find that the community they served actually gave them so much more than they ever could have given. With a heavy heart, they return back to their comfortable life of privilege with a love for Africa, a belief that they made a difference, and not to mention a bomb new Facebook profile picture.

We’ve all heard this story. Well, maybe mine is a bit exaggerated, but still. Heck, probably a lot of us have even lived it. In joining Peace Corps, my fear of perpetuating this “White saviour” complex and possibly deepening internalised oppression of the very people I am there to ‘help’ scared the poop out of me. Almost enough to not even go. Almost. So why did I? Should I even be here? Am I causing more harm than good? Was this a selfish decision? If I’m being completely honest here, I still ask these questions almost every day.

This post isn’t meant to attack anyone or leave you with a large dose of White guilt. I do however hope that it challenges our ideas of what it looks like to love our neighbours (locally and globally) as ourselves. I pray myself and others would continue to learn and be moved to live in a more loving way that recognises our privilege and removes ourselves from the centre of the story. Only then can we can find our place in working together for that new world we all seem so hungry for.

So to start, I’ll just give a quick explanation of what this White saviour complex is and why it can be so problematic. I’ll take you on a dark, scary journey into the depths of my thoughts on my Peace Corps service as a White volunteer, and then we’ll wrap up with some practical steps for us all looking to tomorrow.

*Throughout this post I will use the term ‘we’ to refer to myself and other White Americans. I should note that this savior complex is not limited to White people, but we are unfortunately the most represented and often most problematic in the term.*

White saviourism refers to an idea in which a White person seeks to rescues people of colour from their underprivileged situations. The journey is focused on the White person rather than those they serve. They tend to learn something about themselves in the process of rescuing others. We can find this character arc all over books, movies, and even our history textbooks. Being surrounded by this narrative, many White people (like myself) develop a strong desire to embody this White saviour themselves.

Now, what’s so interesting here is that so often the actions White people take because of this White savior complex usually start with great intentions-- a desire to help, share knowledge/skills, and make an impact. And while I’ve heard the road to hell is paved with good intentions, these are truly beautiful notions and we shouldn’t lose them altogether. We just need to open our eyes a bit wider and wise up a smidgen.

Why? Because our good intentions can have some terrible impacts if we aren’t careful. Just look to our forefathers, we’ve got a history drenched in “it’s just too little too late.” Here’s a list of some of the harmful impacts our actions can have when we embody the White saviour narrative (BUT there are many more things that White saviour complex perpetuates and does and this list is by no means comprehensive):

1. It victimises people of colour: making them seem helpless to help themselves

2. It risks deepens both external and internalised oppression

3. It racialises morality: meaning to be good and heroic is synonymous with being White

4. It misses the mark on what communities really need by projecting our own ideals and solutions

5. At it’s worst, it can tell people that they need saving from themselves and that’s when we get awful stuff like forced assimilation and shame and/or loss of culture.

It addition embodying the White saviour complex can clear the conscience of the White person and checks their box of “doing good.” As a result, they sit silently on the sidelines while cycles of poverty, violence, and oppression continue to exist strong as ever.

The truth is, this whole narrative is definitely me. Growing up, I dreamed of moving to Africa, preaching the gospel, and playing with adorable Black children. I had seen this White saviour arc and I wanted to live it out myself. Of course I saw this as a selfless, godly thing to do. And while I’m sure again there were loving, genuine motives in my dreams, they were also a result of a problematic narrative I saw, heard, and then internalised. (See exhibit A below of a potentially problematic white saviour selfie when posted with no context/description) So now it’s the awkward part... but you ARE in Africa Caitlin. What’s up with that?

What’s up is that I’m still working through this stuff and how it plays out in my every day life here. Even as I type this my brain is flooded with questions like: God, did you really call me here? Am I doing any good, or worse is my presence doing harm? Should I just go home and never travel to another country doing development work ever again?

Answers: Actually, maybe. But I don’t know. I do know that God has commanded me to love Him and His people as myself. So since I’m already here, I guess that’s exactly what I am going to do.

Yes. I want to be a part of positive change in our world. No. I don’t want to contribute to the list of ugly 5 things (and many more) I pointed out earlier in this blog. What I’ve found so essential in my journey coming to and living/teaching in SA is that I must first name my privileges and live in awareness of how they impacts my work here. I need to be careful of not placing myself in the centre of the story. I need to open my eyes and ears to listen to what is r e a l l y needed in the community I live in, not what I think is needed. My job here isn’t to work for people, it is to work with people.

There is no question that God calls us to care for the hurting, rejected, poor, sick, and forgotten. But let’s not make the mistake of thinking that every human in Africa falls under those categories. Our call isn’t to be the saviour, it’s to live a life of love that reflects the one and only saviour. So my prayer each day is that there would be less of me and more of Him. I think development work, missions trips, whatever you want to call it, or any kind of straight up loving people only works when it is actually about others and not ourselves.

Look at Jesus’ ministry, he loved people will his whole life. He was willing to get messy, controversial, and even killed. He didn’t see people with the labels the world slapped on them; he saw them as precious human being made in the image of God. So whether you live in rural southern MN (shoutout to my home folks!) or rural southern Limpopo, you should love those around you with your whole life not because you know best, or want to look good, or to decrease your guilt, but because as humans, we all need each other.

So yeah, I still ask myself if I should really be here. I questioned it as I came and I question it every day. Honestly, I think that it is this constant wrestling that makes me a better Peace Corps volunteer. Notice I said better, not best. I am definitely NOT the best thing that has happened to this community. In an effort to step out of the White saviour spotlight, I’m going to start ‘Feature Posts’ about local heroes here. I hope to share some of the amazing people and things that are happening already (without me). Yeah, I’m going through a ton of personal growth and I am so thankful, but this journey isn’t about my White saviour arc. It’s about God and it’s about love.

Maybe you have a missions trip overseas planned for next month, what now!? Well, that’s for you to decide. But I do have a few practical tips for us all (myself included!)

1. Educate yourself. Listen to the voices that you think are voiceless. You just might find that the problem isn’t that they aren’t speaking, it’s that we aren’t listening. Open books, listen to podcasts, and read blog posts about things you could otherwise shelter yourself from hearing.

2. Name and notice your privilege. I think that one is pretty self explanatory. I actually took the time to write a list of all of my privileges and I try to be mindful of and actively challenge when they impact my life (usually positively) or the lives of those around me (usually negatively).

3. Listen. If you go on that trip, or teach in that diverse school in the city, really listen to the people you are working with and collaborate to meet the needs that are there, not the ones you perceive. Go in with a teachable heart ready to learn and love not save.

4. Step back. Kendrick Lamar says it with a bit more colour and flair, but it’s the same idea: Be humble. Don’t take centre stage and don’t accept when others put you there. Jesus was actually the saviour of the world and he washed stinky feet and died on a cross without making one single Instagram post about it.

5. See people, not issues. There are many deep, systematic, cyclical issues in our world. While we should inform ourselves about these and advocate for change, when it comes to relationships with people, we need to actually see people, their strengths and their struggles, their personhood, not the labels they’ve been given by the world.

So never stop questioning, but never stop loving either. Just as easy as it can be to fall into the White saviour narrative, it is equally as challenging to genuinely do these 5 things listed above. If it was simple and felt wonderful all the time, everyone would be doing it. So yeah, I make mistakes every single gosh darn day, but I am confident that it is worth it to keep trying. Let’s be people that continually repent of our shortcomings and take on the challenge of becoming better lovers of people in anything we do, anywhere we are. In the wise and beautiful words of Lilla Watson, “If you are here to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, let us work together.”

Cheers to working together all in the name of Love,

Caitlin

(Btw: That photo above is of me chilling with (from left to right) my host sister Thandani and our neighbours Muntu, Siya, and Fifi.)