I see travel as a form of education, as a way to disillusion people who hold prejudice or racists beliefs. Racsim and prejudice is ignorance, and I feel that the more people travel the more open minded they will become. The more people see and experience social inequalities on a global level, the more they are confronted with the large disparities in the quality of life, the more they will be pushed to examine themselves and reflect on the individual role that they play. Upon reflection i believe people will want to do more in their own countries, and in the world to counter inequality. Racial projects such as orientalism, tropicalization, zionism, and many others can very easily influence peoples views, and make them believe stereotypes about others are truths. But, if people travel and experience different types of people first hand, immerse themselves in the culture, then they will be less likely to believe the negative stereotypes or out right lies about other people and countries, and more likely to want to help.
http://intrepidtravel.com/ is a very helpful website for people interested in not only traveling, but considerate tourism. They will ensure that the money spent traveling to beautiful but deprived regions will go to the local people and economy, instead of American businesses that are out there to take advantage of the tourism. So, you can have a good time, and help out at the same time. Another very useful website for when you are ready to take that next step, and start making difference is
http://www.incite-national.org/. It is a webpage of an organization against violence and inequality, and it deals with these things in a global context. I think these two websites are very helpful for anyone who loves to travel, to learn about peopl, and who believes that all the people in the world deserve a good quality of life.
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