Doing good, feeling bad: humanitarian emotion in crisis

Abstract

For decades humanitarianism has captured and shaped the dreams of the populations of the global North, dreams of a better world, of a common humanity, of goodness, of solidarity, and of global healing. In this article I argue that when taking art and cultural objects into account humanitarian reason seems however to be in some sort of crisis. Looking at the interpretation of humanitarianism undertaken by cultural artifacts such as film, theater, contemporary art, literary fiction, and humanitarian communication, we realize that such cultural phenomena regularly reflect not only upon various humanitarian crises, but also upon a crisis within the humanitarian imaginary itself. I read two scenes of collective interpretation of the everyday humanitarian call to action, which is always a call to donate. The first scene is from the 2012 edition of the recurring televised Danish fundraising show, Danmarks Indsamling [Denmark Collects], and the second is from Norwegian playwright Arne Lygre's 2011 play, I Disappear. What is at stake in both of these scenes is the status of humanitarianism as a good-enough fantasy and promise of doing good.

Promoting the image of Africa through media: the role of African leaders (case study of Nigeria)

“…We certainly may or may not agree with Sznaider in his view on other issues, but his notion about the connection between public compassion and democratization processes is more reasonable. This totally corroborates Sharma's idea on humanitarian aids, Sharma (2017), noted that to be the target group of humanitarian communication is not necessarily experienced much differently from being the target group of any other kind of advertisement. This he said is not so surprising since humanitarian organizations operates today much like brands and speak to us as consumers just like any other brand will do and the fact that the humanitarian enterprise has become big business implies that it is increasingly difficult not to experience such enterprise as business as usual.…”

“…One major critique of the "politics" of compassion maintains that compassion is, in its very structure, an asymmetrical feeling that is typically directed downwards in social and geopolitical hierarchies. Thus these hierarchies may be reproduced once such hierarchies uphold the continuous forming of subjects and objects of compassion (Sharma, 2017).This is typical of the African experience, humanitarian organizations have done this to continue to announce and maintain their narcissistic presence in Africa even when the Western negative media representation of Africa has been met with what Moeller (1999) called Compassion fatigue. Thus, Oguh (2015) argued that Western media's viewpoint on Africa has outlived its usefulness.…”

Beyond biopolitics: the importance of the later work of Foucault to understand care practices of healthcare workers caring for undocumented migrants

“…In a biopolitical analysis of humanitarianism nobody seems to be doing what they say; or what they do never has the intended effect. As a result, moral sentiments associated with care for a "distant other" are often regarded with reluctance, mistrust, or sheer cynicism (43). This can nourish apathy, distance and cynicism among healthcare workers.…”

“…This can nourish apathy, distance and cynicism among healthcare workers. A range of uncertainty and/or ugly feelings become associated with the (humanitarian or deontological) imperative to care in ways that bene t distant others (43,44). Biopolitical analyses of humanitarianism take a largely negative and critical orientation towards care practices harboring moral aspirations, without taking responsibility for what should replace them.…”

Eclipsed by the halo: ‘Helping’ brands through dissociation

“…Here I will argue that humanitarian ‘helping’ itself can become a branded commodity, as understood by Ibert et al as ‘a composite of the facets and qualities of a good or service commodity that is deliberately chosen, integrated and communicated by actors as a coherent entity’ (Pike, 2013, as quoted in Ibert et al, 2019: 46). Sharma argues that ‘humanitarian organizations operate today much like brands and speak to us as consumers just as any other brand would do’ (2017: 1). Krause’s (2014) book on international humanitarianism focuses on the selling of beneficiaries themselves as a commodified product that distinguishes NGOs in an ever-competitive funding battle, noting ‘relief organizations hand out shoes and tents and medicines to beneficiaries, but, at the same time, they also sell projects including beneficiaries to donors’–extracting value from them in the process of helping them under circumstances over which they have very little control’ (2014: 41).…”