Internet Mentoring: Humanitarian Aid without Risk?

Infinite Family has a really interesting idea: they mentor African orphans in desperate need of role models.

The AIDS epidemic has left many children the head of the household. For anyone who has seen City of God, it's not hard to imagine those children turning to violence to protect themselves and for emotional release, much like the elementary-aged gangs in Rio. This organization hopes to approach the problem by enabling these kids to have someone to go to -- albeit someone only accessible via the internet -- to give them guidance and teach them valuable life skills they won't get otherwise.

It's a noble pursuit indeed, but part of me is suspicious. Noblesse oblige weds us to helping the unfortunate, but when we do so in the comfort of our plush air-conditioned living rooms, we do not truly endeavor to understand the plight of those we are trying to help. By refusing to take the risk of traveling to a remote place to help someone in person, Americans might unintentionally bolster their own 'right to rule,' sending the message to the next African generation that they are still secondary to the industrial way of life. Even after the transfer of skills and family mediation. Perhaps grateful graduates of this program will even desire to emulate their mentors, and will aspire to the resources available only in an industrialized country instead of working on the level of their own communities.