Slum:
• noun 1 a squalid and overcrowded urban area inhabited by very poor people. 2 a house or building unfit for human habitation.
• verb (slummed, slumming) (often slum it) informal voluntarily spend time in uncomfortable conditions or at a lower social level than one’s own.
Source: Compact Oxford English dictionary
Slums (e.g. favelas, townships and other notations) have long tempted popular imagination. They have been and are scandalise, fought, bulldozed down and walled in. At the same time however, they are idealised and sought out as places displaying a more authentic humanity, flourishing culture and deviant, but inventive entrepreneurship. The concept of slum tourism remains popular today and is being addressed in a growing body of academic and practitioner’s research.
Dominant in reflections on slum tourism have long been ethical concerns and reasons for its existence: What is slum tourism and why is it shown? Is slum tourism voyeuristic and immoral? What motivations and expectations did and do people have to visit slums? To what extend are slum tours considered to be ‘authentic’ forms of holidays? How does today’s slum-tourism relate to its historic predecessors and to the legacy of colonialism? What is the relationship between slum tourism and issues of migration, democracy and (in)equality?
Similarly, questions regarding potential benefits and harmful aspects and the organisation of tourism to deprived urban areas is investigated: To what extent does slum tourism provide an income and positive visibility for people in deprived areas? Which stakeholders are involved in slum tourism and who profits most? How are guided tours organised or composed? What are the geographical scopes of slum-tourism and which place does it occupy in the new mobility system? Where does slum tourism fit in a globalised world of tourist consumption?
An increasing number of scholars are working on these issues on different continents. Slumtourism.net aims to bring together researchers of slum and poverty tourism in urban areas, in order to stimulate an exchange of experiences and contacts. The website is aimed to help create an international network of researchers and provide a stepping stone for further co-operations and projects on the subject.
Richard Barden said on 29/02/2012
Just returned from a visit to southern India which included a walking tour of Dharavi in Mumbai.
A lifelong friend and I [both OAPs] agonised over whether or not we should go.
We decided to book a tour through a government approved agency [70% of charge went to the Govt.] which provided us with a driver who also acted as a guiide.
After the event we were actually pleased that we didi it. There were surprises which challenged our assumptions about poverty and deprivation.
What we actually walked into were very active and productive communities.. Children played happily in very restricted
spaces [we saw their versions of marbles and cricket!] There called out confidently in English and appeared quite well dressed and clean.
We were not accosted ONCE fvor money or presents; ulike our experience of begging in ther ‘ouside’ communities. Adults paid us ittel attention as they were so busy making potrery [in one neighbourhood] and involved in metal and repair work in another. We saw a massive amount of recycling goin on on a large scale which inolved many lotrries taking on bales of various materials on the periphery of the slums.
Yes, therd must be serious drainage, sanitation and privact problems in such areaas.
However, because of their industriousness, productivity and positive attitudes [and pride even]they were not poor or deprived in many aspects of such concepts.
Dharavi is virtually becoming a celebrity ‘resource’ after the global popularity of ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ movie. Only a few days ago the Times of India contained a short article ['Moulding Dharavi's Bollywood Dreams'] about a grassroots acting studio [a converted shack] established within the slum area run by. a school drop-out who ‘made good’ in film and TV. Slum dwellers are still being recruited for dancing, acting, and ‘extras’ roles..
Certainly the slums of Dharavi changed our ideas and perceprions on poverty and deprivation.
We are beginning to think that the visit that we made could actually be an uplifting experience after witnessing begging on a massive sale everywhere else.
Last point – the real tragedy to us seemd not to be located in Dharavi but on the pavements and streets of Mumbai [and elsewehere ] They are the families, children, and other individuals who make up the human ‘litter’ of urban society.
They have nothing, nowhere to go, and no life at all!
RB