贫民窟游道德否？

2007年年初，小编从外媒看到一条消息：有人在肯尼亚的首都内罗毕开辟了一条新的旅游线路——贫民窟游。当时小编的第一反应是，“如果几个月前我在那里的时候就有这条线的话……”可是转念一想，自己真的会去吗？我显然不是去扶贫，那为了什么呢？虽说穷不是什么见不得人的事，可谁会愿意因为贫穷而被别人参观呢？亲们，如果是你，你会愿意吗？

Brick Lane is one of Londons most vibrant areas， a colourful 1）hotch-potch of different cultures all mixed in with scores of street artists， designers and 2）hipsters. And its always at its busiest on a Sunday， when the famous Brick Lane Market appears.

布里克巷是伦敦一个最具活力的区域，大街上挤满形形色色的卖艺者、设计师和赶时髦的人，这里是各种文化融合的多彩世界。星期天正逢有名的布里克巷集市日，是这里最繁忙的时候。

Today visitors come to this part of London to have a curry at one of the many restaurants or to pick up some cool 3）vintage fashions. But back in the 19th century tourists descended on this area for a very different reason， and the East End became the birthplace of what we now know as “slum tourism.” In the Victorian era， this was the poorest part of London， a great， dirty 4）warren of slums. Well-to-do ladies and gents would come here to observe the conditions in which the poorest lived.

A century later， in the 1990s， slum tourism emerged in the developing world. Occupants of the vast townships of South Africa， inner city slums in India and Brazils crowded 5）Favelas began to see busloads of wealthy western tourists arriving in their communities.

But， in recent years， it seems that this trend has come full circle， returning to urban centres in the West， from cities like San Francisco and Brussels to right here in Londons East End， where it all began.

Liz Weiner has lived in London for 20 years， and has been homeless， on and off， for most of her adult life. Three times a week she hosts a tour that combines history with social issues and her own personal experiences.

Liz： So the flea market wouldve come all the way down here，…

Lizs walk through the East End is one of five tours guided by homeless people in key tourist areas across London， and its all organized by an outreach group called “the Sock Mob.”

如今，到这里来的人是为了在众多的餐厅里选一家，尝尝咖喱菜肴，或者到这里淘点复古时装。可是在19世纪，游客到这个区域来的原因与今天截然不同。伦敦东区正是“贫民窟游”的诞生地。在维多利亚时代，这里是伦敦最贫困的区域，一个拥挤不堪、极度肮脏的大贫民窟。上流社会的男男女女会到这里来，看看最不堪的穷人的生活环境。

一个世纪过去了，在上世纪的90年代，贫民窟游在发展中国家兴起。位于南非一些大城镇、印度市中心的贫民区和巴西城郊贫民区的人们开始见到旅游大巴满载着富有的西方游客来到自己的居住区。

但近年来，这种贫民窟游的趋势似乎在绕了一大圈后又回到原处，回到了它在西方的始发处，如美国旧金山和比利时的布鲁塞尔，还有伦敦东区——它的始发地。

利兹·韦纳已经在伦敦住了20年，她成年生活的大部分时间都断断续续地处于无家可归的状态。如今，每周三次，她会带一个旅游团到此，参观游览的内容涵盖了此地的历史、社会问题和她自身的经历。

利兹：跳蚤市场一直延伸到这里……

一个叫“袜族”的服务机构在伦敦的重点旅游区域组织了五条由无家可归者作导游的旅游线路，利兹在伦敦东区率领的这种徒步游正是其中之一。

Faye Shields （Sock Mob）： It is the negative connotations of slum tourism that were fighting against. The guides get 60% of the ticket sales so the majority of the money goes to the guides. We are building a group that， you know， everyone feels invested in， and the guides also feel that they have some ownership over.

Many experts see the Sock Mob tours in London as part of a spike in slum tourism growth across the world. Ko Koens （Leeds University）： Slum tourism is growing rapidly at the moment. Jakarta has one now. Thailand has some now. Happens in Mexico. Its in Egypt.

Slum tours have been 6）roundly denounced over the years as “7）exploitative poverty tourism” or“poorism，” an exercise in 8）objectifying disadvantaged people for the curiosity of visitors.

Rachel Noble （Expert）： Therere a lot of tours that were just， had just had tourists sitting in a bus looking out upon the people， and some of the local people said that “we felt like animals in a zoo being watched at，”and thats， of course， the critique that slum tourism often gets.

But there are signs that the wider tourism industry is increasingly embracing the trade.

Rachel： Whereas， initially， there was a lot of negative writing on it， and there still is a lot of negative writing on it， but now theres a counter-argument being made that it also can be used as a force for good.

So the question is， is it always ethical for travellers to take part in a tour that focuses on deprived areas or disadvantaged people？ And how can we be sure the tours having some sort of benefit and not making the situation worse？

费伊·希尔丝（袜族）：贫民窟游隐含着有不少负面的含义，我们要用行动对其进行驳斥。旅游团60%的收入归导游所有，因此收入的大部分是属于导游的。我们正在建立的机构，你知道，会让所有的人都觉得自己是其中的一员，让导游觉得他们也拥有这里的一部分。

许多专家认为袜族机构在伦敦组织的旅游线路是贫民窟游在全球激增的一部分。

柯·凯恩（利兹大学）：贫民窟游目前发展得很快。印尼的雅加达有一个这样的区域，泰国有一些；墨西哥有，埃及也有。

多年以来，人们指责贫民窟游是借参观贫困阶层的生活来满足游客的好奇心。贫民窟游被称为“利用他人的贫穷来赚钱的旅游业”或“贫穷主义”，而招致严厉谴责。

雷切尔·诺布尔（专家）：许多这种贫民窟游只不过是游客坐在大巴里，从里往下看车外的人，所以有的当地人说“我们觉得自己就像是动物园里的动物一样被人参观”，这确实也常常是人们对贫民窟游的批评。

但有迹象表明，旅游行业从整体上正日益欢迎这种做法。

雷切尔：当初，对此事有许多负面的看法，其实现在也是有不少负面的看法，不过，如今有人反驳认为贫民窟游可以被用作正能量。

因此，我们面临的问题是，游客参加聚焦于贫困地区或下层社会的行程，这种行为道德吗？我们该如何确保这种旅游行程能带来一些好处，而不是让情况变得更糟呢？