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(Or: Why I Have A Problem With Oprah)

I find it ironic that during the semester I am taking a class in fundraising, there is all the hooplah about Oprah's new school. I have many issues with this school, and I hope to touch on a few of them here.

1. Want vs. Need
Oprah has been quoted over and over again, when asked by the critics, "Why are you doing this?" She replies, "This is what I want to do." A fine, non-commital, PR answer, but it doesn't answer the question.
Oprah wants to give girls in South Africa a chance at changing the world. She wants to teach them to be leaders who will influence all aspects of their society. She wants them to be like her, coming from underpriveledged circumstances, and rising to the top. However, I don't believe that Oprah has a good idea of what their society needs. Underpriveledged as an American is one thing, but underpriveledged in South Africa means something totally different. If she were doing something like this in the Southern US, I wouldn't be as hopping mad.

South Africa is worlds away from things that we as Americans know. People live in poverty all over the world, yes, even in our own backyards. The per capita income in South Africa is roughly $12,000. Per capita in the US? $44,000. (I am not, of course, saying that all Americans make that much, or anything like that. Stick with me, here, please.) South Africa is not a third-world country, but it is part of the two-thirds world. Meaning that is not Europe, not North America, but it is not destitute. Yet.
The problem with this three-part world is that, like in our current economy, the middle will always have a struggle to survive as the top and the bottom get further and further apart. You would probably be gobsmacked to see in what kind of conditions the bottom part of this global society lives.
Some facts:
*29,000 children will die today because they do not have enough to eat, nor clean water to drink.
*852,000,000 people around the world are malnourished.
*1.2 billion people live on less than one dollar a day.
(stats from 30 Hour Famine)
Besides, most of the countries in Africa are patriarchal societies. Creating female leaders is something that perhaps, they are not ready for. If the US, for all it's "progressiveness", is not ready for a female president, how can South Africa be?
When becoming a major donor, one must keep in mind what is needed in the context you are giving. Whether it be politically, socially, culturally, and in every other

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