Programs that ignore people’s worldview constitute cultural invasion despite good intentions

Evidence

This task implies that revolutionary leaders do not go to the people in order to bring them a message of “salvation,” but in order to come to know through dialogue with them both their objective situation and their awareness of that situation—the various levels of perception of themselves and of the world in which and with which they exist. One cannot expect positive results from an educational or political action program which fails to respect the particular view of the world held by the people. Such a program constitutes cultural invasion, good intentions notwithstanding. — Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed, 275

Categorization

• SEED: Strong angle: ‘good intentions notwithstanding’ — the full weight of Freire’s critique applied to modern aid, training, and consulting.