cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/34340132

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[–] 5 points 1 year ago (2 children)

They don't keep in contact with the people, but it can help them empathize with people they don't know and change their outlook on "foreigners."

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  • [–] 2 points 1 year ago (1 child)

    I mean, I guess. But it's pretty easy to forget about other people when you aren't really reminded of them, especially when you never really knew them that well.

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  • [–] 4 points 1 year ago

    I can't speak for everyone, but when I went to Bolivia with a medical team in 2000 as a high-schooler my life was changed. I don't keep in contact with anyone from those days, but the experience made me a better, more empathetic person, and I better recognize my privilege as an American.

    Am I perfect? No. But it still gave me a different perspective on the world than my experiences in the marching band as a middle-class white Texan kid. I went into it brainwashed as a hard-core Republican. That didn't change in my few weeks in Bolivia, but the impressions it left on me were a large part of how I came to re-evaluate my social, spiritual, and political beliefs in college.

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