More UNICEF

Tuesday June 16^th.

Today Mme Granier, the Cannes representative of the UNICEF, was kind enough to come to Cannes La Bocca to give me an interview.

We mainly talked about collecting funds in Cannes. She said young people are the most supportive because they usually come up with fundraising ideas for the organization. For example, a group of high school students decided to organize a fundraising concert some months ago to help Haitian kids. In this particular case, UNICEF Cannes provided the theater and some publicity in the local newspaper, the Nice-Matin.

Mme Granier said the Cannois aren’t particularly known for being benevolent, but she did acknowledge the attitude of solidarity that the youth demonstrate nowadays.

She said she is very grateful for this new phenomenon.

A night with the Rotarians

Monday June 14.

Today I had the best experience of the whole Richter project. It was unexpected and exciting at the same time. Let me explain...

One of my French professors, Mme Agré, suggested me to look into the Rotary Club and the Lions Club for my investigation since they are both "high-class" groups dedicated to charitable giving. So I went to their websites and sent emails, and emails, and emails... but I never got any response from any of the 5 Rotary Clubs in Cannes.

I decided, then, to go to one of their meetings to try to get some questions answered. I went to the hotel where they meet (Hôtel Gray d'Albion in downtown Cannes) 40 minutes prior to the meeting. I really needed to talk to them!

In comparison to my other interviews, this was going to take place at a fancy place. The smell of mimosas filled the air and a meeting room was being prepared for the Rotary Club. The 15 minutes that passed before the first member arrived seemed like an eternity. I was nervous of what would happen. Would someone agree to give me an interview? Or would they feel like I had invaded their personal space?

The first member arrived early (she was a very well-dressed older lady), so I decided to attack. And she proudly talked to me about the Rotary Club! As the other members began to arrive, she quickly introduced me to them and they would sit with me to tell me a little bit about the group. I can't even describe their kindness and spirit of helpfulness.

I was even more surprised when they invited my to their meeting! I sat at the big table and got to hear the presentation of another charitable association: Un Enfant Par la Main. The Cannes representative of this organization was looking for financial support from the Rotarians, so I got to listen to lots of information about them. Perhaps individual members would "adopt/sponsor" a child in a 3rd world country, or perhaps the Club would give a determined amount of money to the association each year. But that would be decided at next week's meeting.

Then they invited me to stay for dinner.

Long story made short: I stayed there for a total of 3 hours, met some really nice people, had an incredible evening, and got a lot of good info for my investigation. It was the greatest night of all!

UNICEF at the stadium

Today the UNICEF was invited to have a stand at a local soccer tourney. They had a little table and a big box for donations that would go to children in Africa. Children (and adults) would come to drop money into the bin and get blue bracelets in return.

Although the donations weren't considerable, it was nice seeing all the little kids (7, 8 years old) interested in what the UNICEF stands for: children's rights. Letting children know about their rights is one of the purposes of the UNICEF.

I met with a nice lady, Madame Elisabeth Perrier. Although she is responsible for the UNICEF's office in Avignon, she was able to tell me a little bit about the UNICEF in Cannes. They organize many fundraising events throughout the year, and they usually receive fair amounts of money because of the well-known name of their organization. For example, a few months ago they had a national event called "La Nuit de l'Eau," in which they partnered with the French Swimming Association (FFN) to raise money to provide clean water to children who do not have access to it. The local swim team, Cercle des Nageurs de Cannes, was able to raise the high amount of 2 344 €.

In general, I had a nice afternoon talking to Mme. Perrier and learning more about the UNICEF in France. I will meet with the lady responsible for the Cannes area on Tuesday, so I'll have more local information then!

Amnesty - Part Deux

This evening, my friends Cristina Sanders and Sanaz Talaifar came with me to the monthly Amnesty International meeting in Cannes. It was a very enjoyable experience.

The meeting took place in a little room on the 1st floor of a building 20 minutes away from downtown. There were 5 members present: the president (M. Barré), 2 ladies (Gabby and Christelle), and 2 men (Pascal and Samuel). Two of them were elders, one was middle-aged, and two were young. It was a balanced group.

First, M. Barré gave the information he had just received from the central office in Paris. He talked about the successful liberation of prisoners in Libya, the update on the campaign “Exigeons la dignité,” the update on Hakim Ajimi’s case (a great scandal in France), etc… Then we signed some petitions.

After that, the group discussed matters more pertinent to Cannes. They talked about organizing a big fundraising concert that will take place in October, and they made plans to spread the word about Amnesty in local schools. They discussed strategies and made plans for the future.

To me, it was very exciting to learn all the things Amnesty stands for, and how the Cannes group plans to fight for them. Plus, all the 5 members were very nice with us and treated us as part of their family.

I know the group is short on money and labor because the government doesn’t provide any type of financial support, but it seems that they have figured out how to manage that inconvenience.

Again, it was nice meeting them all and being able to attend their meeting. Hearing them talk was very motivating because they all had good ideas to be developed. I just hope they can find more followers because they need a bigger group here in this important city!

A little reflexion...

The more I walk around Cannes, the more I notice the high number of old people. They are everywhere: in the streets, at the restaurants, in the shops & boutiques, even laying topless at the beach! (Don't ask...)

I would go with the hypothesis that the younger people are at school/work and have more important things to do with their time, but I've already heard many times that Cannes is a city for the elders.

For example, the bus schedule starts slowing down at 8pm. The difficulty of traveling by bus after 8:30pm is related to the slow beat of the city at night. And the taxis, they are even harder to find! It isn't like Dallas where you can find a cab any time at night. Here it seems like everyone goes to sleep because taxi drivers are nowhere to be found and contacting them is a hassle.

So, Cannes is a city for the rich, retired population of France and the rest of the word.

La Croix Rouge

I interviewed this afternoon Monsieur Couderc, the President of the French Red Cross office in Cannes, and guess what? His opinion wasn't very different from what I've heard before.

What I found interesting about this organization was the huge variety of activities it offers to the community: free medical care to those who don't have access to it (mainly the unemployed and immigrants), food & clothes for the needy, free lessons for those who want to learn CPR, free medical assistance in sporting and cultural events, among many other things. And the only way they keep the organization running healthy (in financial terms) is through little government and community support. That, to me, is incredible.

Actually, M. Couberc also mentioned an annual collection of money, in which workers (a.k.a. volunteers) of the Red Cross go out to the streets with little cans. My French professor told me that this should occur in the next couple of weekend, so I hope I get to witness it!

In general, the Red Cross workers were retired people who are there to help others. See a pattern here?

Urgent

Recherchons

URGENT

Bénévoles pour la

prochaine campagne.

Merci

We look URGENTLY for volunteers for the next campaign. Thank you.

Restos du Coeur

Missing

I set out to find more interview today.

I felt like a typical tourist with my huge map in hand - and after roaming around the streets, I finally found le boulevard de Lorraine. But, to my surprise, the organization I was looking for (J'avais faim) was only a sign on a door and an empty room! Great.

Then I decided to visit la rue de Mimosas, which is parallel to the street I was in, to look up 2 other charities. I didn't have any more luck. Secours Catholique (Cannes) was closed and Peace United Actions was also nonexistent.

Secours Populaire Français

Another good interview, but still not what I thought I would hear!

I met with Elaine Fraisse, the lady in charge of Secours Populaire Français in Cannes, a non-profit organization that helps those in need, specially single mothers and the homeless, by mainly giving them clothes and food.

In Cannes, Secours Populaire receives financial support from the community but not in extraordinary amounts.

When I created this project, one of my hypotheses was that charities' revenues increased as tourists flooded the city. But Madame Fraisse told me that this is not true. For example, during the Film Festival the needy, and not-so needy, demand even more help from the organization.

So...this project (so far) is going in the opposite direction of where I thought it would go...

Secours Catholique

I got an interview with Secours Catholique (Cannes La Bocca) but it didn’t convince me much. I interviewed Philippe, Jean Loup and Yvette – 3 older people who refused to give their complete names and their positions within the organization.

Anyways, they said Secours Catholique in La Bocca receives some aid from the community, mainly from the elders, and most of their donors are motivated by the Christian belief of helping others.

But, their office is not alive thanks to the donations their receive directly; they receive the biggest financial support from the bigger offices – like the one in downtown Cannes. They also said that Cannes is not a very benevolent city; according to them, it is just average.

As I mentioned before, I wasn’t very convinced after this interview.

Wait for the one in downtown Cannes.

A note on the "Beggars in Paris"

I found this blog post today about one of the organizations I will interview in the next few days. Restos du Coeur.

If you have time, please check it out. It's a really interesting piece that illustrates the situation of the hungry people in Paris.

http://www.secretsofparis.com/heathers-secret-blog/beggars-in-paris.html

Amnesty International

I finally had my first official interview today! I’m ecstatic!

I was lucky to find Monsieur Barré, the man in charge of the Cannes group of Amnesty International. I first got in touch with him in February after a long chain of referrals...

Anyways, today I went to the beautiful Lycée Carnot in a part of Cannes I hadn’t had the privilege of knowing. It was less touristy than downtown and more urban that La Bocca. [I will later describe the part of town where I’m staying!].


M. Barré was at that school to recruit young students to the group; he had a table set up with lots of colorful flyers and pamphlets. When I saw him, I couldn’t believe it was him - I had imagined him completely different. I mean, we had been emailing back and forth attempting to set up meeting times, and he always had a courteous and energetic attitude, and he obviously was a tech savvy. I guess I never imagined him to be around 60 years old!

Anyways, I started my interview – question sheet on my lap, voice recorder in one hand, pen in the other… was it obvious that I was an amateur in this?

With a slurred French and a substantial amount of concentration, I managed to have a very successful interview. And I might say that I was surprised with the results. I don’t want to reveal all my research before writing the actual report, but I must mention what impacted me the most: according to M. Barré, Cannes is not the rich city it seems; its numerous poverty problems are hidden behind a great curtain of glamour.

Definitely not what I expected. I wanted to hear that Hollywood celebrities (perhaps Brangelina), whenever they visit Cannes, donate huge amounts of money to Amnesty International’s cause. I guess that's not the case. Actually, the Cannes group is experiencing serious financial troubles, which, to me, is a shame.

Another shame was that no one at the lycée joined Amnesty this afternoon...

On a more positive tone, the polite M. Barré invited me to attend a group meeting on June 10th.

I am looking forward to it.

Le CCAS

Today I found someone to talk to at the CCAS! I was really excited when I finally got to sat in front of a desk after climbing those steep streets leading to la rue Borniol.

The Centre Communal d'Action Social de Cannes is a local governmental institution that is in charge of overseeing the social development in the community of Cannes, including the work of public and private organizations.

I talked to a really nice guy, M. Allegoy, who told me that a large part of the municipal budget is allocated to Cannois social institutions. Why? Well, according to him, the French are all about national solidarity.

He also said what I heard earlier this morning: the French tend to donate a lot of money to charities during times of distress. For example, they became extra generous after the disaster in Haiti.

Cannes is a a super wealthy city and the French care about each other. Now the question is, how are charities doing?

La Croisette

I've been walking around downtown Cannes and I've noticed something interesting: there are not a lot of beggars out in the street during the day, but it is impossible to miss them at night.

I walked up and down La Croisette on Tuesday night and there were beggars everywhere! Most of them were seating in the ground, others were just walking around asking for money - even in English! (well, they said "please"). I saw the same thing on Friday night.

But, I walked again along La Croisette on Saturday at 2 pm and saw only one beggar! I could not believe it.

Follow the leader?

Yesterday, Friday the 21st, we had an interesting discussion in class: who is the leader in terms of modernization, the US or Europe? This is an interesting comparison - even if it is between a country and a continent.

In terms of technology, it may be argued that America. But what about the social area?

Sweden, for example, is said to be very modern as it supports the absolute equal treatment of genders. On the other hand, France remains traditionalist because, for example, same-sex marriages are not legal.

The significant increase of women in the workforce during the past few years might support the fact that the US is moving towards modernization, but traditionalism is not completely gone - for example, gay marriage is only accepted in about 6 of the 50 states.

So, who sets the trends?

Does the US mark the pathway and Europe follows? Does the US follow Europe's leading ideas? Or do they just each follow their own ways?

Will we see more modernization or more traditionalism in the US? Where will our society go in the future?

This is hard to answer, but it could also be applied in terms of benevolence. Is there some sort of trend going on in the philanthropic area?

La médiathèque

It's taking me a long time to post, so I have to clarify that I am not becoming French. The problem is that the internet connection here is really bad. Like one of my roommates said, I feel like I've gone back 20 years in time. No joke.

Anyways, after the "sacred" break, I ended up going to a sort of library: la médiathèque.

It is a beautiful place in the middle of a huge garden. It somewhat reminded me of the Beast's library in the Disney version of the Beauty and the Beast.

Although my trip here was just to get some basic information, it was nonetheless a productive one. I found some interesting facts about Cannes' history and the general French population. For example, did you know that one in every four French people is involved in a benevolent activity?

I interpret this to be a good start of the investigation.

Break...

I went earlier today to the Tourism Office and they are taking a break... from what? Well, I guess from their arduous jobs. It's amazing how almost the whole city shuts down from 12 to 3pm.

These French really know how to enjoy life.

I will come back in a couple of hours. Maybe they will have had enough rest to help me.

Finally, in paradise

Ahhh! I can't believe it! I'm so happy to be here already :)

After watching Leap Year, sleeping a little, and then watching the beginning of Percy Jackson and the Olympians, I arrived yesterday at around 9 am (local time). The excitement kept me awake all morning - it was my natural caffeine. But then the unavoidable jet lag kicked in.

This morning I went to mass to the Église Sainte Marguerite - most of the churches here are Catholic. Did you know that most of the French population is Catholic? The percentage is even larger than the one in Mexico! Here I had my first encounter with Cannois poverty - there were beggars outside the church.

Anyways, after went to the beach for the first time, and then to the center of Cannes, where the 63rd Cannes Film Festival is in full throttle. And, what a beautiful city this is!

It is impossible to describe with words what I saw today. I can only say that I am in paradise.

A rough start

I think the playing trumpets weren't a good start after all... Instead of being in Cannes right now, I am stuck at the JFK airport, longing for the beach and the sun. Although yesterday was one of the greatest adventures I've ever had, it was also very frustrating. Here are the highlights:

1. At DFW: my bag was 58 lbs. Had to leave some stuff behind and re-accommodate in the middle of the Delta counter, making some fellow travelers hate me.

2. At ATL: problem with the engine caused a 3-hr delay. My cellphone died. An armed policeman escorting a Middle Eastern guy out of the plane, little kids kicking & screaming the whole time, and inefficient flight attendants made my flight fairly unpleasant.

3. At JFK: missed flight to Nice by 15 min. After waiting to land due to Obama's visit to NYC, running across the airport, waiting 3 hrs to change my flight & get my heavy bag, running back and forth between terminal 3 and Federal Circle, and spending the night in the big apple, I finally have a seat in the direct flight to Nice.

It was an eventful day. And I am grateful to my new friends, who guided me and made my adventure so much easier to bear. To the 2 ladies going to Istanbul, the 2 gentlemen going to Nice to meet their families, the German couple going home after their vacation, the French guy going home after an exchange program, and to the many other people that helped me, thank you. There are a lot of good people out there.

To Delta Airlines, no further word.

The beginning

5:10 am. The jazz trumpets start playing (my alarm).
This is the beginning of an adventure, and it already started on a good note.
Next time I write, I'll be in France. See you later, Dallas!