Chicago-based nonprofit World Bicycle Relief (WBR) doesn’t distribute just any type of bicycle ??? it distributes bicycles meant to navigate the unimproved roads and rough terrain of developing nations, empowering populations to access healthcare, education and economic opportunities that would???
I am so in love with the idea of this bike and it’s predecessor the Buffalo, and I really wish that they would turn their attention for “relief” towards North America. I am sure that there are many people in Africa who benefit greatly from these bikes, but the “we’re going to save your community because you haven’t discovered bikes yet” model is pretty heavily loaded with some at-least-orange flags for white saviorism.
I really wish that instead of (or at least in addition to) trying to save the poor people on the other side of the world, they’d send a few dozen of these things to homeless shelters around the country. I understand that many people don’t think homeless people deserve nice things and might think this is a waste, but the freedom and mobility of a bicycle is just as powerful for lifting people out of poverty here as it is in Africa.