Tom’s Shoes is one reason why Africans are getting sick of white Americans and white Europeans thinking they need our help. The owner of Tom’s Shoes (not named Tom) found a poor looking village, and took pictures of kids without shoes, and then put this forward as if all across Africa, kids are going around without shoes. So, he made a deal. Buy one pair of really expensively sold, though cheaply made, Tom’s Shoes, and he’ll give a pair to a needy child in Africa!
What was never mentioned is, very few children in Africa are going without shoes at all. Because plenty of companies in Africa were already making shoes. But now that kids who already have shoes are getting free shoes to replace their old shoes they were outgrowing, fewer parents were buying shoes from African shoemakers. Putting African shoemakers out of business. And making Africans more dependent on charity they didn’t really need.
Seriously, you want to help poor Africans? Give them money, and invest in actual business in Africa. Real investment, not micro-loan bullshit where you’re demanding money back as soon as you’ve handed it over. And don’t give the things they can make just fine themselves, if they just had a little money for the facilities to do so. And didn’t have people flooding them with bullshit.