Returning the Favor: Volunteers and "Guests" at a Food Pantry in Albany, NY

Lecture Center 20

As the state increasingly retreats from welfare and safety net programs, food pantries have become increasingly important in managing the needs of food-insecure people in their neighborhoods. Based on 6 months of participant observation and interviews at a local food pantry in Albany, New York, I examine interactions between volunteers and “guests” as they navigate race, ethnicity, class, and national belonging. As with most charitable organizations, volunteers are required to contribute physical and emotional labor without expectation of reciprocity. However, as Mauss famously argued, mutual reciprocation solidifies the relationship of social equals, while the inability to reciprocate maintain the recipient in a lower status. This paper argues that despite well-intended volunteers’ efforts to treat guests with dignity and respect, the volunteer-“guest” relationship still reflects the current unequal social structure.