The Danger of Microfinance

Small loans in Cambodia drown the poor and buoy the rich.

We are all indebted, in some way or another. We may carry financial debts that we struggle to repay, and debts of kindness, care, and friendship that we know we never will. In his landmark history of debt, David Graeber documents the "profound moral confusion" that has always accompanied discussions of giving, lending, and paying back. To speak of debt is to consider what is owed, and to whom—and to recognize indebtedness as a universal and often unhappy relation.
The pieces in this issue investigate national debts and artistic ones, debts of influence, aspiration, and repentance. From Tonlé Sap lake in Cambodia, Abby Seiff and Sokummono Khan document the precarious world that microfinance has wrought, which has led many poor families to sell off their lands while their lenders reap the profits. From Delhi, Snigdha Poonam writes of the predatory loan apps using deepfaked images to blackmail their clients. From Spain, Sophie Poole brings us an oral history of the nation's Sephardic citizenship program, which promised to bring about "definitive reconciliation" for the expulsion of Jews in 1492, but has, for some, threatened to redouble the loss. From Tbilisi, Joshua Kucera writes of how Georgians are adjusting to an influx of Russian refugees in their cities, and documents the fraught linguistic and cultural politics that have re-emerged as a result.
A trio of pieces in this issue take a hard look at national debt crises of different kinds. From Nairobi, Jacob Kushner rides Kenya's $5 billion railroad to nowhere, a Chinese-backed infrastructural project that has exacerbated domestic corruption. From Berlin, Emily Schultheis captures the German government's tepid reconsideration of its long-held obsession with a balanced budget, a financial fetish that is preventing the nation from making long-term investments that could help it prepare for climate change. Finally, an essay by Elisabeth Åsbrink asks what we owe our friends, especially when they behave badly.
In debt to you, our readers —
The Editors