There is a general curiosity about how white people live. So our language helpers are seen as a bridge between two cultures, which causes their relatives to pelt them with questions about how white people live and work and eat and sleep. Our language helpers get a variety of humorous responses from relatives and friends when they tell people they are teaching Somali to a white person.
My teammate is Chinese American, so the city relatives of her language helper tell her to "be careful because she might know kung-fu".
But people from the bush (who don't have education or know anything except for camels and goats), believe even crazier things.
"If you don't preform FGM on your daughters they will grow a penis."
"To eat pasta is to eat hair."
"Going to the bathroom inside is terrifying and smelly."
"Don't be friends with white people, they might eat you and then your children." (not kidding, this was from the cousin of my roommate's language helper)
It would seem that education and interactions with different people really is beneficial, and reduces general feelings of fear.
