Get Global Locally
Last week I watched Hotel Rwanda. I cried. No, I bawled. It had such an emotional impact on me that I have spent the better part of my reflection time thinking about the horrible things that man does to each other. The frustrating part is that there is little that I can do right now. Sure, I can work hard and earn lots of money and donate that money to good causes, and I can vote for those officials who I think are going to make decisions most in line with what I think should take place. All of that, however, is not good enough. It is so far distant.
Something that was said in the movie that really bothers me is this -- the main character is talking to someone and asks how, after seeing the footage from Rwanda, the West could not intervene. The person he was talking to replied, "If this footage is shown, I think people will say, 'Oh my G--. That's horrible.' And then, turn back to their dinners." The worst part is: that's all they could do. There is no course of action any Westerner could take individually to make something like that stop. The only people who would have any influence would be politicians, heads of states and governments, the UN, and those service organizations which already have a pre-established prescience, or can quickly gain access (e.g. The Red Cross, etc).
If I were to wake up tomorrow and the headline story was of mass genocide in Botswana there is nothing I can do, no recourse I could possibly take that would have any impact at all on the situation there. That's just the way it is.
Which, leads me to the question: What can I do to make an impact? I could join the Peace Corps, but is that really feasible? A 27 month commitment is not one I can make at this point in my life. I could volunteer at an orphanage in Romania or go on a volunteer mission with Hope International, or get involved with Amnesty International. None of these options, however, are feasible, mostly due to time commitments. Which leads me to an interesting question: if I could go with a group from Hope International (or to a Romania orphanage or the Red Cross or whatever else there is out there of which I am unaware) for one or two weeks (because that's all the time I could possibly take off from work) would they take me? Would my time make any difference? Would it be better if I just gave them the money I would spend on a plane ticket and stay at home? The last option, maybe. However, I had a really interesting discussion a while back on how easy it is to write the check, and how hard it may be to give your time; and that is precisely why we should give our time.
I don't know, and I really doubt I'm going to solve it here. Last night, as my roommate and I were discussing this issue and she suggested that the things I can affect are right here around me. She pointed out that I can raise my (future) children to be more globally minded, for example. That can't be all the good I can do! I want to make a difference! I want to go spend a month in Africa or Latin America or Russian or China, I want to change the world!
Which leads me to the thought that I have long harbored: before we worry about Africa we should worry about America; and before we worry about America we should worry about the state and city we live in. Imagine the kind of America we could have, if we helped those around us first. Then, after we accomplished that, we moved across the world. The global impact would be astronomical. But, that takes time, and time is something we're short on. In the meantime, however, I think Habitat for Humanity is still building homes in our area.
Something that was said in the movie that really bothers me is this -- the main character is talking to someone and asks how, after seeing the footage from Rwanda, the West could not intervene. The person he was talking to replied, "If this footage is shown, I think people will say, 'Oh my G--. That's horrible.' And then, turn back to their dinners." The worst part is: that's all they could do. There is no course of action any Westerner could take individually to make something like that stop. The only people who would have any influence would be politicians, heads of states and governments, the UN, and those service organizations which already have a pre-established prescience, or can quickly gain access (e.g. The Red Cross, etc).
If I were to wake up tomorrow and the headline story was of mass genocide in Botswana there is nothing I can do, no recourse I could possibly take that would have any impact at all on the situation there. That's just the way it is.
Which, leads me to the question: What can I do to make an impact? I could join the Peace Corps, but is that really feasible? A 27 month commitment is not one I can make at this point in my life. I could volunteer at an orphanage in Romania or go on a volunteer mission with Hope International, or get involved with Amnesty International. None of these options, however, are feasible, mostly due to time commitments. Which leads me to an interesting question: if I could go with a group from Hope International (or to a Romania orphanage or the Red Cross or whatever else there is out there of which I am unaware) for one or two weeks (because that's all the time I could possibly take off from work) would they take me? Would my time make any difference? Would it be better if I just gave them the money I would spend on a plane ticket and stay at home? The last option, maybe. However, I had a really interesting discussion a while back on how easy it is to write the check, and how hard it may be to give your time; and that is precisely why we should give our time.
I don't know, and I really doubt I'm going to solve it here. Last night, as my roommate and I were discussing this issue and she suggested that the things I can affect are right here around me. She pointed out that I can raise my (future) children to be more globally minded, for example. That can't be all the good I can do! I want to make a difference! I want to go spend a month in Africa or Latin America or Russian or China, I want to change the world!
Which leads me to the thought that I have long harbored: before we worry about Africa we should worry about America; and before we worry about America we should worry about the state and city we live in. Imagine the kind of America we could have, if we helped those around us first. Then, after we accomplished that, we moved across the world. The global impact would be astronomical. But, that takes time, and time is something we're short on. In the meantime, however, I think Habitat for Humanity is still building homes in our area.
posted by granola girl at 8:09 am
3 Comments:
My father writes letters to the politicians and those who cando more than we can directly. And individually, they may not cause a whole lot of change. But a few of those, thought and written well can be very persuasive. You can think and write well, Granola Girl. I'd venture to say that's another way you personally can make an impact.
I have to wonder how much good letter writing really does, and how much it just makes the writer feel better that they made some effort -- no matter how minimal. Not to diminish your father's effort (or any other like-minded individuals out there), Uffish, but, really -- how much change can a fist-full of letters extract? And, if writing a letter is the best recourse we have then what happens when even that fails us?
If I were a politician, it would be easy to get caught up in my own world of duties and beliefs, and forget that I was representing other people. Letters are a reminder of the people who elect you, and what they would like to see. It's not as effective as digging in yourself, perhaps, but it does seem like something worthwhile, in many cases.
This might be a good question to ask Horatio- he's been digging into the political side of things recently. I liked his post here- http://horatiotastic.blogspot.com/2005/03/its-political-party-and-youre-invited.html, and he's got more information than that if you ask him. I, unfortunately, and mostly politically ignorant- a situation I'm working on changing.
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