Giving Back: Citizen's Day of Service

"And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country."- JFK

In Social Outreach we aim to empower students by giving them practical advice on how to achieve a tangible change within their communities. The projects are coming along well and the students are begin to draft their actions proposals for the upcoming weeks. For their presentations the students will prepare speeches to the invited faculty and other students. The Social Outreach team invites you to visit us on May 6th 5pm in Ticknor Lounge for the WOW! Presentations. The groups all demonstrate an ability to engage with their administrators and community to change any discrepancies they may see in their schools.

This week in school we discussed the issues relating with conflict resolution. Some students also asked whether it was permissible to use violence as a reaction to any conflict. While John Kennedy remains us of the importance of giving back, I think Martin Luther King does an excellent job of summarizing the points about compassion and conflict:

"Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend."

http://www.soulwalking.co.uk/%A5Artist%20GIF%20Images/Martin-Luther-King-700.jpg

These words are powerful. Short and sweet, but seemingly paradoxical: how can one lovingly transform the actions of another when they have already acted on you? What do you do when actions are irreversible? The problem in this thinking is that these acts of violence, of hurt, are not irreversible, but manifest themselves in numerous ways throughout history. Yet, we do not fight back. We do not fight back to demonstrate our strength in trying times. We do not fight back to prevent our future generations from feeling the same hurt we feel. These acts of violence, be them small, should not ring our fighting bells because leading through example is a sacrifice of the self for the well-being of others; namely, we stay strong to show our resilience and the oppressor's futile attempts to destroy that foundation.

-FDM

Your Social Outreach Committee