Invisibility

For some reason -- God only knows why -- I've been thinking a lot about my US Government class. The class I had to take last year. The class that's required for every senior in every school in Indiana, primarily to indoctrinate them into democracy. At least that's my working theory. And in keeping with a class that's required for graduation, nobody really cares about this class. It is simply there. We are given a textbook with an American flag on the cover, printed before the War in Iraq became as much of a quagmire as it is today, and lots of shiny pictures and graphs for the kids who can't read at grade level. I believe there are more pictures of George W. Bush than any of the other presidents, but I never bothered to count. I may borrow one at some point and do so.

My US Government teacher was Mr. Kuhmichel. He is an intimidatingly tall young man whose uncle played football for Notre Dame and who is a bit of a square, albeit a pleasant square who seems to like his students most of the time. Mr. Kuhmichel didn't really expect any of us to care deeply about government, but he did want people to at least think about issues and the processes of government. Most of US Government is a blur of silly charts and debates, which usually found me arguing with Mr. Kuhmichel (in devil's advocate mode) because nobody else cared enough to discuss the news articles he referenced at the beginning of class.

No, I've been thinking about the persuasive papers we had to write at the end of the semester -- towards the end of my senior year. Each student was required to choose an issue and to write a paper persuading people to take a stand and follow a course of action on some major issue relating to politics or the government. At the time, I was interested in the issue of child soldiers in Uganda and the Sudan, as well as the conflicts in general. I still am. I won't go into a lot of detail about it, but I had just worked on an article that involved interviewing five former child soldiers, and it was very intense.

When I wrote the paper, my focus was persuading people that something had to be done, because I had taken an economics class discussing capitalism and communism and felt, and still feel, that many people think that because these conflicts don't directly concern the United States, the US government shouldn't become involved in diplomatic action beyond sanctions. I also feel very strongly that this kind of detachment from other human beings, even those halfway around the world, is very damaging to society as a whole.

Mr. Kuhmichel didn't have many comments for the paper, except at the end. There, he wrote, "Okay, you've convinced me. Now what can I do?" And although I had included some ways for people to become involved, I knew at the time that I wrote the paper that they were incomplete and, well, ineffectual.

So that's what I've been thinking about for about five months. How can we effect change, not just for child soldiers, but for other issues? Writing letters, signing petitions, making phone calls; these are all well and good, but not really effective when you aren't effectively represented. When the Indiana legislature was voting on an amendment to ban gay marriage (which fortunately failed to get the minimum number of votes needed to pass), I signed a petition to several local legislators. I received replies from several, and even a phone call from one. He essentially called to tell me that he believed that homosexuality was a choice, a morally wrong choice, and he would ignore my voice in favor of representing people that hadn't contacted him (although he didn't say the latter part in so many words). I argued with him, knowing that I could not change his mind, and hung up confused and angry. Why would he even bother? I will never vote for him. This only served to solidify my belief that in the present system, representatives are not really representative. They are elected to follow a line, rather than to represent a diverse group of people with different interests and beliefs. They often vote differently than their constituents, even the ones that vote for them, would. So that avenue isn't really a way to get involved in the political process.

A large part of the issue is that people don't readily listen to students, particularly high school. I'm in college now, fortunately, so perhaps that will change, but it's almost dangerous now to become involved in some political activities. Employers cannot legally discriminate on the grounds of sex or race, but there is nothing preventing them from looking at your past activities, and because of the Internet nothing is in the past. This blog itself is probably a bad idea, but I'll keep doing it anyway, posting without any identifying information if I can help it.

If I had more money, I would donate it to organizations. Unfortunately, I'm a poor college student with no job. That will change this summer, but even then a lot of that money will be earmarked for school and expenses.

I help fight global warming by walking, biking and taking a bus, now. However, I can't all the time. I try not to drive too much when I'm at home, not least because I'm a terrible driver, but I don't live within walking distance of anyplace at all and I do have to run errands. And again, if people don't want to believe that global warming exists, they won't. I've been arguing with some people for two or more years about whether it is caused by a second Ice Age or not.

So how can people become involved in a vague conflict, when the government doesn't listen anyway? Voting is an obvious choice, of course. Keep raising awareness of issues like child soldiers through movements like Invisible Children. Join the ACLU and other organizations that work to protect the rights of everyone, not just the few. Then actually do something for those organizations; don't just say you're a member. Go to protests. Let the world know that not everyone is represented by the prominent stubborn people.

And for students, don't just talk the talk. Walk the walk. If you want to make a difference, your future career can be a major contributor. I plan on studying environmental civil or chemical engineering, because I know I can make a difference in the fight against global warming that way. In the few precious years until I graduate, I can keep educating myself on the issues and the science behind it. Then I plan on studying environmental law, or possibly civil liberties law - I'm not really sure which yet, because both are interesting, but one of the two. And then I'm going to take up arms. I'm an intelligent, creative, persuasive individual. I will find a way, whatever way I can, to make a difference. Right now, I'll start by simply knowing and caring about these issues, by informing myself and others. It's all I can really do.