To be honest when I started taking this class I would have never viewed myself as ever becoming an activist. This class was 4 credits and the "P" I needed to graduate at the end of the semester. It wasn't until the memoir project that any kind of real interest would spark. Jody Williams memoir "My name is Jody Williams" was extremely inspiring. She spends a great portion talking about and describing how much of a normal person and normal life she had. We made the argument in class that Jody and Malala were extraordinary in what they accomplished, and you would be a fool to disagree, but the methods to which they gained their claim to fame was simply being in the right place at the right time. Jody won a Nobel prize for banning the use and production of land mines, which 10 years prior she didn't even know was a problem. She had no expertise in the field, yet she was approached with the option and didn't really have anything else going for her so she went for it. She learned as she went and ended up being very good at it. This sounds like any capable human that has any kind of dedication. It is understandable that the lifestyle of a hardcore activist is not one that many people would take on, including myself, but believe that anybody could be a Jody Williams.
The Malala story shares the exact same argument, I believe that Malala was simple lucky enough to live to become a martyr for a cause. As the professor Lubna Chaudry, Chair, Human Development Department, explained when presenting her research to the class, there were many like Malala; kids who stood up to the Talaban and education rights, yet most of them did not live to see fame, or for some reason were just not recognized. I believe in the eyes of the people in the Swat Valley Malala was just simply another person standing up to the Talaban for not only survival but their rights. I don't think they saw her as a hero, I think that many of the kids there could have been a Malala if it had been them who had been shot and lived. None the less I'm sure they are extremely proud of her for winning the Nobel prize.
Both of these are examples of 'normal' people who are put in extraordinary positions and make the best out of them, both resulting in a Nobel peace prize. I think a person could be a passionate activist all of his/her life and never see a Nobel Prize, I think it has less to do with being a diehard activist, and more about being in the right place at the right time. What do you think?
Dan,
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with what you had to say here. When I first thought about taking this class I took it because I knew that I was interested in public service. I wasn't quite sure what that meant or what it would entail, I just knew that I was interested.
Nearing the end of the semester, I can say that my perspective on public service and making a difference is entirely different than what I expected in the beginning of the semester.
Anyone can make a difference. Like you said, Jody Williams and Malala both are normal people who made a difference. There is nothing inherently different about them, other than the circumstances that they grew up in.
I think the most important thing about being an activist that we learned from this class is not that you need to be a diehard one, but rather that you need to know the facts and be in the situation. The situation at hand definitely plays a part to how you make the change, but the most important part is knowing what is going on and how to solve the problem.
Dan,
ReplyDeleteI really admire the point you raise, that even normal people have the capabilities to truly make a difference in their society. I even had a similar experience to the one you had involving the Memoir project. Through the project I was able to learn that normal people are, and can become changemakers.
Similar to what you and Stephen experienced, my perspective of public service and civic engagement was expanded through this class. I now realize that I had a merely narrow view of the role civic engagement can play in a community and the various roles civic engagement can come in.
Stephen is right in stating that being an activist involves more of knowing the facts and being in the situation. Jody Williams who had no previous affiliation with land-mines, won the Nobel Peace prize for her efforts against them. As we learned through our discussions, an important role in civic engagement is merely knowing information about who/what you're helping, and where help is the most needed in that area.
Dan,
ReplyDeleteAs all of you have stated, my view on civic engagement and what it means to serve have been impacted since taking this course. I realize that I don't have to be some phenomenal human being to make difference.
Saying that, I think that being seen by the public eye as an individual in your activism is what results in people being selected for Nobel Prizes. With Malala for instance, she was catapulted to fame because she was in the right place at the right time, and as you stated Dan, any one of the children from the Swat Valley, had they been where Malala stood, could have been in Malala's position today.
So I think that Nobel Prize recipients aren't necessarily any different from activists who haven't received a Nobel Prize, but just happen to have gotten the opportunity to be in the public eye. The good thing is that they use their fame to try and further advance their work.
I do agree that a big part of getting ahead in life is about being in the right place at the right time. However, I don't think that luck is the primary factor in the success of these two individuals or of any of ourselves.
ReplyDeleteMalala and Jody are products of their cultures, their educations, and the people they have been close to. If it were not for the backgrounds that these people came from they never would have been in the right places at the right times. If they were not taught at some point the importance of sticking up for themselves and for others, being in the right place at the right time would have meant nothing because they never would have known how to cease that moment.
I completely agree that luck is what placed them at the top of public recognition for their work, but I do not think luck is what made them the type of people they are. I feel like if everyone just waited for luck to help them make change in the world, very few things would ever really change.
Dan,
ReplyDeleteI had the same suspicions as you earlier on when taking this class. As we come near the end of the semester, I think about how my view of civic engagement has changed drastically. I thought volunteerism was just about showing up and lending out a helping hand and that would be the full extent of the experience. However, it is all a waste of time if it’s not effectively and throughout the course of this semester, we have constantly discussed what constitutes an effective civic engagement. Reading Greg Boyle’s memoir on helping gang-related youth find their way back into society helped me realize that passion and love that goes into making civic engagement effective and allows for ordinary people to create a drastic change in our society. Greg Boyle led a very average life but was very involved and committed to what he believed was making a difference across the lives of many gang-related youth who are trapped in the violent gang life and are looking for a way out. He had true unconditional love for each of his youths and enjoyed what he did as a living which are the quintessentials of volunteerism.
Dan,
ReplyDeleteI believe being in the right place at the right time obviously has to do with luck, but I also would have to disagree for the most part. A person doesn't just walk into a position and is suddenly handed the Nobel Peace Prize. A lot of these people worked very hard to get "Lucky."
Most of the class during the memoir readings came to a conclusion that these people were ordinary people who did extraordinary things which definitely surprised me. In a short video I found, it shows "ordinary" people who had to overcome failures (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPoGb8ZQtVg). These people are clearly not ordinary. In the beginning of the video it says "His Aunt Mimi said he would never make a living playing the guitar," and then cuts to John Lenin.
The other people focused in on in this video did not become successful over night. This is the same to say about Malala, Gnarr, Boyle, and Williams. Although some did get lucky at times, all of them had to put everything they had into what they were passionate about. None just stumbled upon success. I know you know this as well, but I feel like the journey of these people are not appreciated enough. I believe that it DOES take an extraordinary person to be able to deal with adversity in order to do something extraordinary. They must be able to have enough faith in what they are doing to go "all in" and achieve something worth working for.
I completely agree with what Jason said about luck and character. Luck, or circumstance, at least, have have placed these people at the right place or time, and it may have been the reason why they among all similar activists were recognized, but to say that all activists rely on luck is misleading. It's true that many young people stood up to the Taliban, like Malala, but because of circumstance, she is the one we;ve made into a celebrity. But your argument would lead us to believe that all activists like Malala were simply lucky. They were not. Each one of them, whether they became well-recognized or not, had the strength of character and conviction to rebel against one of the most repressive and violent regimes in the world. As Shakespeare writes in "Twelfth Night," "Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them." Not all activists are born great. Many, like Malala, made an active decision to work towards greatness, towards justice. And that is extraordinary.
ReplyDeleteDan,
ReplyDeleteIt is nice to hear that my peers are getting as much out of this class as I am and I'm sure that makes Professor Campbell happy as well. As I do agree that Jody Williams and Malala were incredible people, I disagree to say that they were just in the right place at the right time. The things that they accomplished were due to perseverance and leadership skills that they possessed. Of course Malala's influential father and family upbringing about the importance of education had an influence on her and the same goes for Jody Williams. However, the qualities and determination they possessed shouldn't be lessened because they received acknowledgement. Yes there are other people fighting for the same causes who don't become famous, but it wasn't luck that made them known it was their own strengths that got them there. In response to you question, obviously not every activist can will the Nobel Peace Prize but that shouldn't take away from any work that an individual has done. In Gergory Boyle's memoir 'Tattoo's on the Heart' he emphasized that it isn't about how large of an impact you are making, but any attempt to make a change at all, no matter how small, is still meaningful, Nobel Peace Prize or not.
Dan,
ReplyDeleteI like the point you make in asserting that even people who are highly accomplished have similar, “normal” roots, and that everyone does in fact have the capability to make a different in their society. This idea, which seems to have been an overarching theme throughout the semester, is key to understand in order to produce engaged and active members of society.
I don’t believe any of the individuals we have discussed in class simply woke up one day and that they decided be an advocate for a particular cause. As in many other cases we have examined in class, it would appear that people are largely products of their circumstances and that surrounding factors hold an inevitable influence on the course of peoples’ lives. Though I believe that environment plays a key part, I do agree with what Jason had to say about luck and timing not being the only factors coming into play. These elements may have aided in bringing a attention to people like Malala and Jody’s causes, but it takes much more than that to be successful. We cannot discredit their leadership, perseverance, and character by attributing their accomplishments exclusively to luck.
Countless extraordinary people have been acknowledged, but you don’t have to be acknowledged to be extraordinary. We often look to people who have been awarded a Nobel Prize or other honors as examples to follow by, but at the end of the day I believe that these garnishes become irrelevant. More emphasis should lie in the fact that these extraordinary things are being worked towards every day by millions of different people, regardless whether they will be guaranteed recognition or not.
Dan,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that Jody Williams and Malala "got lucky", in the sense that they were both in the right place at the right time but I think what makes them different from ordinary people is their courage to speak out to the world about their topic of interest so passionately and eloquently. I think there is a lot to be said about Malala's and Jody Williams's character and leadership skills by the way they present their passion to the world. In Malala's case, she speaks so beautifully and so un-hatingly towards the Taliban that it really shows that she is such an incredible human being, which is why I think she won the nobel peace prize. Some ordinary people may also be in the right place at the right time but the way in which they would describe their story to the world may not resonate the same way that Jody's and Malala's do. Everyone has the potential to do something great in the world but I think that some people are just better at it then others, which is okay. I don't think that we should discredit anyone's accomplishments simply by luck. Not everyone is cut out to be a famous figure head on a topic. It takes many skills and talents to be able to do this like Malala and Jody Williams.
Dan,
ReplyDeleteUpon taking this course, my view on civic engagement has also definitely evolved throughout the semester. I think this was actually what Professor Campbell was hoping for all along and after reading everyone’s comments it seems like a lot of us experienced this. I too read Jody Williams’ memoir and thought her ability to humanize herself intentionally was inspiring. This idea of being ordinary instead of extraordinary was a common theme that I noticed throughout all the books after discussing them in class. I agree with you in that each author was just a “normal person put in extraordinary positions” achievable by all of us. If we are passionate enough about what we are advocating for it is possible for any of us to reach Jody or Malala’s level even if we don’t win a Nobel Peace Prize. In my opinion the author’s of the memoirs won the Nobel Peace Prize partially because of their circumstances. I don’t completely agree however with the idea that they are replaceable by just anyone. I think they worked extremely hard to get to where they are now and we shouldn’t assume that being in the right place at the right time was the sole reason they gained notoriety.
Dan,
ReplyDeleteI both agree and disagree, I agree in that I don’t think you need to be a die-hard activist to make a big difference but I feel like there is a certain attitude that is absolutely necessary when talking about changemakers and with making a change yourself. Although both Malala and Jody Williams are both ordinary people they exemplify a sort of selflessness that allows them to commit to making change and to actually achieving these extraordinary things. I believe that this selflessness is displayed both with Malala and Jody Williams both although differently. With Malala it’s displayed in her bravery that she spoke out with the threats of the Taliban looming over her, even risking her life and surviving a Taliban attack and refusing to stop speaking out. I think Jody Williams’ selflessness applies more to us though in that she wasn’t concerned about finding g that job that would make her the most money, she was willing to live a lifestyle that would allow her to make the change that she did. I think both of these women are extremely inspiring in that their attitude is something achievable that we can all incorporate in our lives, and we should all aspire to have in one way or another no matter how big or small.
Dan,
ReplyDeleteAlthough i agree that the fame both Jody Williams and Malala received was due to the “stroke of luck” that was placed into their hands, i also believe that there are also many little factors that contribute to their ultimate fame. I understand that although there are plenty of people in similar positions to Malala and Jody Williams but are not recognized for their efforts, i also believe that there are a combination of other factors that, in addition to the stroke of luck. I believe that it also takes persistence, fearlessness, dedication, and open-mindedness to failure and change.
The definition of civic engagement is individual and collective actions designed to identify and address issues of public concern. There is nowhere in the definition that states that to do civic engagement you need to be famous to do a civic act. Although fame is an advantage to a larger acknowledgment for the cause, it is not necessary to be famous to do something as life changing as Jody or Malala. I think that if you do enough good deeds, the “stroke of luck” will come. I believe that neither Jody nor Malala believed that if they took this initiative they would be famous. It was not their ulterior motive. They wanted to make a change, and by fearlessly going about civic engagement, they got a chance at fame.
Dan,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you in thinking that Jody and Malala are both extraordinary since their accomplishments are greatly impacting the lives of others. Jody banned the use and production of land mines, saving an innumerable amount of lives. Malala is now the poster child for the struggles of women in the Middle East in their desires to receive an education without persecution. The in-class presentation from Professor Lubna Chaudry taught us that many children are in the same or similar position to Malala. The point illustrated was that although there are many like her, Malala is one of the few who was heard.
I truly believe that almost anyone could be Jody with the right dedication and hard work. There was no catalyst required to thrust her into her position, with the exception of being lucky enough to have connections and gain an audience. Jody was exploring her options and found a subject she found compelling, and worked at it. Having the right connections and knowing the right people in order to progress one’s work does require some luck. Simply reaching out to a larger organization does not guarantee a work relationship, since some people do not want to be affiliated with others or spend money on every cause that comes their way. Having enough support to get work done also requires some luck, considering that gaining support requires people to be interested in a cause. There are so many human rights violations occurring, and there is also no guarantee that Jody’s cause would be the most pressing. The reason why I feel that anyone could be Jody is because that anyone could work hard and dedicate themselves to a cause. As with any cause, being lucky enough to get connections and gain an audience is a requirement, which can be considered possible by anyone since the chance of successfully making connections and gaining an audience is the same for everyone. Jody may be extraordinary, but she did not require a miracle or extreme luck streak in order to become the person she did.
As for Malala, her advocacy and involvement with the issue depended on multiple factors. It depended on where she lived, the chance of her being targeted by the Taliban, and the chance of her surviving a bullet to the head (which could be considered a miracle itself). The possibility of having all this happen is small, and is a unique circumstance for an individual. Many people are in a similar position to Malala, but hardly any get recognized. All of these unique circumstances contribute to the catalyst needed for Malala to be known and gain enough support to be recognized. Suffering because of the Taliban is still not enough to be recognized on a national level, as Professor Lubna Chaudry showed through her testimonies from the children. Malala is the person we know her as because of an extreme streak of luck and the miracle of surviving a headshot.
People do extraordinary things every day so yes i think that it takes some luck of being in the right place at the right time. I think that people like Malala represent a bigger group of people than just themselves. Malala even said it herself that any of her fellow classmates or advocates could be in her position. It is no denial that Malala does have great leadership skills and is mature for her age, but that doesn’t mean that the other girls are any different. If given the opportunity I’m sure that many girls would step up as leaders like Malala. Malala has the support of her family, especially her father, and that is what makes her extraordinary.
ReplyDeleteWinning a Nobel Peace Prize is a great honor and nothing should be taken away from that, but somebody has to win it. Somebody needs to be recognized as the leader of a group of change makers. Anyone that is willing to work hard with some luck and courage can make a difference.
What you brought up about being extraordinary of just being a stroke of luck is something very interesting. When our guest speaker came and said how there were people just like Malala who weren't recognized for their efforts, it made me wonder about all the unsung and forgotten heroes who have accomplished just as much as Malala and others like her. It makes me sad that not everyone can get the recognition that they deserve but it also put a more down to earth and humanistic approach to changing the world. Learning about her and others from our readings definitely showed me that you don't need to be born 'extraordinary'. What makes you extraordinary are the actions you choose to take when faced with a challenge.
ReplyDelete