So for my last post, I just want to discuss what I’ve learned about working on this blog.
After exploring hunger and poverty relief efforts, from clubs on-campus to vital organizations in the town, I realized what a passion this town has for helping others. I also learned not to overlook events going on in the area. People often quickly walk past flyers and assume they are too “busy” to attend something that would take two hours of their time or too “broke” donate something that would cost them $5. Yet, if we all slowed down and looked for little ways we can give back, we can help out the people in our community, and that’s what life’s all about.
However, while we are “giving back” let’s remember why we are giving back. Truth is there does not need to be hunger and poverty in the world. We have enough food to feed everyone and we have enough money so nobody has to struggle. Yet, we have the separations of the West and the rest, the Developed and the Third World, the rich and the poor. We create these divides instead of realizing there is one world and we should take care of everyone in it.
I was talking to Christine Olson, who is a faculty member at Cornell and part of the Upward Mobility Project there, about the misconceptions of people suffering from hunger and poverty. Olson said people generally believe those suffering hunger and poverty “don’t work hard enough.” But that is not the case at all. It has to do with “chance,” Olson said, such as where they grew up, where they live now, what opportunities they had, if their parents helped along the way, etc. All the experiences a person has — opportunities or closed doors, fortunate happenings or tragedies — help shape the person’s life. So, if people are hungry or poor, it’s more likely they were unlucky than they “didn’t work hard.”
So remember to give back because you can, but also remember why you are giving back and hopefully that will help shape your outlook on the world and what changes you would like to see.
Alyssa Figueroa
Adam Polaski
Alyssa
