Solidarity

At my old school, we had a week every year called "Global Solidarity Week." Each day would have a different theme and we would try (and fail) in different ways to be in solidarity with the more impoverished of the world. For example, we might use no lights and no computers for a day to show how others without power get by. We would even be given a list of a bunch of things we were supposed to do and have our families do at home, like take a cold shower or use a bucket to wash instead of a shower.

The worst part is that after all of this total bullshit, we were required to write a paper of some sort for our religion class about how much more globally aware we were, and how moved we were by how hard it was to go one night sleeping on our cushy floors instead of our cushy beds and how privileged we now felt.

Global solidarity would be a great thing to have. However, spending a night, or even a week, sleeping on the floor to try and understand what those without beds feel seems insulting. I can't pretend to know how hard it is for the underprivileged in the United States, let alone around the world. This hypocrisy always got to me when I was at school during these weeks, but the irony didn't really hit until this past year. At least in my freshmen year we made some sort of effort, but by year four of GSW, it seemed to have lost it's punch. Freshmen year there was a day when we couldn't wear shoes, a day when we sat on the floor, so on and so forth. This year it was a complete joke. Two of the five days weren't even doing anything, we just went to presentations.

It makes me sad and angry that we can't even attempt to find true solidarity with each other, let alone people who have less than us. Yes, we can go through the motions and go a day without using electricity, but does that really mean we have the right to say that we have found solidarity with others? I don't think it does. I think the more important thing that I've learned from my four years of publicity stunt crap was that I can truly say that all four papers I wrote after that week? They were a bunch of lies. I talked about how humbled I felt. Seriously? I cranked those out in fifteen, twenty minutes each, easily.

On the one hand, I wish that there was a way I could be in solidarity with my fellow citizens of the world, but on the other, I can't imagine how horrible that must be, and it seems almost insulting of the people that don't have a bed to pretend that I know what that feels like.

Moral of the story, however depressing it is, is that we can't really understand these things. We understand what we go through, not what others go through. And we should concentrate on how our own experiences have shaped us so that we can have a positive influence on the experiences of others rather than pretending that we have had similar feelings.

I can feel empathy for to underprivileged of our world. But sympathy? Solidarity? For now, that's way beyond me. So I'm not going to pretend.

Cheers,

-T.A.D.