2008 Woodie Awards
What should I worry about?
Keeping college life in perspective
Nick Engelfried
Issue date: 4/25/08 Section: Opinion
Well, I know people who use their membership in a sorority or fraternity as an asset in activism-what better way can there be to find people you can count on to man tables and turnout for events? All the same, I had some misgivings when I heard the news. Especially for over-achievers involved in lots of stuff, it gets very easy to spread yourself too thin. And privately, I wondered how this new development would affect my friend's ability to spend time on the issues we both believed were so important.
At the time of this writing, I have not heard from my friend for a long time. I don't know if the sorority is what did it, but she is-at least for now-not the eager student activist she once was. It breaks my heart to watch this person with so much potential for change get sucked into the vortex of forever pursuing trophies, social relationships, and that ever-elusive "school spirit," at the expense of so much else. Especially at a time when there is so much else in the world to be concerned about.
Of course, none of us can stop global warming alone-or global war, or mass extinction, or any of that. I gather that campus activism has really taken off on our campus this year. Groups like SEA, Pacific Progressive Union and Students for a Democratic Society are actually getting things done this year-things somewhat more important than winning trophies or tracking Boxer's whereabouts. It's SEA that I have the most experience with: this year we staged a campaign to retain the B Street Permaculture Project as an integral part of our campus, held two protest rallies in Hillsboro, got involved in the fight against Liquefied Natural Gas (if you don't know what that is, you should) in Oregon, hosted a film screening and panel discussion on Peak Oil attended by upwards of 60 people, participated in the national Fossil Fools Day of action against fossil fuel industries, and became a branch of the Cascade Climate Network-a new, completely student-run organization taking on climate destabilization in the Northwest.
This is a critical time in our nation's history-in the world's history. Each of us has the chance to get involved, make a difference, and make change. What will you be more proud to remember thirty years from now: winning a school trophy, or helping to win a future for the world that is more "sustainable, just, and prosperous for all," to quote the Cascade Climate Network mission statement?
Thirty years from now, what's really going to matter?
At the time of this writing, I have not heard from my friend for a long time. I don't know if the sorority is what did it, but she is-at least for now-not the eager student activist she once was. It breaks my heart to watch this person with so much potential for change get sucked into the vortex of forever pursuing trophies, social relationships, and that ever-elusive "school spirit," at the expense of so much else. Especially at a time when there is so much else in the world to be concerned about.
Of course, none of us can stop global warming alone-or global war, or mass extinction, or any of that. I gather that campus activism has really taken off on our campus this year. Groups like SEA, Pacific Progressive Union and Students for a Democratic Society are actually getting things done this year-things somewhat more important than winning trophies or tracking Boxer's whereabouts. It's SEA that I have the most experience with: this year we staged a campaign to retain the B Street Permaculture Project as an integral part of our campus, held two protest rallies in Hillsboro, got involved in the fight against Liquefied Natural Gas (if you don't know what that is, you should) in Oregon, hosted a film screening and panel discussion on Peak Oil attended by upwards of 60 people, participated in the national Fossil Fools Day of action against fossil fuel industries, and became a branch of the Cascade Climate Network-a new, completely student-run organization taking on climate destabilization in the Northwest.
This is a critical time in our nation's history-in the world's history. Each of us has the chance to get involved, make a difference, and make change. What will you be more proud to remember thirty years from now: winning a school trophy, or helping to win a future for the world that is more "sustainable, just, and prosperous for all," to quote the Cascade Climate Network mission statement?
Thirty years from now, what's really going to matter?
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