THE COST OF THE CAUSE

A few decades ago, my ancestors undertook the burden of a massive project, the ousting of westerners from the motherland and the cessation of exploitation of African resources, much more than an issue of taxation without representation, the people were tired of being used as the medium of harvesting the resources which were used to further exploit them.

Halfway across the world another group of people undertook their own project. The American Negro grew tired of its status in society. A class below all else, baser even than work animals, the only rights that the American Negro seemingly had, was the right to at least be seen in the same place as Westerners, even though this situation proved irrelevant because they could no sooner call America home as they would call Africa home..

A few decades before that, The women declared war on a perception, the perception of themselves as lesser humans, fit only to perform basic domestic duties, to be seen but not heard. Martin Luther took on the Catholic Church, challenging the power of the pope. Fighting for the recognition of all humans as equal before God and hence each with the ability for direct contact with God.

The people who spearheaded these movements were exemplary positive radicals whose sense of right and wrong were not much different from those of the majority of the people around them. The difference between these folks and others was their determination to take on the mountain that was their challenge.

These people had to oftentimes witness, false reasoning, torture, ignorance and ultimately betrayal. They lost family, friends, and some lost the homeland they were fighting for, branded as radicals, secessionists enemies of the peace, they ended up been statesmen, freedom fighters, reformists and martyrs, but throughout their struggles they stayed on course for their cause.

Inarguably they were a successful lot. Gradually their dreams were realized. Their determination to see change no matter the cost they had to pay proved telling. Even though some of them lost their lives before their dreams were realized, an argument may be made that their death contributed to the end of such struggles.

Today our generation is faced with its own set of problems. The threat of a coming disaster of calamitous proportions seems certain, the questions been asked are, whether our generation will sit back and watch it happen, and what will the disaster be like. At the present moment, it is a close call between an environmental disaster linked to unsustainability or global warming, or nuclear disaster. It is like the world in its humanity is waiting for a suicidal member of one of the marginalized minorities like Tibetans, African Americans, Palestinians or Africans to seize control of a nuclear weapon or blow up the world into oblivion, either that or a flood that wipes out all the landmass.

Fortunately I am among people who realize not only that there is a problem, but that actions must be made to tackle these issues. Typified by the college’s institution of a Sustainability and Environmental Studies program (SENS) that seeks to promote the participation as well as education in Environmental and sustainability issues, the SGA that has determined to push forward its mandate of encouraging and sponsoring campus wide events that contribute towards awareness raising of contemporary issues and the efforts of the student body who are forever fastidious in attending conferences, seminars, workshops and implementing whatever strategies learned to address changes, and even identify and address issues of concern. In this month alone Berea college students have attended or will be attending, Engaging our World Conference, Emerge Conference, Power Shift and the National Baha’i convention to name but a few. Furthermore, Student activist refused to stay silent when injustices like Jena Six, Assault on Meghan Williams and the continuing crises in Tibet carry on.

Such efforts I am certain are highly appreciated however the question that has remained unasked is what price we put on those causes. What is the cost we are willing to pay to end those injustices. When we are here, are we willing to boycott food service for serving non fair trade items, boycott the bathrooms because of unsustainable tissues? Are we willing to walk to Wal-Mart because the school shuttle does not use biodiesel fuel, resign our job because we drive school vehicles that continue to pollute the atmosphere? As international Students, are we willing when we get back to our respective countries to raise our voices against all the injustices even if it means losing jobs we came all the way to the United States to study for?

Hopefully it may not come to that. Hopefully all will contribute towards bearing the costs of the cause that we are in together. It is frequently said that the greatest trick the devil played is to convince humanity that he does not exist.

The greatest challenge we will face in our quest to take on the challenges we face will be that of ignorance, the people who believe that global warming is a myth, that racism issues do not affect them and that the plight of the Tibetan monks is no way related to them. The sooner we can get to them with the idea that the world is a community that relies on all its members for its continuity, the easier our task will be. For the more people we have in this our cause the less the individual cost.