Deficiency of Compassion: Impressions Following Nazario Talk
response to tonight's event and overheard privileged vitriol
posted about 10 years ago
I just got back to my apartment after attending the inspiring and emotional hour and a half long talk with Sonia Nazario, author of Enrique's Journey, the book chosen as our new student reading this year at UMBC. It was emotionally charged to put it lightly, but I would not say the talk was political in nature. I would say it was exposing and narrative, with implied political undertones, but ones that didn't overly support any particular ideology or alignment.
For those of you who didn't read it or are unfamiliar Sonia Nazario is a Pulitzer prize winner. She is an immigrant herself from Argentina. She has over twenty years experience as a journalist writing mostly about social justice issues. She spent five years writing, reporting, and researching the flight of children fleeing violence and debilitating economic conditions in Central America to come to the United States. Her talk this evening was a fascinating, uninhibited insight into the plight and staggering motivations of these Latino refuges escaping worsening violence and economic hardships in their home countries, and the dangerous journeys across immigration check points, navigating corrupt cops, gang members, drug cartels, and lowly bandits.
Leaving the talk I was invigorated with the drive and feeling of responsibility to advocate for the realities of these struggles in whatever small way I can either in my daily life, or perhaps in some distant vocation that awaits me after college. But INSTANTLY upon pouring out of the ballroom I heard the inane, shrill, unbecoming critiques of what I thought was a heartfelt compassionate spotlight on the struggles of others.
"Seriously, F**K that lady! That was NOT worth the extra credit. Those kids don't even pay taxes! I disagree with everything she said."
I went from inspired by the eye opening, dedicated, tireless advocacy work of Ms. Nazario to absolutely defeated by the entitled, privileged vitriol spewing from my fellow students.
There is a saying, "A shallow brook babbles the loudest." That holds true in this case.
Most of the disagreement seems to have stemmed from Nazario's conclusion, proposing what she saw as sensible foreign policies to help remedy the situation, both for Central American and the United States, because this is a shared economic and humanitarian crisis. They consisted of fairly innocuous critiques of the short comings of global capitalism and American foreign policies, but nothing that I felt was even skirting the line of inflammatory. She proposed the most productive thing we could do is support governments that promoted economic systems that empowered their people, encouraged domestic industry, aiming to end the mind boggling economic suffering and violence that these people face every day. She said ideally these Central American countries in economic ruin could be improved to a point where the people would stay and feel no urgency to immigrate to the United States. She even lamented the unproductive, anger filled theatrics and politicization surrounding these issues passed off as discourse in our country. She really wasn't pushing an agenda, and any political sensibilities she expressed towards the end of her talk were constructive, espousing unity and empowerment, and a relief to poverty and violence.
So why then the hate? Why the entitled vitriol? Why the deficiency of compassion or open minds? These conditions of economic disparity and de-facto criminal war zones have been created in part by America's economic and foreign policies, so shouldn't we want to, as Sonia Nazario said, "use every tool in the toolbox" we can to fix this problem? She even framed it in a patriotic light. We have so much in this country. We have so much clout and so many resources so few around the world do not. Shouldn't we want to realize the apparent greatness we are told over and over again that we are imbued with?
I left this talk feeling inspired by the words and work of Sonia Nazario and the infrastructure of UMBC that makes such great events like this happen... but terribly uninspired by the sensibilities of UMBC students. I think that's sad. I don't want to think everyone on this campus is so close minded and self centered. I try to remember to not listen to those shallow babbling brooks, and instead look out for those with oceans of kindness and deep thought in their hearts and minds.
I should say... there was an uproarious applause and standing ovation for Ms. Nazario following the conclusion of her talk, and the energy in the room was palpable. Her time seemed to be collectively appreciated, but the overheard conversations afterwards were still embarrassing.
For those of you who didn't read it or are unfamiliar Sonia Nazario is a Pulitzer prize winner. She is an immigrant herself from Argentina. She has over twenty years experience as a journalist writing mostly about social justice issues. She spent five years writing, reporting, and researching the flight of children fleeing violence and debilitating economic conditions in Central America to come to the United States. Her talk this evening was a fascinating, uninhibited insight into the plight and staggering motivations of these Latino refuges escaping worsening violence and economic hardships in their home countries, and the dangerous journeys across immigration check points, navigating corrupt cops, gang members, drug cartels, and lowly bandits.
Leaving the talk I was invigorated with the drive and feeling of responsibility to advocate for the realities of these struggles in whatever small way I can either in my daily life, or perhaps in some distant vocation that awaits me after college. But INSTANTLY upon pouring out of the ballroom I heard the inane, shrill, unbecoming critiques of what I thought was a heartfelt compassionate spotlight on the struggles of others.
"Seriously, F**K that lady! That was NOT worth the extra credit. Those kids don't even pay taxes! I disagree with everything she said."
I went from inspired by the eye opening, dedicated, tireless advocacy work of Ms. Nazario to absolutely defeated by the entitled, privileged vitriol spewing from my fellow students.
There is a saying, "A shallow brook babbles the loudest." That holds true in this case.
Most of the disagreement seems to have stemmed from Nazario's conclusion, proposing what she saw as sensible foreign policies to help remedy the situation, both for Central American and the United States, because this is a shared economic and humanitarian crisis. They consisted of fairly innocuous critiques of the short comings of global capitalism and American foreign policies, but nothing that I felt was even skirting the line of inflammatory. She proposed the most productive thing we could do is support governments that promoted economic systems that empowered their people, encouraged domestic industry, aiming to end the mind boggling economic suffering and violence that these people face every day. She said ideally these Central American countries in economic ruin could be improved to a point where the people would stay and feel no urgency to immigrate to the United States. She even lamented the unproductive, anger filled theatrics and politicization surrounding these issues passed off as discourse in our country. She really wasn't pushing an agenda, and any political sensibilities she expressed towards the end of her talk were constructive, espousing unity and empowerment, and a relief to poverty and violence.
So why then the hate? Why the entitled vitriol? Why the deficiency of compassion or open minds? These conditions of economic disparity and de-facto criminal war zones have been created in part by America's economic and foreign policies, so shouldn't we want to, as Sonia Nazario said, "use every tool in the toolbox" we can to fix this problem? She even framed it in a patriotic light. We have so much in this country. We have so much clout and so many resources so few around the world do not. Shouldn't we want to realize the apparent greatness we are told over and over again that we are imbued with?
I left this talk feeling inspired by the words and work of Sonia Nazario and the infrastructure of UMBC that makes such great events like this happen... but terribly uninspired by the sensibilities of UMBC students. I think that's sad. I don't want to think everyone on this campus is so close minded and self centered. I try to remember to not listen to those shallow babbling brooks, and instead look out for those with oceans of kindness and deep thought in their hearts and minds.
I should say... there was an uproarious applause and standing ovation for Ms. Nazario following the conclusion of her talk, and the energy in the room was palpable. Her time seemed to be collectively appreciated, but the overheard conversations afterwards were still embarrassing.
(edited about 10 years ago)
