Letters to the Editor

The end of my senior year at Monmouth is quickly approaching. I have begun to think of my experiences I have had while attending Monmouth and started to contemplate which of them explains how I have matured in the last four years. Last semester, I participated in the Washington Semester Program at American University in Washington, D.C. From those three months, I have countless memories and have realized the tremendous amount of growth, both intellectually and socially I went through.

Before I left, I was fortunate enough to talk Silvia Fabela ’07 into attending the program the same semester I was going to be there. Her presence there made me more comfortable about going, and I knew she would not let me get away with any of my “Republican Antics” I am sometimes known for.

I learned so much more than I had expected and overall, I would not trade the experience for anything. I had the opportunity to study topics I would not have here at Monmouth, and gained insight about myself and my abilities.

Memories of Freshman Matriculation and Freshman Seminar flooded my mind as I imagined myself “jumping out of my own fishbowl and into another.” I had heard this saying, but did not quite understand it meant, until I stepped off of the plane at Reagan Airport in D.C.

Living and studying in Washington, D.C. was different than anything I had ever experienced. The sheer size of the city alone was a direct contrast to the world I had become comfortable with living in Illinois.

The fast-paced, politically-centered people I saw running around the city was another element I had not been familiar with. I was amazed with the number of students at American University who were involved in politics. I expected this, but not to the extent of which I saw it first hand.

Any discussion, in any place, at any time could be drawn to politics. I soon grew accustomed to being able to discuss politics with a diverse group of people and gained so much out-of-class knowledge by discussing and considering their opinions aside from my own.

I must say that I jumped into many fishbowls in the short time I was there. I was rooming with two extremely intelligent and friendly German students who were extremely inquisitive about American culture and were willing to share German cultures and ideas with me. Former President Jimmy Carter came to American University to speak, as well as Senator (and Former Presidential Candidate) Bob Dole. I had the privilege of sitting in on presentations and speeches given by:

-Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL)

-Representatives Lipinski (D-IL) and LaHood (R-IL)

-Joe. C. Wilson, Former Ambassador to Iraq

-Matt Bowles, National Field Organizer for the ACLU

-Dan Freeman, Counsel and Parliamentarian, House International Relations Committee

-Les Janka, President and Chair for the Council on American-Saudi Dialogue

-Susan Morrison, Former White House Editor (ABC)

-Marguerite Murer, Special Assistant to the President and Director of Presidential Correspondence;

-Grover Norquist, President, Americans for Tax Reform

-Ron Robinson, President, Young America’s Foundation

-Helen Thomas, Hearst Newspapers Syndicated Columnist, “First Lady of the Press”

-I attended a taping of “CLOSE-UP” on C-SPAN that covered the debate surrounding The Pledge of Allegiance. People from both sides of the debate were involved in the taping: Michael Newdow, Plaintiff and Counsel in Pledge Case (which was being decided by the Supreme Court), and Jay Sekulow, who is Chief Counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice.

-Sept. 24, 2005, I attended a demonstration where hundreds of thousands of people were protesting the war in Iraq. I searched my way through the Grateful Dead t-shirts, socialist pamphlets, and bullhorns to the front of the crowd to a stage. I saw Rev. Jesse Jackson, Rev. Al Sharpton, Congresswomen Lynn Woolsey and Barbara Lee, well-known anti-war musicians Joan Baez and Steve Earle.

After hearing the speakers, artists, and professional politicians who represented this wide range of thought, I went through a personal reformation. I awoke from the defensive mode I had forced myself into, and realized what Monmouth, as an institution, had been trying to teach me for three years. It was apparent that people had ideas that were different to mine, and instead of challenging or rejecting, I accepted and analyzed them.

Of all of the memorable events in Washington, D.C. one stands out in my memories. An entry from my journal I kept while I was there explains the circumstances of this event:

“Last Friday, as I was leaving work, I had made the decision to walk around instead of going straight back to the dorm room as I usually do.I walked several blocks, not sure which direction I was headed and ended up on Pennsylvania Avenue, and in a short time found myself in front of the White House. It is so amazing to be able to leave work, walk about 5-10 minutes [to see the White House, the Vietnam Memorial, Washington Monument and many other famous historical landmarks].

As I was standing behind the black rod iron fence looking at the White House, I was reminded of my whereabouts: I was in Washington, D.C.! I noticed a few protestors standing next to me. [I was used to seeing them and did not take notice to them, until] one of them looked at me and I recognized her, but could not quite place where I had seen her.

After about five minutes of blankly staring at her, one of the other people approached her and said, "Cindy, are you ready to go?" I immediately recognized that it was Cindy Sheehan, the leader of the Anti-War protest held outside of President Bush's ranch in Texas and then the rally that I had attended earlier in the semester, with several hundred thousand people attending.

I approached her and asked for a photo. She immediately agreed to a photo and asked me what I was doing there. I thought briefly, and answered her with a, “Oh, I am just looking around.” When I arrived back at my room for the evening, I had time to contemplate what had just happened. I was ashamed with my answer to her, and wish I had been prepared with something that included a little more wit. If I had the chance to respond to her, I would have said something like:“I am discovering just what living in America is all about. Practicing my freedom to meet and disagree with my neighbor civilly, and participate in discourse without the fear of repercussions. I am jumping out of my fishbowl, and discovering new worlds, cultures, and ideas without the need or use of a passport, weapon, or any special form of identification.”

Looking at the experience from hindsight, I am appreciative of having the chance to grow in this way. Not only will it provide me with something substantial to put on my resume, it has been an experience that has allowed me to realize what lies beneath the instruction of the professors at Monmouth. I saw first hand the diversity of thought and diversity of interest which are two very important philosophies taught here at MC. With my foundation in liberal arts thinking, I was able to thrive on the very diverse points of view and ideologies I experienced while attending American University in Washington, D.C. I encourage anyone who is considering studying abroad to do so.

Go, utilize, and observe what the professors here have been drilling into your head since Freshman Matriculation. Happy Trails!

Dan Bliss, ‘06

Dear Monmouth College:

I was disappointed in you this afternoon. See, there was this guy who came onto campus. Maybe you saw some flyers around; perhaps a teacher or two mentioned that someone was going to be on campus… in Dahl, talking about… you know: AIDS.

And maybe, just maybe, you considered for a moment that you might go. You might make that trek to Dahl and you might devote an hour of your life to hear something about the happenings of our world. But, for some reason, only about 50 of you decided you would ACTUALLY do it.

To be honest, I am really confused about that. I am sure that a lot of you were busy and I don’t want to be a pot calling the kettle black because there have been a lot of presentations and what not that I didn’t go to. However, this afternoon was different. Today was really important and wonderful and I really wish that you had been there.

For those of you who don’t know, Cleve Jones is this amazing activist who has done something monumental with his life. When AIDS came into public concern and discourse in the 1980s, he was a strong voice for AIDS awareness.

After losing many friends to the disease, Cleve Jones found that he too carried the virus.

In 1987, battling grief and dealing with the prejudice he encountered daily, Cleve Jones actually did something. He had an idea, and that idea became what we now know as the NAMES Project or the AIDS Memorial Quilt.

You may not be familiar about this project, and if you want more information please visit: www.aidsquilt.org to learn more.

So today, you know, he talked about that. He talked about being a gay man in America. He talked about what it feels like to be beaten and left for dead because of hate. He talked about what it feels like to lose all your best friends and the alienation that is felt when no one seems to care about why your friends were dying. He talked about how it feels to find out that you too are infected with the disease that doctors don’t know how to treat and the president ignores and the average American labels as the “gay disease.”

But most importantly, Cleve Jones talked about what it feels like to DO something about it.

Today, there are over 80,000 Americans who have died of AIDS who are memorialized because of his efforts. He has met with Nelson Mandela, former presidents George H. Bush and Clinton, and Coretta Scott King.

His memorial is the largest piece of art in the world today. Over 50 other nations have taken his idea and used it to raise AIDS awareness and memorialize their dead.

He is a man whose life I pray my children will celebrate in their schools. And today, he came to Monmouth College.

Today, only 50 of you came and supported his efforts.

(Before I talk about the students I feel that I just quickly have to say that I am very disappointed that I only saw about 3 professors there today. Where were you? I heard that a few of you encouraged students and even offered them extra credit to attend this lecture, but where were you?

If you truly expect the students of Monmouth College to become conscious citizens who are active and engaged in their world, then today would have been the ideal lecture for them to attend.

However, it was evident today that either you didn’t offer an incentive [And believe me, I don’t think one was needed] but you assuredly did not show your support, and that is what hurt me the most.)

To be completely honest, I am upset. I don’t get it. I am upset with you, students, because how many of you have heard through the grapevine about a party this weekend? Are you going to make plans to attend that?

Why is it that we, (I do it too) are more interested in the upcoming party than about the pandemic that is sweeping our world?

If something else is more important than hearing a lecture from a renowned activist and world changer then there is something wrong with our generation. I am sickened by us.

He talked about his generation, about the thousands of people that he has marched with, worked with, did SOMETHING with… And, what is it that we do?

I hope to God that all of you plan on graduating with more than just having a good time. I would hope that you are going to graduate with a better understanding about this world, about other people, about issues and ideas that are hard and tricky.

I would even hope that maybe some of you will commit your lives to dealing with those hard and tricky issues, that you may be a Cleve Jones in your own right.

I’m sorry I am being forceful with this. Part of my frustration lies within myself. What have I done really? I am mad. I am disgruntled. I am lost and ignorant to a lot of the ins and outs of what AIDS really is and what I can do to really do something.

BUT, I think the reason why I am so upset by the horrible turn out today is because I feel like something changed in me today. I feel like I shook hands with someone who embodied the things that I dream about. He inspired that little girl with her fist raised who lives in my heart, mind and words, but whom rarely lives in my actions. He inspired that woman (truly) to feel powerful, to feel able.

And so, the reason that I am upset is because I wanted you to feel that way too. I want our generation to feel that way, to feel inspired and passionate about something enough to actually do something. Because, there are things brewing in our nation right now: big things (AIDS is just one of them).

I don’t claim to know a lot about politics, but I do know the decisions and legislation that is made now will affect me.

It will affect all of us, and I want to be a part of those decisions. I will make myself a citizen who is aware, but more importantly, who is active.

I hope, I pray, that for the good of our country that you will do the same.

Kelly Winfrey, ’06