Tony Choi - San Jose State University



Tony ChoiProfessor SparksEngl1BSeptember 21, 2009The Change That Goes UnseenMost Americans today believe that if our government is not addressing topics or making laws the people want, citizens should raise their voices for change. This has been true for many years before us, from the civil rights movement to the Vietnam War. Despite the understanding of our rich history in standing up for what is right, most of our current generation have ignored the social and political problems of today. On the other hand, a small minority has gone the opposite direction and become proactive against all types of problems we have been facing. As said by Thomas Friedman, in his New York Times article “Generation Q,” a small number of college students are actively involved with other countries in rebuilding projects or studying abroad. However, he is disappointed by how many fewer students are politically engaged compared to his generation or the generations before him. Others would agree with Friedman’s viewpoint, such as Andrea Frainier, a columnist and editor of the Spartan Daily. Frainier states that college students are sitting on their butts and doing nothing while a group of elderly grandmothers are leading the protest against the government for change. “The Raging Grannies,” as these elderly women liked to be called, have taken our place on the streets conducting political stunts using humor, theatrics and songs. With understanding of both viewpoints, I agree that we as a generation are not doing as much as we should but I believe some people within our generation are taking a stand and are not being given enough credit for it. Most people today have good intentions of solving the problems we face in our country or the world. These problems include helping to solve world hunger, stopping the spread of the HIV/AIDS disease, ending the country’s huge deficit problem and many more. The truth is most people don’t even have a clue on how to start. These problems may be enormously complex and even harder for any one person to grasp but doing something is better than doing nothing. Solving problems like world hunger might be a global issue but it can be simple to do your part. For instance, an article from the San Francisco Chronicle titled, “Peanut Butter Plan to Feed the Homeless Spread,” tells of a group of strangers connected together through Facebook, an online social networking website, who meet monthly to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and hand it out to homeless people in the streets of San Francisco. This is a perfect example of how our generation can use technology positively to do their part with a big problem like solving hunger in a big city. This simple plan of giving free sandwiches to people in need is just one small instance of how our generation, the ones who are viewed as people that are glued to their television, iPods, or the computer, are doing their share. Our generation is commonly misunderstood and underestimated. Many believe this computerized generation is a bunch of teenagers and college students who don’t care about anything and are not proactive. However, often these groups of people take advantage of the technologies available today and using them constructively in worthy causes. Groups such as the PB & J sandwich handouts are usually unseen to the public and the media because other more interesting issues such as the newest celebrity breakup or the next big company to file bankruptcy cloud the news we watch every evening. Many groups such as the PB & J sandwich handouts are doing their part at a universal problem like world hunger by making a difference and starting at the grassroots.Still we ask ourselves what can I, myself, one single person can do? One person cannot have a big enough impact and influence to make a change in the huge government system. Well, this can be done and has been done. According to an article in the San Francisco Chronicle, “Green Teen Reaps Rewards of Eco-Friendliness,” by Julian Guthrie, Erin Schrode, a 13-year-old from Marin County thought the same way, “Hey, I'm just a kid. What can I accomplish?” Now 18-years-old and heading off to college, Schrode has fought against the California Legislature in removing harmful chemicals from cosmetics products. She has lobbied for the California Safe Cosmetics Act, which has passed, and requires all harmful chemicals contained in cosmetic product be labeled. She has also lobbied for the removal of lead in lipstick sold in California through the group called Teens for Green, which she and her mother started. Through these deeds she disproved the theory that one person cannot make a difference. As simple or complex as it may be, depending on your point of view, to remove lead or harmful chemicals in beauty products, it is a step towards change. It lets people who have lost their faith in the system and who believe that their vote doesn’t count know that there are still people out there that can make change happen. It shows others that you have a voice and it should be heard. Schrode stood up for what she believed was wrong and did something about it. Like in the closing remark of Frainier’s article about the Raging Grannies, “Stand up for something. Anything,” it shows that we, citizens with the power to vote, ought to have a say in how things should be done. It doesn’t have to be a topic as noble as world hunger or solving the nation’s deficit. You should stand up for what you believe matters to you and interests you so that you can show people that the system can work. In contrast, many young men and women of our generation believe it doesn’t matter, that their voices, their votes are not important in the grand scheme of things. The teenagers and college students of our generation believe the topics and problems, like our California’s budget crisis or the overpopulation of prisons, do not affect them personally and have no value to their daily life, so these people choose to ignore the problem and let someone else handle it. This view can be used to generalize the mindset of the majority of our generation, but if everyone thought the same way, nothing would change. Lawmakers would be able to take advantage and make laws that would support their own agendas and not the well-being of the people. There would be no one to give feedback of what needs to be changed. For example, if California’s state government cut half of the budget for education and no one said anything about it, more and more funding would be cut until eventually it would be gone. If there is no action, no voice to say, “Stop! What are you doing?” awful things would happen and there would be no consequences for the people causing them. It is understandable that it looks impossible for one vote or action to make a difference, but without it, it allows people to benefit and use the government system for their own purposes.As one of those students who don’t do anything about the problems we are facing today, I see now that there are plenty of options to choose from to make a difference. It doesn’t have to be protesting or participating in rallies you can express your voice in your own way. For example, joining a school club or other programs that help others, even learning more about a problem like lessening the damage to the environment is a way of expressing your voice and doing something positive. Everyone can express their voice in their own way like the Raging Grannies using theatrics and humor, going to your Congressmen about harmful products in your make up, or doing something as simple as making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and giving it to people in need. It does not have to be a major topic that will impact the entire world, just stand up for something you believe in and change will happen. ................
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