Learning to Take a Stand
What? At first glance, the two people from the focus of our readings appear to be vastly different. In “Sabrina Needs Her Identity Back”, we are introduced to Lorena; a young, proud, Mexican-American woman balancing the challenges of work and college. On the other hand, in the “Islands of Decency”, we read of Myles Horton; a known American educator, socialist, and cofounder of the Highlander Folk School.
Despite the initial stark contrast between the two, we find that they share a common passion for education. Lorena believed her job as a human being was to provide knowledge in a way that could change a person’s life. “If I can do that, then I’ve done my job as a human being. I at least wanted to give them knowledge to defend themselves with” (Orner 194). Meanwhile, Horton believed his job as a human being was to provide opportunities for his students to practice making decisions and applying their knowledge, stressing the importance of constantly learning from new experiences. “My job is to try to provide opportunities for people to grow… to provide a climate which nurtures islands of decency, where people can learn in such a way that they continue to grow” (Horton 133).
So what? Although wildly different people, their goals as educators came hand in hand with the social issues they engaged with. After immigrating to the U.S. from Mexico with her family as a young girl, Lorena credits her parents’ hard work with giving her the opportunities in her life to succeed. After given the chance to participate in an internship that would help farmworkers, Lorena finds herself a witness to the harsh reality of farm labor, sparking a passion within her that would prompt her to raising awareness and fixing the present injustices towards families much like her own. “I’ve always felt like I need to give back to those people, because those laborers out there in the fields are like my parents” (Orner 190).
With a similar vision to spark change, Horton sought to emphasize social engagement in regards to social issues. The school’s goal was “to make a contribution toward transforming society” (Horton 134), but in order to make lasting change in the age of the civil rights and labor movement period, they had to somehow help people learn how to lead. “You have to act on what you believe, and when people see how you act, they understand what you believe… If I was going to help people make decisions, I couldn’t give them a speech on the importance of decision making, but I could demonstrate, by my making decisions, that this was something they could and should do” (Horton 143). By taking on students and encouraging their potential through means of allowing them to learn for themselves, their ideas would go on to shape the world.
Now what? In both instances, education is described as crucial to all lives. Lorena first acknowledges her own education as a privilege which broadened her horizons (Orner 192). She then hopes to educate people in ways that will raise awareness of prevalent issues, giving those who need it the power to fight back and defend themselves. To her, schooling and education was always about helping those who needed it most. “Because I don’t have very many tools to defend myself with, I know that knowledge is the only thing I can arm myself with” (Orner 202).
Horton shared a similar appreciation to the power of meaningful education. At Highlander, he praised an experience-based learning environment. Above all, Horton believed in trusting the potential of people; constantly learning and growing through collaboration with others. In his compelling analogy of one’s potential for growth akin to seeds in a garden, he compares the experiences and decisions one faces as the factors which enrich democratic decisions to sprout. “What is essential is that people get the practice of making decisions and that they come to know they should consciously make them at every point” (Horton 138). Only then can there be lasting results.
Through the readings, we are reminded of the importance of learning through your experiences to improve upon the world. Prior to becoming a college student, I had always had a hard time finding my own passions and deciding what I am willing to take a stand for. However, this is the very neutrality that Horton warns against. To feign indifference is to act as if there is nothing to be improved upon. In my case, it’s not that I don’t know what I stand for, or am simply apathetic, but rather that there are too many causes and issues to invest in to the point where it becomes overwhelming. But as was exemplified in the readings, I hope to learn through my experiences and eventually focus my sights to one goal. By combining what I love as a nursing major and what I hope to achieve as a community action and social change minor, with enough drive I can create the change I wish to one day see.
