Why MUN Matters: We Can Shake the World
By Fatemeh Naghavinia- 2019 Student Secretary-General of the Spring Model UN Conference, 9th Grader from Muslim Community School/Alim Academy
The struggle for justice often is the distinction between morality and immorality. Model United Nations, a learning experience in which students role-play delegates to the United Nations and simulate UN committees, is truly an opportunity for us youth to step up, take responsibility for the world’s issues, and put them to rest, one by one.
An important aspect of being involved in MUN is how it facilitates research and teamwork skills, along with the aptitude of public speaking. Researching for MUN has taught me two fundamental lessons: to not position myself along one ideology and to act as an open-minded, global citizen when presented with unfamiliar views on certain issues. MUN has taught me that I don’t need to only support the “marketable” opinion to be able to solve a problem; creativity and open-mindedness serve as a segue to successful diplomacy. Speaking as a delegate in MUN has also served as an outlet for me to lay out my ideas and opinions to a broader audience, as well as advance my public speaking skills.
The blessing of having MUN as a platform for everyone from every race and every religion to be able to freely express their opinions is an esteemed privilege. Children have often been disciplined to remain within their inner circles and seldom associate themselves with those from different backgrounds — this dissociation has bred the seeds of systemized discrimination and prejudice in our communities. MUN is able to extinguish the stigma of that mentality, and equipped me with a mentality to consider one’s personality and views from the inside, rather than what society paints them as.
I — as a hijabi, Iranian-American Muslim — have always been encouraged to express my thoughts and opinions, and to never be afraid to stand up for what I believe in. MUN nurtures that sense of responsibility, and encourages me to not only educate myself about ongoing problems, but also to work as a delegate in a communal force aimed at advocating for the silenced.
MUN truly serves as an opportunity to prove to adults that although we — the youth — have our flaws, our strengths are prominent as well. MUN has nurtured and grown those strengths, and given me the voice and mentality I have today. Many of us are driven to create equality between races and religions, but seldom find the willpower or the platform to do so. It was MUN that gave me the confidence to speak out, to voice my opinions and concerns to the world, to believe that I can, and WE CAN shake the world.
This article was originally published on May 29. 2019.
