A Proud Moment [J]

After wrapping up my two-week venture at a summer day camp for the youth of Brasilito, Meradith (founder of AM) assigned me with presenting my observations on AM's involvement in Brasilito to AM's strategy team. I felt like this was an incredible opportunity to showcase my commitment. In the 3.5 days I was given to prepare, I devoted roughly 22 hours into creating a formal speech. Based on the data which I collected from 19 interviews, my view on the community needs was clear. My intention was to deliver a speech with a powerful tone that demonstrates the required urgency of our continued involvement in Brasilito.

The photo which saved the day.

Comparing Potrero and Brasilito is like comparing Queens and the Bronx, New York. Nearby towns whose needs are worlds apart. I expressed that our fundamental objective should be to keep the children off the troublesome streets. The children of Brasilito are desperate for positive adult influences. Their rapid desire to hug me was awesome, yet tragic. I found it interesting how art and cooking were by far the most popular activities of the camp, much more so than sports. I later came to realize the reason for this is simply that they do not have the opportunity nor materials to do either. I told the committee, "To achieve social change, we must have a realistic understanding of the amount of resources this project demands... Every hour spent with the children helps, regardless of its academic content... Katie agrees that providing entertainment may be more beneficial towards development than a straightforward english lesson." Due to the potential lack of participation towards a class strictly based around academics. "We should aim to provide constructive entertainment which incorporates learning and morality." During my interviews, I heard many examples of desensitization from drug abuse, alcohol abuse, and violence. In my speech, I quoted Dr. Polly Wilding's reference of desensitization which I found in Auyero and de Lara's article "In Harm's Way" presented to those of us who participated in the EdGE program with Omprakash.
"Such lived experiences of violence inform future encounters with violence, as they reinforce or challenge the boundaries of acceptable/legitimate aggression, albeit subject to contestation and revision. While violence perpetrated in public may act as a conduit of socialization at a community level, violence in private contributes to socialization within the domestic sphere. Boundaries of acceptable violence in the private sphere also lay the ground for public violence, and vice versa." -Dr. Polly Wilding, 2010

The crew in Huacas just before the clean-up.

On a separate note. I participated in a citywide clean-up of Huacas this past saturday. I did so, aside from the obvious benefits to the local community, to help my new friends at CEPIA who put on the event. CEPIA is an organization which partners with AM in events such as the Brasilito camp. We were split into teams of seven volunteers. The best part was how some of the young kids, who attended the Brasilito youth camp, made an effort to be on my team. The worst part, was when my gloves broke. Word of advice, if you are going to participate in a garbage clean-up, bring an extra pair of gloves! I think the event was successful, my team and I gathered enough trash off the streets to fill at least 6 large bags of garbage and recyclables. This experience inspired me to replicate this effort in Potrero.