Eric looking forward to putting into practice the skills he's aquired

From February 12th to 14th, we attended our Human Rights for Social Cohesion Training hosted by Africa Unite, “a human rights and youth empowerment organization that works with citizens, refugees and migrants to prevent conflicts, enhance social cohesion and promote socio-economic development.” Despite the fact that Amelia and Mary are completing their internship there, they did a great job at remaining tight-lipped about the weekend, and as a result none of us really knew what to expect. I was hoping that I would be able to learn more about human rights and case studies of human rights violations, since as a science major I haven’t had much exposure.

I soon discovered that the weekend would be centered on team building and experiential learning as opposed to factual lecturing on history and important documents. Before we departed for Malmesbury, we picked up approximately 30 African learners who were attending the training as well and the bus was filled with introductions and other small talk. Within a few minutes I understood that we would be interacting with folks not only from different parts of South Africa, but also from Botswana, Zimbabwe, Malawi, and Somalia, to name a few. The first thing I was surprised about was the venue, Goedgedacht Farm (pronunciation uncertain). I figured that we would be going an overnight-summer-camp-type place, but I was blown away by the natural beauty of the olive farm and our rather luxurious accommodations. When a group of us went to take a dip in the dam, it was not lost on me that I was in fact swimming outdoors on an olive farm in rural South Africa. Oh, to study abroad!

Eric (far left) with group presentation on Zimbabwe

I got the factual, historical learning that I was anticipating through our group country presentations. We were all split up into 6 groups and tasked to pick an African country, select a president, and create a skit that would illustrate how the country got to where it is now and the human rights violations that take place even today. I learned a lot about my country of Zimbabwe and its President Robert Mugabe (excellently portrayed by Caroline), in addition to Egypt, South Africa, Malawi, Botswana, and Nigeria. Though we were the runners up to the $200B prize from the African Union, this exercise helped me understand that Africa is as diverse as Europe, even though all parts of the continent are presumed to be cut from the same mold.

A different brand of education came from the social simulations and discussions with the entire group of participants. It was incredible to hear these highly passionate Africans describe the work they do in their communities to uplift people from poverty and give them an alternative to gangsterism. I noticed that when Vincent, our facilitator and history and politics teacher, asked us to share times when we were perpetrators of, bystanders to, victims of, or defenders of human rights, the Americans fell silent. Personally, I felt that in the face of hearing stories from the Africans about times their minibus was held up at gunpoint, sharing that I once told someone that their racial joke was insensitive seemed insignificant. An article we read for homework this week, 9 Ways We Can Make Social Justice Movements Less Elitist and More Acceptable, made me wish that I was courageous enough to share my input. The author stressed that we should not be bound by activist hierarchies, and that everyone’s contributions matter. This was just one of the many lessons I took away from this weekend, and I now look forward to putting into practice the skills I acquired to stand up for human rights in my community and throughout the world.