A Voice For the Voiceless

The Advocacy Project helps marginalized communities to tell their story, claim their rights and produce social change. We recruit graduate students to volunteer as Peace Fellows with partners.

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"Speaking with locals and living in a country is the best way to learn about the real lives of citizens, not just the stories in the mainstream media. I will be more critical of what I read as a result of this experience. I also feel even more grateful for my education, and I feel a stronger responsibility to assist others who do not have resources or access to opportunities in their communities."

Maria Skouras (New York University) volunteered in 2011 as a Peace Fellow for eHomemakers in Malaysia.

For more 2011 feedback click here.

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The Fellowship Pr... > Blogging for Peace > 2006 > AP Interns Confro...

AP Interns Confront the Complexities of Local Cultures, June 28, 2006

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AdvocacyNet
Intern Update, Volume 4#4, June 28, 2006
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The Advocacy Project's 18 summer interns are blogging on the AP website about their summer assignments. The interns are working with community-based partner organizations in Bosnia, Kosovo, Czech Republic, United Kingdom, Italy, Guatemala, Nigeria, Fiji, Palestinian Territories, Afghanistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and India. Excerpts from their blogs follow. Read more information on AP's 2006 internship program.

Highlights:

Barrier Creates Problem for Sheep-Herding Palestinians

Sarah Sachs (Columbia University) is working for cooperation between Palestinians and Israelis with the Alternative Information Center (AIC) in Beit Sahour/Jerusalem.

"Early in the day's events, local protestors attempted to bulldoze a section of the barrier in order to create a gate for the passage of people, equipment and sheep, but threats of teargas from the military quickly thwarted the endeavor."

Visiting Trafficked Victims in Lagos

Laura Cardinal (Columbia University) is working for victims of human trafficking with the Women's Consortium of Nigeria (WOCON).

"Having been immersed in the subject of trafficking since my arrival I knew that these girls could be the victims of any number of types of trafficking that is found in Nigeria...Cautiously, I walked through the door and peaked around the corner to see if I could catch a glimpse of any of the girls who were currently residing at the house."

Encountering Racism in the UK

Lynne Engelman (University of Calgary) is working to combat the eviction of Roma and Travellers from their land with the UK Association of Gypsy Women.

"Witnesses overheard the killers - two-16 year old boys - say that he [Johnny] deserved it because he was a gypsy and proceeded to call him, 'dirty-gyp whore.' Despite these testimonies, the presiding judge did not rule the crime racist, resulting in a much more lenient sentence for the two boys responsible: both were sentenced to five years but were free in 18 months."

Rising Prices Hurt Disadvantaged Women in Malaysia

Melissa Muscio (Tufts University) is working on women's development with ehomemakers in Malaysia.

"With development comes rising prices - so the group of disadvantaged women that we help actually now find it more difficult to buy the foods and other products that they require to meet their daily needs. For them, the situation has become worse, not better."

Empowering Local Organizations in Kosovo

Barbra Bearden (American University) is working for women's rights in Kosovo with the Kosova Women's Network.

"Thinking on this, I am reminded of a good friend, who, when defined as something he was not, simply stated, 'I do not subscribe to that.' These are simple words with a powerful lesson for civil society. KWN will not let member organizations be defined by media perceptions of what a post war society 'should act like;' or what the UNMIK says they 'should need in the way of aid programs.'"

Getting Acquainted With Dust in Kabul

Alison Long (American University) is working for girl's education with the Oruj Learning Center in Afghanistan.

"After one day in Kabul, I turned to my roommates and asked, 'What is this dust? Is it limestone? I just want to know what I'll be covered in for the rest of the summer?' In Kabul, every object - whether alive or inanimate, big or small, inside a building or outside on the street - is blanketed in a thick layer of grayish brown dust...at all times."

Struggling with Identity in Nepal

Lori Tomoe Mizuno (NYU) is working to mobilize civil society networks to work towards conflict transformation and peace building with the Collective Campaign for Peace (COCAP) in Nepal.

"The process of deconstructing my identity has begun. I've gotten mixed responses in relation to my Asian appearance these past seven days. At times, it seems vitally important that those I have conversations with understand not where I'm from physically, but where my blood comes from."

From Tenant to Squatter in Fiji

Autumn Graham (Tufts University) is working to educate citizens about their rights with the Citizens' Constitutional Forum in Fiji.

"Recently, and the point of this blog, a group of Indo-Fijian farmers and their families were given a few days to dismantle their house and move...As it stands now, my heart goes out to the 72 year old man who just lost his home."

India, a Country of Contrasts

Donna Laverdiere (Duke University) is working for street children with Butterflies in Delhi.

"Brilliantly colored kurtas and saris set against the dark grays and browns of asphalt and dirt. Luxury cars streaking past sun-baked men pulling carts full of steel bars or fresh vegetables. Fashionable mansions next to makeshift shelters erected on fence posts."

Real Life Survivors in Guatemala Get Hooked on TV Equivalent

Charles Wright (Georgetown University) is working for indigenous survivors of a 1982 massacre with Adivima in Guatemala.

"Every Monday night at 9 p.m., my host family stops to catch the newest installment of CBS's 'Survivor.' In its latest season, 'Survivor' took its show to Guatemala...At the season's finale, the contestants commented on their 'unforgettable' and 'life-changing' experiences. As these descriptions were thrown about, it made me wonder how Guatemalans would describe a dark period in their history less than 30 years ago."

Flooding Consumes Colombo

Greg Holyfield (University of Arkansas) is working to preserve and protect economic, social, cultural, civil and political rights with Home for Human Rights in Sri Lanka.

"Basically, there will be an hour or two of heavy rains followed by sunlight, which turns the city into a virtual sauna. Flooding is taking parts in some lower lying areas in the west of the country while Colombo roads are full of giant puddles."

Caste System Perplexing to Foreigners in Nepal

Stacey Spivey (Georgetown University) is working for lower caste Dalit with the Jagaran Media Center.

"They could, for example, be unaware of how the Dalit are frequent victims of violence and rape, or how they are often prevented from using public water wells, entering temples, renting apartments or obtaining decent employment. Yet, how is it that people arrive in Nepal with such little understanding of the caste system?"

Helping Sometimes Means Not Giving in Lagos

buy dvds online (Georgetown University) is working for women's rights in Nigeria with the Women's Consortium of Nigeria (WOCON).

"I cannot give her naira, because I know most likely it is not hers to keep, and instead it will be given directly to ever keeps her, or rather uses her, to stand on the side of the street all day and use her charming innocence to solicit money when she should be in school. Giving her money enables and sustains the lucrative business of trafficking that comes in all forms."

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