Our new country director pointed out that at this moment in history with all that's going on in the world, I am apart of the only sizeable group of Americans serving in the MENA region.
That's a really cool privilege and responsibility.
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Don't give labels power. I arrived to this experience with a group of other citizens. We were the 96th group to enter service here in this country. We call "group" "staj" which equates to something like training class. Anyway, throughout this experience there have been numerous opportunities to observe the power and the emotional charge humans give to this label and to the order with which they arrived for their service. Before staj 96, there was the mythic "Staj of Love". My class spent significant amounts of time trying to tap into our collective zeitgeist to understand what we should be called. Were we "Secretary of the Staj" because the Secretary of State swore us in, or were we (my personal favorite) "Gang-Staj Paradise" because of whatever reason. This all of course is quite comical and frivolous. But if I'm honest, I've watched people paint lines for themselves based upon these indulgences which has equated to less communication, less collaboration, less sharing, and lack of unity among the whole. Let's not give lables power. Let's focus on unity and the things that really do matter. #practiceUNITY
Assess and understand motives and intentions. Understanding what ignites us to speak, to act, or become engaged can help us work toward greater unity. When working in teams, I've learned that a person's motives and intentions are important indicators of the rate at which a group reaches unity. Are our minds operating from divisive viewpoints? Are we capable of laying aside what media and often times other people say we are or what we aren't? Let's be more excited by the potential unity and harmony we are capable of creating by our lives. #practiceUNITY
The imperatives that are at the roots of the human struggle. One morning this week I found myself reading a story via CNN entitled, "Ya'll Qaeda". In brief, the story attempted to summarize a recent event in Oregon state where armed people (from rural settings) took over a government owned park establishment attempting to protest and draw attention to what they believe to be an unfair and overreaching government arm with regards to the people's land rights. Protests and issues such as these are not new to the American story. God willing, such issues can and will be resolved peacefully. However, what I want to highlight in this entry is an aspect of the coverage I feel to be particularly dangerous to us and to unity. The CNN piece in breadth reported from the angle of social media commentary. That commentary was put forth by people who attempted to compare and contrast the Oregon protest with terrorism, or the Black Lives Matters movement, or various other protests often times debating mere syntax. I found the angles as reported in this piece to be astonishingly subordinate while at the same time frighteningly status-quo. What's really disconcerting is that swaths of the population seem to have developed such a divisive conscience that they'll pick and choose for their own interests from an event that could otherwise have real potential and power to awaken and unify people across self or politically imposed modifiers. Imagine if all people momentarily took a pause from their own agendas and viewed the Oregon protest (as well as the others mentioned previously) for the thematic symbolism embedded within (blanket equality, blanket justice, blanket gender neutrality, etc.) We aren't doing this presently and it's really frustrating. And to make things more complicated, the people who aren't doing this are broadcasting their ill-manifested perspectives via social media and major news outlets are building stories off such things.
Practicing unity means viewing movements such as these for the imperatives that are at the roots of human struggle NOT the struggle of one particular group over another. Admittedly, figuring out how to do that in hyper-society is a challenge. But, I think it's our duty. #practiceUNITY Leadership does not reveal itself in loud boisterous expressions, but rather as a series of quiet inward resolutions. Leadership can be comfortable going forward unrecognized and without applause.
One of the first truly profound experiences I had in site was being tossed about by the changing winds of relationships. Let me explain. Within weeks of being in site, a person (pseudonym - Omar) befriended me. The encounters were lite and cordial. It was nice to be invited to activities and to be introduced in general by Omar. I felt things were progressing harmoniously. After weeks of interacting with Omar and company, I was outside the youth center one day conversing with a group of youth. I remember distinctly seeing the moment when the light bulb of curiosity came on in Omar's mind, "Is Jamal Muslim?" He was playing tennis at the time and felt strongly enough about the inquiry to stop play, walk over, and question me amid the group of youth I was getting to know. My response was a honest and polite, "No, I'm not." His request to say the Shahada (conversion prayer) followed immediately. When I refused based on the fact that I didn't clearly understand what the Shahada meant (which was true at the time), He said he couldn't speak to me anymore, wished me peace, and walked away. And as he walked away, all the youth I was talking to previously did also. I was alone; left to deal with the feelings of alienation. Honestly, I was hurt. I enjoyed Omar. I was also confused and felt some fear. Do I take this situation to my in site supervisor who's Muslim and who seemingly doesn't have experience managing cross-cultural relationships? Is Omar's current attitude a prevailing one? I went to a family's house feeling upset and discouraged. I told them of the situation and they did offer me support. I called my regional manager who also offered me a degree of support. While processing the situation, I realized some really important lessons. First, development is about changing attitudes and mindsets and that road can be bumpy to say the least. I resolved that this very situation would likely recur as I continue working cross culturally in development. I better learn now how to deal with it effectively. Second, I knew that this situation would wrought persistence. Third, I knew that if I did persist that Omar would see me interacting favorably with his peer group (i.e. other same-aged Muslims) and that could very well compel the doors of his mind to open. I'm happy to say that those doors did open. It wasn't immediate and there were days of relational awkwardness between him and me, but ultimately - he developed and so did I. People can and do change. He became more comfortable and accepting of various levels of plurality in his sphere. I became more comfortable interacting with adversity. Actually, it was a privilege to watch a youth's mentality stretch. One of the last accounts I have of Omar came almost a year after this ordeal. We were both attending an awards ceremony for the participants of a youth camp. I was there to encourage and he ended up serving as a "parental" figure, standing in photos with youth whose actual parents weren't able to show up. I told Omar I was proud of him. He eventually left the village to attend university about 1.5 hours away. This experience remains a testimonial to the fact that relationships and personalities are not static or stuck in time. In the light of patience, persistence, and hope exists the capacity for great human change.
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AuthorWelcome. After years as a manager in the education field, I accepted an invitation in 2014 to serve with the U.S. Peace Corps in Africa in the Youth Development sector. There have been no regrets. Disclaimer: The contents of this site and opinions expressed therein are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the Peace Corps, the US Government, or the Kingdom of Morocco.
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