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| Welcome to Lehigh lunch |
Hope
everyone is well at Lehigh! Julie Kwon and our friends in the Christian
student group at U of M say hi and thanks for stopping by - they enjoyed
meeting and sharing with all of you.
--Kate Wright, University of Michigan
we miss you Kate :) thank you so much. looking forward to seeing pictures of your baby :)
--Soulaya Lestary, University of Indonesia
I
think one of the most challenging, and yet rewarding aspects of this
program is that not only are we learning to deal with cultural
differences between us, we are also grappling with understanding each
other as people. Over the past few days there has been so much
discussion about how we have been feeling and I think that a lot of
important issues have been brought to the surface. Kate was so helpful
in facilitating such discussion and I can't imagine anyone else in a
better position to do so. I think that the discussions have really
helped me to understand Indonesia and the participants from there and
has also helped me to turn a mirror on myself and take a hard look on
how I have approached this excursion and the things that I have said
that may have been interpreted in ways I
did not intend or expect beforehand. I'm so happy that we had the
opportunity to bring our issues to the forefront of the conversation
because much of the problems are misunderstandings or are lost in
translation and taking the time to both talk and listen helps to dispel
such things on both sides.
I am so excited for Lehigh to take over for
the rest of the trip because I know that it will only get better for us
here on the program and we still have so much to learn about America and
from each other. I also love the change in roommate situation here at
Lehigh as well. At first I was apprehensive to be sharing a room with
someone that may wake up at 4 o'clock in the morning to say their
prayers or with someone that I might make uncomfortable with my
propensity to hang out without wearing pants. I now understand that the
roommate situation, although forced by each university, was to
strengthen the partnership and the bond between the people here. You
don't really get to know someone until you have lived with them and have
seen them go through their routine every day and get to participate in
passing conversations that often turn into some of the most memorable and
interesting. I can't wait for what is in store for us here at Lehigh
and I hope that the others are just as excited!
--Shannon Cassidy, Lehigh University
Touched down Bethlehem, PA
We finally touched down Bethlehem on Friday noon. We were picked up
by Stacy and Jenn who were very energetic and excited to meet us. I felt
like I was back in Indonesia with all their hospitality. It was hot
that day but it didn’t affect my excitement at all. Bethlehem,
especially Lehigh, is quite different from Ann Arbor. It is hilly and
the architecture of the building is very classics. On our way to the
dorm, Jenn told us a brief history about Bethlehem. Bethlehem was built
by a small group of Moravians who settled on the banks of the Lehigh
River near the Monocacy Creek. Moravian itself is kind of a sect in
Christian. Jenn also told us that there are many of the streets in
Bethlehem are taken from the Bible.
Jen and Stacy then took us to Red Robin for lunch. I ordered Clucks
and Fries and was so happy about that (Thank you Shannon for helping me
to orderJ). After lunch, we had the orientation with Mom Nyby. She
explained to us that we are part of something bigger than we thought we
were. We met strangers, we lived together and we learned. She was right.
This program is a life changing program. I was having a hard time
during the first two weeks of this program (be it language, cultural
things, etc) but I realized that’s why we are here. Then fiinally we got
our itinerary! We were very curious about that and the committees were
like “Na-ah, wait, ladies” when we attacked them with questions about it
earlier. The Penn’s program begins!
--Cut Nury Hikmah Sabry, University of Indonesia
Day
20 - In Michigan, we addressed a number of important issues that were
nothing less than eye-opening for our Indonesian counterparts.
Interestingly enough, these topics were just as alarming for the Lehigh
students. Professor Hutchings gave a lecture on Race and Politics and
revealed a number of statistics that identify the degree to which racial
disparity inflicts our country. In terms of wealth, poverty, and
education, there is not a racial gap between African Americans and
whites; there is a racial “grand canyon.” Today, the average black
family makes approximately $20,000 less than the average white family.
In 2007, black poverty rates were 24.5%, while poverty rates among white
Americans were 8.2%. In recent years, somehow whites managed to ride
out the economic turmoil and averaged $120,000 in wealth, while the
median wealth for blacks is $19,000. This large disparity is a sign
that one of America’s greatest downfalls still continues to haunt our
nation. It is a residue of racial discrimination from the past and the
result of government policies implemented during the New Deal that
benefitted white Americans to the detriment of African Americans. Why
are these alarming numbers rarely discussed? Why isn’t the government
taking strides to improve these circumstances? If the former racial
barriers that evoked our nation’s largest social movement are illegal,
then why are they still present? When will equality be fully achieved?
Why after forty years is race still such a visceral, explosive, and
controversial issue to raise?
Hutchings emphasized that in order to
resolve the racial inequalities that stain our society, we must first
address white privileges. White Americans should challenge themselves
to use their privilege to empower people who are marginalized, but this
is easier said than done for some. The reluctance to pursue policies
that will have racial implications exemplifies how the functioning of
our democracy is problematic. If blacks comprise only 2% of elected
officials, what is the likelihood that reparations would be awarded to
the blacks for the discrimination they once suffered (seeing that this
would require white Americans to give up some of their privileges)?
What is the likelihood this issue would even fall on the agenda?
The
inevitable consequence of having a democracy is the obligation
representatives have to their constituency. Since there is undoubtedly a
racial division in partisan support, more so than not, black Americans
are not an influential group in the constituency in command and so their
objectives are not a priority. We discussed that a common
misconception regarding the election of President Obama was that he
succeeded in improving the racial disparity in America. On the
contrary, it is very much alive and continuing to deteriorate the value
of equality that we sought to secure in the 1960’s. President Obama
simply does not have the electoral incentive to address this problem. I
wonder what impact this will have on his 2012 campaign. Will 95% of
blacks vote again for Obama or have they lost faith in our first African
American President? I’m sure this issue will be further discussed
while we’re at Lehigh and I can’t wait.
--Angela Farren, Lehigh University
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