In a genuine democracy, people would have a real voice in the decisions affecting their lives. Politics would be a dynamic, active,
creative process in which people meaningfully participated. Governments
and corporations would be directly accountable to the people they
affect.
Unfortunately, many of us do not feel like we have a voice in
governing our society. We may be too busy to participate, or we may
lack information. We may think that no one else feels the way we do.
We worry about what other people will say if we act, or whether we'll
jeopardize our prospects for "success." Our cultures teach us that
women should defer to men, and our society teaches us that the people in
charge are usually white. We are encouraged only to sit in front of
the TV, trust the "experts," and once every few years vote for the
lesser of two evils.
Despite all these obstacles, people do act. The changes that most
improved our lives were not gifts bestowed by the "experts," but the
hard-won results of organizing by ordinary people. The 40-hour work
week was not made by wealthy industrialists, but by rank-and-file union
organizers sick of working 60 hour weeks for subsistence wages; the vote
-- and rights to property and abortion -- were not granted to women by
men, but won by female suffragists over many decades of struggle.
Our history books often emphasize the "great men" who held positions
of power and prominence. In fact, history is made by all of us. Before
Martin Luther King, there was a legion of Black leaders who stood
against the oppression of the African-American community. The large-
scale, glamorous victories which we all hear about stood on the
shoulders of smaller victories and the lessons of defeats experienced by
thousands of grassroots organizers.
When we act as individuals, our actions may seem small and
insignificant. But when we act collectively, anything is possible.
Why work for peace and justice on campus? Because the campus brings
us into physical and intellectual proximity with others at a time when
we are questioning and formulating our ideas about the world around us.
Students of all races and often from many different countries live
together in dorms; working-class students will sit in class beside rich
kids. In a society where individuals are increasingly isolated, the
campus provides an unusual opportunity for discussion, organization, and
community.
Not surprisingly, students have been in the forefront of most major
social movements. In the 1930s, students picketed with striking
workers; in the 1960s, they opposed the Vietnam War and fought for civil
rights; in the 1980s, students opposed U.S. military intervention in
Central America.
While campus activism may concern issues or conditions which exist
outside the campus, our colleges and universities are themselves
political institutions where internal controversies mirror those in the
larger society. Do students have the rights to free speech and
assembly? Which students can afford to attend your campus? Who
teaches? What subjects are taught? How is the campus climate for
women and people of color? Asking these questions can lead to more
questions about social justice and the meaning of education, deepening
our understanding of ourselves and society.
Colleges and universities are also very strategic arenas of power in
our society. Research performed by professors is used by politicians
and corporations in shaping policies and in developing weaponry.
University professors serve on corporate boards and as advisors to
governments. Our colleges support the dubious activities of many large
corporations by investing billions of dollars in their stock.
The anti-Apartheid movement of the 1980s, which involved tens of
thousands of students and faculty members, forced over 150 universities
to divest from companies doing business in South Africa and was a part
the world-wide movement that catapulted Nelson Mandela, the former
political prisoner, to the South African presidency.
Organizing on campus is not just play-acting or a support effort
for an "adult" organization, but a real contribution to helping make a
better and more democratic society.
Finally, many students will go on to other positions of influence --
families, workplaces, and communities -- where they can either
perpetuate the status quo or fight for progressive change. Your campus
organizing can make a difference for years after you graduate.
Making the decision to participate in public life is no small thing.
It demands commitment, sacrifice, and an openness to change. But the
rewards are many: new skills, a sense of purpose, awareness of how our
society operates, and a feeling of community that comes from working
together with others for a vision.
As one activist put it, "After I became an activist, I wasn't afraid
of the world anymore."

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