Blog Topic: Service

If one asks,” How does volunteerism compare and contrast with activism?” it can be suggested that both are services provided for a community, but in terms of appropriating resources into either one, which suits a problem better? Well, I’m going to look at my own experience on the service trip in Visalia, CA.

What I was doing: The service trips are expeditions that Woolmanites venture forward to with the preface that we’re providing a service to a group of people. Half of our class stayed in town, volunteering at a local organic food bank where the students erected a shed and worked on their farm. My group left for Visalia.

We were well accommodated at the Friends Center, a little hub of serenity positioned on the corner of farmland, which in turn housed peacocks and gypsies living in trucks. Outside of our temporary residence danced the sprawl Visalia has morphed into over eons of suburban development. We traveled maybe half an hour to the work site where Self Help Enterprises was located and the donated land which was soon to bear homes. Greeted by Carlos, Ricardo (superintendents), and Dirk (program director), we were briefed on what Self Help was doing and how we could assist families in building their homes.

The days were seemingly eternal hammering nails to connect the measured and sawed timber pieces which would soon be raised as walls. Thinking about how tired I was I remembered that the families working there spent money, but also 40 hours a week on each other’s homes. Then, looking around my gaze landed upon Carlos and Ricardo who had both displayed a compassionate and thorough supervision (which included the brunt of the work). Being there, I was neither an owner, an employee, an activist, but merely a volunteer.

Why I did it: The reason why I differentiated myself among others who were involved was so that I could establish my occupation among so many. All I could do was donate a few hours to Self Help and the families there. I was actively building the homes, but I wasn’t actively changing policies in the United States that promote class discrimination. It is clear that while the need for homes in Visalia, CA was being addressed with my service hours, there was nothing done to affect American society at large, or even greater Visalia.

If it seems that I’m downplaying the importance of volunteerism, I’m not. I believe that my time was well dispensed at Self Help but I can't ignore the American vices reinforced in communities like the ones built by Self-Help. While homes and stability are being provided, what about gardens, supermarkets carrying fresh foods, organic, and affordable alternative products? How far does a family member have to travel between work and home? Where is the nearest school? Will the communities I've helped to build fall victim to consumerism and car culture?

These questions seem more related to “America” as we know it instead of the preferable community that would have included the input of residents. Indeed, I think that the time spent at Self Help was valuable, but in the long term it will only service families partially in that it lacks the freedom set aside for wealthier classes. I believe that is where activism is useful. Activism affects a system of governing bodies and people's worldviews which in combination can achieve a wide variety of social and political objectives. These might include readjusting food subsidies, reinvesting in infrastructure and public education. What matters is that voters influence their elected representatives in a way that demands their attention.

Where I find myself: With the prefatory question in mind, I think I directly experienced the difference between activism and volunteerism. I think the most valuable thing I learned from the Visalia trip was through the observation of different people’s determination in finishing projects. This includes students, Emily, the interns, Carlos, Ricardo, and the families who own the homes. Without that trait which enveloped all who were there, I believe those houses wouldn’t get to be built.

           In the articles, “Volunteers Can’t Solve Our Problems” and “ Soul of a Citizen,” it is interesting and challenging to see the differences between volunteerism and activism.  As I read them both, I tried to spot the “pros” and “cons” of each. I have never thought of volunteerism and activism as being separate entities. I have always believed they work hand in hand, and I still do. From the Volunteer article, I quoted him when he said, “Social change and more personal acts of compassion can feed each other,” because I agree that they do indeed walk hand in hand. (page 1, Volunteerism article) When we speak of choosing wether or not volunteer work can solve the world’s problems, I agree with the author when he says, “Of course we must address the immediate crisis, and try to rescue the children. But we also need to find out WHY they’re falling into the river--because no matter how hard we try, we lack the resources, strength, and stamina to save them all. So we must go upstream to fix the broken bridge, stop the people who are pushing the children in, or do whatever else will address the problem at its source.” (page 2, Volunteer article) I agree completely with that statement. I think it is hard to know how to go about fixing our world’s problems. Do we start by solving what is happening in the moment, or do we let those issues “hang tight” until we find the overall solutions?

         Even though throughout my life I have always been interested in going out into the world and being apart of the volunteerism movements, I still contemplate the idea that perhaps while volunteerism can solve the “surface” issues, it may not go any farther or deeper than that. A question that Loeb proposed in his volunteerism article was, “How do we proceed if we’re inclined to act on a more personal level but also want our individual actions to have an impact on a larger scale?” (page 2, Volunteerism article)

        I agree that we don’t have to be saints and have super knowledge in an issue and be “perfect” in how we express our views to the world in order to make a difference. I think it’s not so much that those activists thought of themselves as saints, but instead that we the people saw them as saints or “heroes.” This view of activists as heroes gives the idea that if you aren’t already perfect in all ways, and if you don’t have much knowledge and have powerful things to say from the very beginning, you can’t and won’t choose to make a difference. I can understand that feeling personally. In Loeb’s “Soul of a Citizen” article, he states, “We often think of social involvement as noble but impractical.” (page 2) I still to this day, am not sure if helping to build affordable houses for families was sustainable, but our contribution would only be apart of “the tip of the iceberg”, so only what we can see as the surface crisis. I don’t know how long those families will be living in those houses, but I know at least for now they will have shelter. I think the majority of us can understand the feeling of not being able to solve every problem, therefore we start wondering if we should bother to be socially active at all? 

         Everyone has a feeling of how deeply they would like to get involved in our society’s economic problems, but the way I see it is that each can be powerful, whether its simply a bandaid and will only last for a moment, at least it was an outcome of active hope. No matter whether its on a big world scale, the hearts of people have been opened and have showed their compassion and concern. For me, I feel that compassion is the start, and that is sometimes all that people feel they can give. Sometimes all we can do is live in the moment, and if in that moment, someone needs shelter for themselves and their children, then I shall be there to help. I’m no hero, and neither are any of our past proclaimed “heroes.” They found their calling and gave their best for the world. 

How can service and movements for social change support and inform one another? Are there ways that service and activism are fundamentally different or opposed? (Editor's note: Hannah took part in the "food justice" service trip to Sacramento.) 

There are a lot of issues in this world and there are two ways to address them: through social movements and service. They are both different and also both very important. Social movements can be defined as acts that aim to change the way society views and addresses a global issue. Service is aiding the surface of the problem. If I were to use the iceberg model, I would say that social movement address the root of the problem and service is addresses the tip of the problem. Both are vital parts of the solution for global issues.

During our service trip I felt that I was involved in a social movement as well as service. On our first day we volunteered at an organic farm in central Sacramento called Soil Born. At Soil Born we helped maintain the acres of vegetable gardens and help with installation of fruit trees as well as taking care of cows, chickens, and sheep. Soil Born sells produce every week at their farm stand and also donates a lot of produce to food banks. On top of that they also have a youth garden to encourage and educate youth to grow their own food.

What I found interesting about this particular form of service was that they focused a lot on educating the public on the importance of locally grown food and how it is not only better for the environment, but better for people’s health, and the economy as well.  This, I think, is a good example of a social movement because they are addressing the root of the problem by educating people. Instead of giving food to people in need, they are teaching that anyone can be capable of growing their own food and by doing this; they can live an altogether healthier life. You can see this social movement taking affect by walking through the community of  Village Homes, a small community on the outskirts of Davis that combines farming and housing for a more sustainable living style. Apparently there is waiting list for people who want to move there, and as we walked through I could see why. All the open spaces are filled with abundant plants, orchards or chicken coops. One family could easily get enough to eat by just taking a few steps outside. From our first few days I started to note the rewards of partaking in a social movement.

On our third day we volunteered for Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services at their Mobile Food Distrobution. The Mobile Food Distro travels around the Sacramento area giving fresh produce to the poor and hungry. We spent our time bagging and handing out these items to almost 300 people. This organization was providing a service to the people but it was not causing a social movement. There are always going to be people who are hungry and needing food, so this food bank gives them a way to meet those needs, but it does not solve the root of the problem.

In conclusion, I believe that service and social movements are both important. Where social movements help solve the problem from the root, service helps aid the immediate issues. One cannot exist without the other. If there were no services to distribute food to the poor and hungry they might starve and die. If we didn’t try and change the issue through a social justice standpoint then we would just keep providing food for the needy for infinity. Service is more addressing the top of the problem where social movements are teaching people to think different to help the world in the long run

How can service and movements for social change support and inform one another? Are there ways that service and activism are fundamentally different or opposed? (Please note: Dajanne participated on the"food justice" service trip option in Sacramento and Davis, California.) 

Social movements, to me, mean people that come together with a common ideology who try to achieve certain general goals, while service means work done by a group or one person that benefits another. With those definitions in mind, they are connected because they both consist of a person or group of people getting work done to either achieve a goal or benefit people/ a person. 

The "food justice" trip consisted of a lot of service in addition to elements of social movements. We did a lot of weeding, gleaning, and distributing food for Soil Born Farms and Harvest Sacramento. Soil Born’s vision is to practice and teach sustainable agriculture within the city of Sacramento, because they care about the environment and want to help raise awareness to people so that they too can help the environment and food and nutrition access. 

While I was on my service trip, I realized that service projects can be a form of social movement or social action. The reason I say this is because while we were gleaning trees, we were not only benefiting the people that were donating the fruit, we were also helping those that really needed the fruit in terms of needing healthy meals. I realized this on the third day, which was Thursday, of the service trip when I saw that oranges we had picked being given away, for free, to low income and homeless people. This picture was sad but enlightening. Sad because I too come from a low-income household and I know what half the people were going through and I feel as though we should not have to go through those things. Enlightening because I contributed hard work and time to pick the fruit that was being distributed, not knowing that it was for a good cause such as this one.

Although this experience wasn't new for me, because I've done work like this before just not in the same context, it was still a wonderful one. I enjoyed all the tasks we did. 

Activism to me is a course of direct and aggressive action to achieve a political or social goal. With that said, service and activism can be fundamentally different but also the same in many ways. Different because service consists of a smaller scale of work done to help out people. While with activism, it helps on a much larger scale. They're the same, because they both tend to educate while helping out. I feel as though service projects can be a form of activism. Activism can start out on a much smaller scale, such as service, then go to a bigger scale like creating social movements.