When Justin Timberlake and Jimmy Fallon did a skit speaking only in hashtags, it became clear that the use of the hashtag had reached a unique place in our culture. Their skit, while satirical, also made it clear that hashtags have unique power in not only describing trends, but also in raising awareness around important issues.
The hashtag (#), which was first introduced in 2007, did not take long to become a mainstay in the Twitter world. The idea first originated with Chris Messina, who wondered if it would be useful to have a way for friends to organize their messages into meaningful groups.
Not long after, it became the leading way to describe emotions, world events, trends, activities and ideas through social media. And over time, as its presence has grown, so has the flexibility with which it is employed.
From the first true global usage in 2009, in the wake of the Iranian elections and the Occupy movements, to the more recent use in #BringBackOurGirls and #YesAllWomen, hashtag advocacy has emerged and has played a role in promoting awareness and giving people a chance to weigh in on larger conversations.
The largest use of hashtag advocacy began when Invisible Children raised awareness for the Kony 2012 Campaign – harnessing the power of social media to spread their message. The campaign quickly gained 2.4 million tweets with the “#Kony2012” tag in March alone of that year.
While the merits and ultimate effectiveness of the Kony campaign are debated and criticized, it is worth noting that the campaign led to a level of awareness about an issue not yet seen before. In fact, because of #Kony2012, the African Union sent a force of 5,000 – including 100 U.S. military advisors – to help end the surge of violence in Uganda at the time.
From the start, critics decried the use of the hashtag as “slacktivism,” the idea that by spreading a message, people could nominally support a cause without actually having to do any leg-work. Others have argued that using a hashtag to raise awareness is about as effective as writing a letter to Congress – which is to say, it isn’t.
However, employing a hashtag or writing to Congress does draw attention to important issues. Elected officials react to public opinion, and when the public is writing in about a topic frequently, they rightly determine that it is an issue that people care about.
As one of the newest forms of grassroots activism, hashtags have the ability to play an important role in advocacy, generating media coverage at no extra cost. While it is important to not overstate the importance of translating the hashtag usage into action, raising awareness about an issue is a useful way of spreading a message and employing the kind of diplomacy that often makes leaders think twice when they are making decisions – what affect the issue will have on their reputation.
The #BringBackOurGirls campaign has received its fair share of critics, but it has also brought the issue to the forefront of global discussion and has pressured the Nigerian government to act and accept assistance from other nations.
Just as the #YesAllWomen tag reached 1.2 million tweets in the span of four days, so can other tags be employed to raise issue awareness about development projects or the millennium development goals in fighting global poverty because ultimately, the more people who are able to be a part of the discussion, the greater the chance is that someone new will be moved to donate, to act, to volunteer or to dedicate themselves to the cause.
– Andrea Blinkhorn
Sources: Washington Post, Hashtags.org, The Guardian, Mashable
Photo: New Artist Model
Thai Military Pays Rice to Farmers during Coup
As the military coup continues in Thailand, Thai military leaders delivered rice payments promised to farmers. The rice was given to the government in return of payments through a rice-pledging scheme created by Yingluck Shinawatra, the Prime Minister of Thailand, as a populist measure.
The previous government blamed the protests and the limited mandate of the government, after the parliament was dissolved last year, for the failure to pay farmers the promised sums. However, the program has been criticized for its waste and corruption, especially by the Bangkok establishment. Intended to help rural areas, the payouts are double the market price found on world markets.
Regardless, the military has made it one of their first priorities.
The Thai military ordered that 92 billion baht, or $2.8 billion, be paid out, while the country’s banks must lend the government the necessary cash.
In the national newspaper, Ban Maung, headlines read: “Farmers Receive Money With Tears of Joy,” in line with the compliant role the Thai media has taken with the military.
Despite many reports of praise from farmers over the payout, in the northeast section of Thailand, where support for the previous regime remains high, the policy is unlikely to gain much support, according to David Streckfuss, an expert in Thai politics of the northeast region.
In Chiang Yuen, a part of Northeastern Thailand, farmers hope for a return to normalcy, in which they expect the ousted Pheu Thai party and its populist policies to return to power.
For the Bangkok middle-class, the loss of their hegemony over Thai politics left many in dissatisfaction. Particularly, many felt that the system of democracy that was in place consigned them into the structural minority. Now the middle-class views democracy as an inefficient and wasteful use of their taxes, especially as many government policies only benefit the ‘greedy poor.’
In contrast, many people from the northern provinces feel the benefits and are in favor of the previous government.
As the coup continues, the outbreak of class warfare is likely. Although the middle-class is pushing for the return to a constitutional minority rule, such a result is unlikely.
The potential for a descent into civil war in which the Northern provinces would oppose the Bangkok establishment is possible. If such a result were to happen, the effects would be devastating, displacing many into poverty and ruining the promise of the nation and its progress.
— William Ying
Sources: BBC, Borgen, Channel News Asia, New York Times, The Nation
Photo: Channel News Asia 2
Violence against Women in Latin America
Over the past decade, Latin America’s economy has improved due to the rising quantity of exports. At the same time, rapid growth of urban centers has created socioeconomic problems like an increase in prostitution and sex trafficking. One of the consequences of the urbanization of Latin America is a rapid increase in population, which in turn results in a larger number of unemployment and homelessness. The high population outnumbers the amount of jobs available for people, especially women. The consequence is that more women living in these urban slums resorting to commercial sex work. These women then become vulnerable to diseases and to violent environments.
In Brazil, over 40,000 women have murdered for simply being women in the past 10 years. And Honduras is labeled one of the most dangerous places to live for a woman. There, the violent killings of women there have tripled. Unfortunately, only 5 percent of these crimes have been investigated and the murderers prosecuted.
Columbia is facing significant gender-based violence because of military conflict within the country. Women are often attacked who take part in activism to encourage political and social reforms for more representation and rights.
The third most violent place in the world for women is Guatemala. The county ordered a new law to prevent violence against women in 2008, making it the first Latin American country to do so. Yet since the law was implemented, not much has been done to support the new reforms. Women continue to have problems finding prosecution for the culprits.
Not only does violence cost the lives of hundreds of thousands of women in Latin America, but it decreases the region’s social and economic development. The killings are preventing these women from contributing to the economic growth of the country. Seven Latin America countries rank in the top 10 countries in the world for most domestic violence against women.
One answer to this matter is the program U.N. Women, which helps to strengthen the representation of women in government and politics. New policies are developed for women’s economic development; particularly, women in isolated and rural regions in Latin America. These policies aim to create equal and fair workplaces for all women who are seeking or already have employment and to create job opportunities.
UN Women is helping to end gender based violence against women in Latin America by creating services for victims and survivors. This will help by implementing laws to protect women and provide justice for those in need.
— Rachel Cannon
Sources: CSIS, UN Women 1, UN Women 2
Photo: UN Women
Fighting Discrimination in Latin America
Since 2007, when several South American nations led the push for a gay rights charter in the United Nations, a wave of change has been sweeping through the region concerning the rights of the LGBT community. A handful of Latin American leaders have been leading the charge against same-sex discrimination, staking out new territories of human rights as they go.
Costa Rica
President Luis Guillermo Solis of Costa Rica observed the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia on May 17 by raising the gay pride flag over the Presidential Palace. The ceremony marked the day in 1990 when the United Nations World Health Organization removed homosexuality from its official list of mental illnesses.
On May 16 President Solis declared via tweet that “we are going to fight vigorously against every form of discrimination. We will pursue without rest an inclusive and respectful society.” The post was accompanied by a picture of the rainbow banner flying alongside Costa Rica’s own national flag above the Casa Presidencial.
President Solis made the significant gesture in solidarity with the LGBT community not even a month after beginning his first term as President of the Central American state. At this point Costa Rica has not legalized same-sex marriage, but President Solis is seeking to eliminate barriers to medical benefits for same-sex couples.
Argentina
In April of 2014 Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner became the godmother of Umma Azul, the newborn daughter of a lesbian couple. Through this formality the new mothers wanted to thank President Fernandez de Kirchner for her progressive policies concerning same-sex unions — in 2010 the Kirchner administration passed a marriage equality law which legalized same-sex marriage and allowed gay and lesbian couples to legally adopt children.
Another Argentine in the world spotlight is Pope Francis. The new papacy’s “who am I to judge” demeanor, accompanied by messages of compassion and loving acceptance, have placed him in high esteem with many in the LGBT community, even landing him a spot on the cover of the gay interest magazine The Advocate.
Brazil
Brazil legalized same-sex marriage in 2011 under President Dilma Rousseff. Brazil is the largest country in Latin America, has the world’s largest Catholic population and, as recently as December 2013, held the world’s largest communal gay wedding. A total of 130 gay and lesbian couples entered into legal unions at the event.
The city of Sao Paulo also boasts the largest gay pride parade in the world. Organizers of the event claimed that the May 2014 parade was enjoyed by 2.5 million people.
Chile
24-year-old Daniel Zamudio died on March 27, 2013, three weeks after being beaten by a group of anti-gay assailants in Santiago. Chilean President Sebastian Pinera successfully pushed lawmakers to pass an Anti-Discrimination Law following Zamudio’s death, which clearly defines and denounces all forms of discrimination.
Since 2012, several openly gay and transsexual politicians have been elected to office in Chile. Jaime Parada Hoyl was the first, elected as a councilman in Providencia after becoming well known for his gay rights activism following the Zamudio incident.
Other nations seeking to reduce discrimination in Latin America include Uruguay, which legalized same-sex marriage in 2013, and Mexico, where same-sex marriage has been legal in the capital city since 2010.
Amid seemingly endless news streams of natural disasters, political unrest and corruption scandals throughout Latin America, the fight for equal rights spreading through the region is a breath of fresh air. Less systemic discrimination in Latin America could mean less homophobic violence. Less violence means more productivity within communities. Strong communities, after all, are built on the respect shared among their members.
– Kayla Strickland
Sources: Freedom to Marry, Huffington Post, Twitter
Photo: Huffington Post
Hashtag Advocacy
When Justin Timberlake and Jimmy Fallon did a skit speaking only in hashtags, it became clear that the use of the hashtag had reached a unique place in our culture. Their skit, while satirical, also made it clear that hashtags have unique power in not only describing trends, but also in raising awareness around important issues.
The hashtag (#), which was first introduced in 2007, did not take long to become a mainstay in the Twitter world. The idea first originated with Chris Messina, who wondered if it would be useful to have a way for friends to organize their messages into meaningful groups.
Not long after, it became the leading way to describe emotions, world events, trends, activities and ideas through social media. And over time, as its presence has grown, so has the flexibility with which it is employed.
From the first true global usage in 2009, in the wake of the Iranian elections and the Occupy movements, to the more recent use in #BringBackOurGirls and #YesAllWomen, hashtag advocacy has emerged and has played a role in promoting awareness and giving people a chance to weigh in on larger conversations.
The largest use of hashtag advocacy began when Invisible Children raised awareness for the Kony 2012 Campaign – harnessing the power of social media to spread their message. The campaign quickly gained 2.4 million tweets with the “#Kony2012” tag in March alone of that year.
While the merits and ultimate effectiveness of the Kony campaign are debated and criticized, it is worth noting that the campaign led to a level of awareness about an issue not yet seen before. In fact, because of #Kony2012, the African Union sent a force of 5,000 – including 100 U.S. military advisors – to help end the surge of violence in Uganda at the time.
From the start, critics decried the use of the hashtag as “slacktivism,” the idea that by spreading a message, people could nominally support a cause without actually having to do any leg-work. Others have argued that using a hashtag to raise awareness is about as effective as writing a letter to Congress – which is to say, it isn’t.
However, employing a hashtag or writing to Congress does draw attention to important issues. Elected officials react to public opinion, and when the public is writing in about a topic frequently, they rightly determine that it is an issue that people care about.
As one of the newest forms of grassroots activism, hashtags have the ability to play an important role in advocacy, generating media coverage at no extra cost. While it is important to not overstate the importance of translating the hashtag usage into action, raising awareness about an issue is a useful way of spreading a message and employing the kind of diplomacy that often makes leaders think twice when they are making decisions – what affect the issue will have on their reputation.
The #BringBackOurGirls campaign has received its fair share of critics, but it has also brought the issue to the forefront of global discussion and has pressured the Nigerian government to act and accept assistance from other nations.
Just as the #YesAllWomen tag reached 1.2 million tweets in the span of four days, so can other tags be employed to raise issue awareness about development projects or the millennium development goals in fighting global poverty because ultimately, the more people who are able to be a part of the discussion, the greater the chance is that someone new will be moved to donate, to act, to volunteer or to dedicate themselves to the cause.
– Andrea Blinkhorn
Sources: Washington Post, Hashtags.org, The Guardian, Mashable
Photo: New Artist Model
1,000 Days Campaign in Rwanda
Since conflict started in the Democratic Republic of Congo, children have been fleeing the violence to Rwanda and into the hands of another challenge: malnutrition. The state of food security and proper nourishment in Rwandan refugee camps is becoming dire as nearly 44 percent of children under 5 face serious chronic malnutrition.
However, the Rwandan government is making strides to welcome its new residents with open arms and humanitarian aid. Under the command of Prime Minister Pierre Damien Habumuremyi, the Rwandan government launched the “1,000 Days in the Thousand Hills” campaign back in September of 2013 to combat malnutrition in both its refugee camps and its local population. With the help of the Ministry of Disaster Management and Refugee Affairs (MIDIMAR), the 1,000 days campaign was implemented first in the Kiziba camp in Western Rwanda, then in all five refugee camps in the country.
The mission of the campaign: combat malnutrition using programs that make populations more self-reliant and educated on proper health. The approach: provide children with the proper nutrients for the first 1,000 days from birth until the child’s second birthday and establish local community efforts to produce more nutritious food.
The 1,000 Days campaign in Rwanda is not unique. In fact, similar programs have been implemented in a variety of other locations including Ethiopia, Indonesia and Guatemala. But what makes Rwanda’s campaign special is its focus on integration. Like all of MIDIMAR’s programs, the 1,000 Days in the Thousand Hills campaign aims to connect the refugee and local populations by using their combined forces to solve mutual problems. All practices used in the local population are being used in refugee camps and vice versa.
What are these practices? As established, the campaign seeks to make populations at risk more self-sufficient while still receiving help to reduce malnutrition. Programs include setting up kitchen gardens and animal breeding programs. At the start of the campaign, 315 kitchen gardens were set up and 151 families received rabbits to breed, eat and sell. The hope is to make refugees and local populations independent with livestock and farming techniques that provide them with greater nutrients.
On top of this, the 1,000 days campaign aims to provide children with the necessary sustenance for healthy development and nutrition from day one until age 2. This allows children to escape malnutrition and stunting of growth and to have better immune systems and brighter futures. The program achieves this goal both by putting more food into the community and educating parents on what counts as fortified and healthy foods, such as vegetables, fruits and milk. In addition, the campaign seeks to spread awareness on the warning signs of malnutrition and the diseases associated with the condition.
All of this culminates in two results: first, it brings children out of risk of malnutrition by providing them with necessary protein from the start. Second, it pulls populations into a state of food security by providing sustainable ways of harvesting good food.
The program is set to end in October of 2016, but many strides towards success can be taken by then. With any luck and lots of hard work, malnutrition will cease to be an insurmountable problem facing refugees in Rwanda.
– Caitlin Thompson
Sources: All Africa, Doctors Without Borders, Ministry of Disaster Management, Relief Web, Republic of Rwanda, Republic of Rwanda Ministry of Health, World Vision International, 1000 Days
Photo: Republic of Rwanda Ministry of Health
Hunger in Niger: 5 Things to Know
Niger may not be the first country to spring to mind when you think about hunger in Africa, but the food security situation there is actually among the worst on the continent. Conditions there were especially dire in 2012, when the hunger crisis that stretched across West Africa’s Sahel region made news headlines across the world.
Although the situation has improved within the last several years, there are still approximately 2.5 million people in Niger that lack secure access to food. Here are five facts you should know about hunger in Niger:
1. A Problem of Geography
Niger is land-locked, and land-locked into the middle of the Sahara Desert at that. Over 80 percent of the country consists of arid land that is nearly impossible to farm. What arable land that exists is often plagued by extended periods of flooding during Niger’s short rainy season and drought throughout the rest of the year. Farmers are already facing an enormous challenge of climate in simply trying to grow food. However, with few outlets for access to seeds and tools, farmers in Niger fail to make enough food to support even a fraction of Niger’s population.
Fortunately, international organizations are stepping in to increase the resources available to these farmers. Though simply increasing agricultural output is not enough to solve the problem of hunger in Niger, it is certainly a step in the right direction.
2. Poverty, Fertility and Their Consequences
Niger is no stranger to poverty; according to the World Bank, “Niger’s per capita income and development indicators are among the worst in the world.” Whether hunger is a cause or an effect of poverty is a complicated question, but there is no doubt that the two are intimately related.
Niger is also home to the highest fertility rate in the world, with each woman on average giving birth to 7.6 children. With so many mouths to feed and limited money to do so, it’s no wonder that so many in Niger go hungry.
3. A Struggling Economy
About 80 percent of Niger’s economy is based on agriculture and livestock. How can an economy thrive when it depends on an industry that is suffering? With little capital to work with, hunger in Niger is a problem that is proving difficult to solve from the inside. Niger’s economy is also dependent on the world market for uranium, a natural resource it has in abundance. When uranium prices fall, so does the economy.
4. Taking Care of Refugees
The population of Niger is already high, at around 17 million people. Yet with refugees from countries like Mali and Nigeria, which have recently experienced conflict, flooding into the country for the past few years, the population of Niger continues to swell.
With the existing population already struggling to eat enough, how can refugees possibly afford food? Refugees receive a food voucher upon entering Niger, which allows them to purchase U.S. $14 worth of food. Though the voucher may not seem worth very much, refugees prefer it to a standard grain handout because it allows them to customize their diet and keep their families fed while they adjust to life in Niger. The cereal handout traditionally given to refugees in Niger failed to meet human nutritional requirements, so the voucher is a step toward making sure that refugees and their children are properly nourished.
5. Why There is Still Hope
The people of Niger have banded together with the help of aid from international organizations to lessen the effects of recent droughts. By removing dead vegetation from lakes, Nigeriens are creating jobs for themselves while at the same time preventing the lakes from flooding land that could be used for farming. The dedication of the people of Niger to preventing the next hunger crisis has captured international attention and drawn donations from around the world. Hunger in Niger is certainly no quick fix, but that has not stopped the Nigeriens from getting started.
– Elise Riley
Sources: WFP1, WFP2, The World Bank, Washington Post, The Guardian, Sahara Conservation, Action Against Hunger
Photo: OneWorld South Asia
WaterAid Shows Africa’s Growing Access to Water
The nonprofit organization WaterAid released a new interactive map revealing that 14 nations in Africa are scheduled to have clean drinking water by the year 2030. This map was released as part of Africa Water Week, which took place from May 26 to May 31, to promote the idea that the accessibility of clean water in developing countries should have a central role in the U.N.’s post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals.
Since its establishment on July 21, 1981, WaterAid has worked to address the serious health, sanitation and hygiene issues that currently exist in a number of countries. This organization also realizes that education and a change in both policies and practices are needed so that an increase in hygiene and sanitation practices can help reduce global poverty. For more than 30 years, WaterAid has provided more than 19 million people with both clean and safe water in multiple countries, and it was even honored with a Top-Rated Nonprofit Award in 2013.
WaterAid hopes that the release of this map will encourage the U.N. to include global access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene by 2030 in their list of Sustainable Development Goals. This new set of goals is expected to expand on the Millennium Development Goals, which will reach their deadline Dec. 31, 2015. Before this deadline, the General Assembly is scheduled to confirm the Sustainable Development Goals in September. According to Water.org, water-related diseases are the cause of approximately 3.4 million deaths each year, confirming that this is a major global issue that needs to be addressed.
This map produced by WaterAid serves two very important purposes because it offers evidence that this is not only a worthy cause, but that it is also realistic and attainable. According to the map, 65.2 percent of people in Sub-Saharan Africa had access to water as of 2013, meaning that approximately 45 million people need to gain access to water per year to reach the 2030 goal. Although this is certainly a large amount of people, only 1.4 percent of the 2030 population needs to gain access to water every year in order to reach this goal.
– Meghan Orner
Sources: UN, WaterAid, WaterAid 2, Water
Photo: SAB Miller
Poverty in India Remains a Factor
India is the world’s largest democracy, and on May 12 it concluded a month-long national election process in which 814 million eligible voters went to the polls and selected 543 members of the lower house of parliament. In the election, Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party claimed victory as the decade of dominance by the Congress Party came to an end. The high rate of political participation and voter enthusiasm amongst India’s population is promising, but the looming issue of poverty remains.
With a population of over 1.2 billion people spread out over 1 million square miles, India is the second most populous country in the world. However, according to many reports, poverty in India is widespread and nearly a third of the population is living in poverty. India’s Planning Commission estimated in 2013 that there were over 270 million people living under the poverty line. Other studies put that number closer to 310 million, but it is clear that no matter what the criteria, poverty remains a defining issue for India in the 21st century.
The World Bank estimates that 77 percent of India’s poor live in rural areas with 60 percent of Indians living in small villages with fewer than 5,000 people. The 77 percent in rural areas is comprised of nearly 240 million people, with the remainder of India’s impoverished amounting to over 70 million in urban areas. In recent years, rates of rural poverty in India have been declining, though the change has been attributed to urban migration and negligible advances in living standards. Similarly, India’s population growth has led to an increased poor population despite decreases in overall poverty rates.
Part of the problem seems to be Indian citizens’ relatively low access to health care. According to the World Health Organization, the life expectancy for Indian citizens, 64 years for males and 68 for females, is below the global life expectancy of 70. India’s infant mortality rate and education system is also a point of concern. Attendance at primary schools has become increasingly common for Indian children over the past decades but the adult literacy rate is 62.8 percent.
India’s government reported earlier this year that its economy grew by 4.6 percent in the first quarter of 2014. Positive economic growth has become common in recent years, but this figure is far from the regular 8 percent annual growth rate which India experienced before the global financial crisis of 2008. In the time since the crisis, investment has stalled and the rupee’s value has decreased as India’s national deficit has continued to grow steadily.
With the installment of a new prime minister with a pro-business mindset, only time will tell if India regains its pace for economic growth. The future looks promising but the reality of India’s alarming poverty is omnipresent. Nearly 70 years after gaining independence, India has attained political stability and is in the midst of coaxing economic stability to follow suit.
– Taylor Dow
Sources: Daily Mail, The Guardian, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, World Bank, WHO
Photo: The Independent India
Causes of Global Poverty Remain Widespread
Poverty has been and continues to be one of the defining issues of the modern age. Despite advances in technology, increasing medical knowledge and global interconnectivity, the causes of poverty remain abundant in both developed and developing nations worldwide. Many of the causes of poverty are preventable, but remain dependent on the appropriation of funds and humanitarian efforts. However, understanding the causes of poverty is an essential step in combating its presence.
In a famous 1965 report by Daniel Moynihan, assistant labor secretary under President Johnson, the idea of a culture of poverty was introduced to the general public. That idea was introduced in the context of alarming poverty rates among ethnic minorities in the United States. In the decades that have passed, social scientists have begun to attribute cultural aspects of poverty to enduring trends of systematic oppression and isolation.
This shift in consensus has marked a pivotal turning point in academic discussions of causes of global poverty because poverty is now viewed in the larger framework of society. Similarly, the United Nations poverty-focused Millennium Development Goals now comprise “inclusive growth” ideals. This is a way of both implying the shared burden of poverty on all members of society and of recognizing the societal factors which allow poverty to exist.
The inclusive growth ideal remains pertinent because that inclusivity would most likely bring about greater access to healthcare services. Insufficient access to these services remains one of the leading causes of poverty. It is estimated that HIV/AIDS kills 6,000 people daily. This is a number that could be drastically reduced with more widespread healthcare access.
Along with lagging health care access, food production has also become a source of poverty. The United Nations has reported that declining soil fertility has been a contributing factor to the 23 percent decrease in food production in the past 25 years. This has coincided with a steep decline in agricultural jobs in developing countries. It is also a product of industrialization and a significant factor in rising food costs. Overall, due to these factors, the causes of global poverty remain widespread and a major concern throughout the world.
The United Nations now estimates that 90 percent of the 300 million children going to bed hungry daily suffer from long-term malnutrition. In total, 6 million children die annually from malnutrition. In an era where access to food remains a staple of the developed world, malnutrition has become synonymous with poverty.
Also implicit in the discussion of poverty is the economy. According to the Census Bureau, in the midst of the global financial recession in 2009 the United States poverty rate hit a 15-year high of 44 million people, nearly one in every seven Americans.
In the modern age, humanitarian aid has become directly linked to the standing of global financial institutions. However, it is worth mentioning that the causes of poverty often remain tethered to the events of the past. Fallout from wars and political instability continue to play a role in the proliferation of poverty in underdeveloped countries. Likewise, the effects of past discriminatory practices and legislation have contributed to the cyclical nature of poverty in minority communities.
Many of these causes of global poverty remain preventable, but it is the awareness of these causes that must first be addressed.
– Taylor Dow
Sources: Gallup, National Archives, New York Times 1, New York Times 2, UNDP, U.S. Department of Labor
Photo: Moms Against Hunger
Teens Participate in 30-Hour Famine To Fight Global Poverty
Contrary to popular belief, congressional leaders are only part of the key influence in making poverty a focus of U.S. foreign policy. Even though the 535 members of Congress in Washington D.C. representing voters are directly responsible for supporting or rejecting an issue or bill based on the voters’ opinions, all citizens are just as important in this process. Not only can they make their opinions known to the three members of Congress who represent them, but everyone, regardless of age, can make a difference by raising awareness in their community of a specific issue in order to bring about change.
This is exactly what a group of seven teenagers proved when they fasted for 30 hours to raise money that would benefit the fight against world poverty. These members of the Allin Church Youth Group in Dedham, Mass. participated in the World Vision’s 30 Hour Famine from 12 p.m. on April 26 to 6 p.m. on April 27. It was during those 30 hours that these teenagers not only fasted, but also learned more about world hunger as they felt the hunger that millions experience every day.
Participating members of the Dedham community donated at least $1 to this youth group for every hour that they fasted, and all contributions were used to benefit the lives of children in the Philippines in association with World Vision. World Vision is a Christian organization working in nearly 100 countries to address the issues of poverty and injustice. According to 30 Hour Famine, hundreds of thousands of people participate in this event every year in the U.S. alone, and thousands more across the globe do the same to help feed poor children and their families in developing countries.
World Vision’s 30 Hour Famine provides people with the opportunity to understand the hunger that millions experience every day of their lives. According to World Vision, 870 million people are hungry worldwide, revealing that this injustice needs to be resolved. But the 30 Hour Famine is not the only thing World Vision does to address this issue. This organization also provides individuals the opportunity to sponsor a child to not only fight poverty, but to create a better world for that child.
This experience for the Allin Church Youth Group did not end after the 30 hours were up. These seven teenagers, along with the entire Allin Congregational Church, will have the opportunity to travel to the Philippines and personally assist the children there who benefited from their 30-hour fast. This inspirational group of teenagers proves that anyone, regardless of age or political standing, can join in the fight against poverty and hunger.
— Meghan Orner
Sources: 30 Hour Famine, World Vision, The Dedham Transcript
Photo: Delphi United Church