Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Debate for Activists - The Olympics

For the past few weeks, the Olympics have been a touchy subject.

From the perspective of an activist, the Olympic Games are a great time to make a statement. There's a lot of media attention, a lot of political attention, and a lot of national pride at stake. All of this means that when we speak up about what we think, or put pressure on these groups to act in a certain way, our voice is going to echo - loudly.

However, the Olympics is about a kind of peace. One where we can put all the politics to the side and engage in friendly competition. A brief period of time every few years where our countries and our governments are something we can take pride in. With this perspective, using the Olympics as a means of activism seems horribly wrong.

It is this issue that I want to explore in this blog post.

My name is Karen Bernstein, and I am the Chapter Coordinator of the Harry Potter Alliance – a group that, yes, is taking a stand on the Olympics (and a lot of other things too).

As activists, I believe we should take every opportunity we have to present our views and push for the changes we want to see . Of course, it is important to do this respectfully and lawfully, in a way that matches our personal morals. But every opportunity we have to make a statement or share an opinion, every time we are in a place where we can make our voices echo – we should shout as loud as we can.

The Olympics are a wonderful event – and they truly do symbolize the peace that I would like to see in the world. It is a wonderful way for the Chinese people to show off their rich history and culture. But I want to make sure that symbolism, and the richness of that culture and of so many other groups, is allowed to remain and flourish, not only as symbolism and history, but in reality. In the vivacity of who we are as people and cultures. And in order for that to happen, we need to make sure that China can hear us.

China has allowed horrible atrocities to happen in Darfur and in Burma, in Tibet and even to their own people in China. And while it is important to recognize that Chinese citizens are not responsible for these events, we need to make sure that the government of China hears what we are telling them.

China, my name is Karen, I am a student and an activist who cares about our world, and I don't think what you're doing is right. You should not be funding atrocities such as those in Burma and Darfur. You should not start a cultural genocide in Tibet. You should not terrorize your own people.

And China, I want to make sure you are able to hear me shout these messages. My voice will be echoing throughout the Olympic Games. Listen to me.