Alternative Spring Break: Indianapolis

Over my school's Spring Break, I lead a group of fellow students to Indianapolis to focus on disability issues. The trip was a part of B-W's Alternative Break Program, which sends groups of students around the country dealing with Social Justice issues.

This trip began for me last May when I chose my issue of disability issues. The topic has been a huge part of my life, with my brother being autistic. Once the issue was settled, I began researching disability resource sites, and other organizations that deal with the disabled population. I originally had a therapeutic riding center in South Carolina, however they unfortunately already had two Alternative Break trips from other schools coming that week. Then I moved on to a series of disability resource sites in Rhode Island, but the director became extremely frustrating to keep in contact with, so I moved on from them. My final cancellation was with a site in Knoxville, where I had traveled to during the previous Spring Break.

With a lack of alternatives, the Student Director gave me the contact information for two sites in Indianapolis, which is where I ended up traveling to. The first site is called Damar, which helps disabled adolescents lead more independent lives. It is a residential facility, which rests upon a forty acre campus. While we were there, we helped them set up for their annual prom, St. Patrick's Dance, and inventoried supplies for a Western themed day in the summer. The most rewarding task was playing with the kids during the gym and P.E. classes, where we played kickball, volleyball, and basketball.

The other site was the Indianapolis VA or Veterans Hospital. While we were there we helped with the Coffee Cart, the book cart, escorted people from the front desk to different hospital locations, and volunteered in the Emergency Room. This was an extremely different population to work with, but equally rewarding.

The most rewarding part of the trip however was my group. During the interview process I was able to create a very eager group that was ready every morning to do community service. I am very proud of the pre-trip meetings that I prepared which were based around team bonding and educational material. Once the trip actually began, all of the preparation that was put into the trip made the actual trip incredibly easy from a leadership standpoint.

This wonderful experience has caused me to pursue Student Director of the Alternative Break Program, which I was thankfully appointed! I am excited to interview the new site leaders in a week and a half. This whole experience has really been the most rewarding project I have worked on, and I am excited to enter the next phase.

Thanks for reading, the next blog will be about my most hated sports figures.

Spread the Word to End the Word

On March 3rd, the Special Olympics ran a campaign entitled "Spread the Word to End the Word" to stop the usage of the word "retarded". This campaign was created in response to President Obama's Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel calling liberal democrats "F***ing retarded", followed by a seemingly ridiculous amount of usage of the word in and around the media.

In response to this, the Alternative Break group that I lead over Spring Break to Indianapolis dealing with disability issues decided to have a table in the main building of our campus helping to spread awareness on March 3rd. Having an autistic brother has made me very passionate about this topic, so I was interested to see the campus's response.

We set up a table that had information sheets on the campaign, a big screen that had the campaign website on it, and stickers to give away to those who pledged. I tried to emphasize to my group members not pressuring anyone more than necessary when asking the onlookers to pledge not to use the word. While there were many students who walked right by the table, we did acquire 120 pledges, who pledged right onto the website on the big screen, which created a very cool and influential effect.

There were two stories that really stick out to me coming out of the campaign. First, there was a cafeteria lady who came up to the table, and merely said, "Someone called me that word yesterday. I hate that word." She did not fill out a pledge, and she did not say a word to those working the table, but the hate in your voice made what we were doing seem right. Second, a girl came up to me and asked what the campaign was about. After I informed her what we were doing, she simply asked, "Is the word retarded really the problem, or is it the people who have misconstrued it?"

Although I am very in favor of the end of the word, I do understand her point. A word is simply a label used by people. The word retarded cannot by itself cause harm or pain. The definition of the word retarded is "to make slow; to delay the development or progress of; hinder or impede" This word is actually very effective in referring to the delicate situation of disabilities. While the word itself is not the culprit, something must be done. There were many people who were on the fence when we talked to them, yet the stories and campaign caused many of these people to make the pledge and promise to try harder to use the word more appropriately or not use it all. Seeing these reactions, I believe that the campaign was both successful and beneficial.

The campaign currently has 123, 878 pledges, which is awesome to see. To learn more about the campaign, go to r-word.org.