Over the course of my research on World Relief, what
stands out to me the most is the fortitude of the refugee high school students.
Regardless of what country and what type of conflict these kids have left
behind, each must bear the burden of emotional scars while simultaneously navigating
a completely foreign new life—foreign in every sense of the word—and they each make
it work. It’s hard to put myself in their shoes. Most of the kids come here speaking
little to no English, but they learn so quickly. They work hard, study hard,
help support their families, and they help each other so much. Kim Orchard, the
guidance counselor for the WR students at West Aurora, facilitates adjustment
group meetings for the students to discuss, seek advice, or vent about issues
they face. Imagine an English-speaking
counselor, a French-speaking African, an Arabic-speaking Iraqi who translates
for a Bhutanese in Spanish so the Pakistani can understand…you get the picture.
Given the level of trauma so many refugees have experienced, they certainly
deserve the chance to begin life anew in typical American towns such as Aurora,
IL.
Wow. I’ve been wracking my brain to come up with some examples, but I keep coming up short. Luckily, I know a nineteen year old feminist who watches a lot of TV. In particular, she brought up Orange is the New Black and Game of Thrones as examples of shows that portray strong women and shed light on gender inequity. By virtue of the all-female cast on OITNB, issues of gender inequity are inevitably raised. The inclusion of women of color and varying sexuality does much to promote feminist viewpoints. My daughter sees the treatment of the prisoners by the guards as a metaphor for how the women are treated in real life, also exposing oppression in society. I found her inclusion of Game of Thrones to be interesting. While I haven’t seen the show (I know…I need to watch it!), I have read about the controversies concerning the rapes and otherwise poor treatment of the female characters. Do such plot points in some way elevate the oppression of...
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