RP 1
According to the National Council on Aging, “In 2014, 10.2 million older Americans faced the threat of hunger, representing 15.8% of adults aged 60+ in the US”. These seniors have been working all their lives and deserve a place to live and food to eat. Structural violence is violence that happens socially that prevents people from meeting their basic needs. The fact that the seniors need food is an example of structural violence. This is happening because these seniors live on a fixed income, and they can’t afford food. Sometimes, these seniors have to choose between food, medicine, or rent. The iceberg is a way of analyzing conflict. On the top is the conflict one can see and the bottom is the conflict one cannot see. On the top is the iceberg is that the seniors are hungry. On the bottom, is that they don’t have enough money to buy food. Chicago Cares is a non-profit organization that provides volunteers with opportunities around the city. According to Chicago Cares, their mission statement is, “We believe in the power of volunteering to transform Chicago.” Chicago Cares forsees a city where everybody is an active participant. Chicago Cares brings volunteers from all over Chicago to help. Volunteers know that they must be agents of change to make a difference. “Volunteers meet immediate needs while simultaneously breaking down barriers and creating a movement for long-term change, connecting with new people and building trust.” Gene Sharp founded the Albert Einstein Institution which is a non-profit organization devoted to the study of nonviolent actions. He studied and categorized a list of nonviolent methods, like walkouts, public speakings, etc. to make it easier for people to understand them. Some categories that make up his list are public assemblies, honoring the dead, symbolic public acts, and withdrawal from the social system (Arrow). One method that I follow is social intervention because I am trying to get people to go help the seniors by volunteering to meet