Following the presidential election, Hopkins students seem to have forgotten the apathy that typically characterizes them. Students have participated in protests against hate, fossil fuels, the review of the Humanities Center and so much more. All of this is great, but we can’t let it fizzle out.
I imagine that most leftists, when the shock of a Trump presidency wears off, will return to the usual focus on their studies, internships and grad school applications — everything that stole our attention before what The News-Letter affectionately refers to as “the week of protests.”
We cannot let this happen. We have to care, we have to stay motivated, and we have to actively work to improve our community. Even if you weren’t upset by the outcome of the presidential election, you need to care about this world, your world. Change starts small, so let’s start it here at Hopkins.
As the week of protests proves, Hopkins is already home to a number of groups that fight for important causes. Groups like Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and Refuel Our Future work year-round to improve our community. If you were inspired last month, hang onto that feeling and get involved on campus.
Maybe your interests aren’t so political. Maybe you don’t see a need to change the social climate of our university. Good news: Groups like Relay for Life and Dance Marathon raise money for cancer research and the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, respectively. Give back and have fun, all while staying out of politics.
The world is bigger than you. Some people don’t have enough money to buy food for their families, and you spend four dollars on a cup of coffee at Brody. Simply by attending this school, you have the opportunity to help those who aren’t as privileged as you. Volunteer your time or your money, or at the very least, ask your friends and family to.
In my experience, Hopkins students are incredibly self-absorbed. I asked over 20 students to participate in Dance Marathon last month or, at the very least, to donate to my page.
Guess how many of the people I talked to came. One. Guess how many of them donated. Two.
A few weeks ago, I was working on my homework in Brody Café, and a grad student was walking through talking to people about the potential closing of the Humanities Center, asking people to sign the petition. Once she was out of earshot, the two boys at the table next to me laughed about it. They were engineers. It didn’t affect them, so they didn’t care.
Again, the world is bigger than you. I understand that you’re busy. I’m busy, too. It’s Hopkins, we’re all busy. But please. Please. Do something to make this world better.
Join DSAGA, Hopkins Feminists, Voice for Choice — or Life, if that’s what you believe and care about. Participate in Relay for Life, and buy donuts from the next group that’s going to donate their proceeds to a cause.
Add your voice to The News-Letter or Her Campus or your blog. Ask your grandparents to make a donation to your favorite cause as part of your Christmas present. Take five seconds to add your name to a petition.
If you can wake up each morning and go to class and to lacrosse practice or chapter meeting or dance rehearsal or whatever it is you do — if you can wake up and make that your whole day, knowing the suffering that exists in the world, then that’s on you.
Gillian Lelchuk is a junior Writing Seminars and Mathematics double major from Los Alamitos, Calif. She is the Opinions Editor.
