With the presidential election just a few weeks away, it is a great opportunity to analyze politics and its involvement in my service experience. What exactly does the word politics mean? I know that when I initially hear the word politics used, I think of the differences between Democrats and Republicans and what their stances are on important topics. Many people would say that politics are contained within the capitals of states or large cities with Washington D.C. being the focal point in this country. In reality, politics are everywhere. The governments of even the smallest communities make decisions that affect its constituents and that is what politics is. Politics in my opinion is when people make decisions in the attempt to help the majority and the greater good. This definition can then be extended to include any group that comes together that makes a decision. Politics are important in businesses, schools, and even religious organizations. The politics of organizations determine how they are run and also how they are perceived by outside observers.
I have seen varying effects of politics thus far during my service at St. Patrick’s Church. Both types of politics that I mentioned previously are present. The most notable influence of politics that I have seen is how the community dinners have been organized and run. I believe that I am in somewhat of a unique circumstance in that different people organize the dinner each week. This has given me a great perspective on how different organizations put on the meal. The first two weeks were organized by church groups and were run in a very similar manner. A couple of people were present at both and were looked at as leaders by all of the other volunteers. These people did not have to state their claim as leaders, but were simply looked at as in charge by everyone. As a new volunteer, I have taken a follower’s role at all three dinners that I have participated in and that is where I am expected to be by all of the other people. A group of union workers organized the dinner this past week and they did so in a planned out manner. It has been very interesting to see the differences each week, but there always seems to be an implied leader that delegates tasks and answers any questions. It will be interesting to see if Russ, Regan, or I become included in any decision making conversations after we have volunteered a few more times and know essentially what needs to be done at specific times.
In addition to the politics of running the dinner, there has also been a lot of talk surrounding the upcoming presidential election by the people that attend the dinner. I have yet to get directly involved in any conversations about the nominees, but I have heard many heated discussions with people making their case for the candidate that they support. These discussions show the importance of the election to every person in society. People that struggle to find a steady source of food are still concerned about the election and who the next president will be. These events that I have observed have convinced me that the democratic system of the United States is still a success after over 200 years in existence.
The importance of politics in community is discussed in Ralph Ellison’s The Invisible Man which the service learning class is reading. The one thing that I have noticed in the book is the presence of a clear leader in each organization that is highlighted. The university that the narrator attends is headed by Dr. Bledsoe. Dr. Bledsoe takes pride on maintaining complete control of the institution and even brags about his deception of weakness to the regents of the school. The two men that the narrator report to at the paint factory also must maintain complete control of the workers under them. The narrator meets a similar situation with the leader of the union at the factory who has more say in situations than the other workers. The narrator always comes into conflict with these types of leaders which means that Ralph Ellison most likely condemns the politics of organizations that are run in this manner. The narrator ends each encounter with these men with a feeling of hatred and anger. If the reader assumes that Ellison is making arguments through the narrator then he most likely feels the same way. The politics of organizations can be very different with some being a great success while others are complete failures. The key is to find which way of leadership works best for each particular situation.
1 comment:
I agree with you that we see politics in everywhere in our lives-- whether it be at work or at school and of course on a much more obvious level that of our government.
I too have found a lot in my service area about politics and what types of things are being done to help promote the advancement of the school itself. I also feel as though this is the perfect time to be talkign about politics with the election coming up, sometimes I feel like it's easy to forget about its improtance as college kids. It's also very interesting to look at the different levels or types of poltics that affect us and what our role is and what types of consequences they have for us.
Obviously politics can have a positive effect upon us, but what about the negative?
I also took Ellison's view as a negative one on politics. It seems as though h rying to convey the idea that sometimes personal freedom is comprimised as a result of politics.
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