The mentors coffee this past thursday was amazing; it was great to hear what everyone is and plans on doing at their internships. I see that everyone is hard at work and that we are each starting to find our bearings at our respective agencies.
While traditionally the blog is dedicated to whatever topic it is we spoke about in seminar, this week was not a normal seminar. So, what should we speak about? Something that I have always had difficulty with, especially being an American and living in this country, is the role individualism plays when we are in positions where we are being mentored. Mentorship is not a new phenomenon, however, how do we reconcile how important mentorship is when we live in a society that highlights and often times prefers that we speak about individual work and sacrifice?
In my personal experience, I know that if it weren't for my parents, many of my friends, peers, teachers, bosses, professors, and informal and formal mentors, such as Trish Farley at Common Justice, I would not have been able to accomplish the things I have thus far. I constantly acknowledge the efforts of these individuals, and make sure that credit is given where credit is due. For me, it is clear that our successful journeys were not journeys that were traveled in solitude- we had guidance, we had support, we had people rooting for us and that believed in us. This was not a one man/woman struggle.
Than why is it when we refer to people who are in need of serious help, like many of the individuals we work with at our Vera agencies, we (as in the general system and society, not we the Vera Fellowship), expect them to get out of the "hole" they are in by themselves. We blame poor people for being poor, we blame victims of violence for being victims (or try to make them look like offenders), we blame people who are molested for being molested. The discourse, especially in more recent debates and news articles given the elections, we hear the word entitlements, handouts, fee stuff, free ride, playing victim, and so on. There is a sense that people who are in need are there because of there own doing, but that even when they want to get out, we shouldn't help them because they should do it by themselves. The "American Dream" story of hard work and success isn't one of collective effort, it is one of individualism and personal sacrifice.
Thus, there seems to be this huge contradiction when it comes to how we become successful. On one hand, we tend to accept and acknowledge that without the help of certain individuals we would not have made it "this far". On the other, giving help to those who need it the most will not get them out of the dark place they're in and so they shouldn't get it. It's their own individual hard work that will, just as the hard work of the successful was what made them successful.
We all know, especially being Vera Fellows, the value of mentorship and the extra help we get - through our stipend, the seminar, being part of ISP, our three professors, and so on. Yet, our work, which revolves helping those who need it most, and sometimes involves mentorship, is rejected by particular systems and political parties, because if someone wants to get out of poverty, they can do it on their own. So, I pose these questions:
1) How does the emphasis on American individualism overshadow the role mentors play in a persons narrative of success?
2) Is it possible to reconcile these two worlds, of mentorship/guidance/collective effort and individual work and sacrifice, and if so, how?
3) How can we demonstrate and change the discourse on how valuable mentorship and collective efforts are when it comes to working with populations such as the impoverished, and highlight that programs that give them aid is not giving them a "free ride" or taking away from personal responsibility?
Thanks everyone, and I know opinions on this may differ, but I believe this is a conversation is a good one to have, and a necessary one, because I am always at odds with American individualism and my own recognition of the role of mentorship and acknowledging that without all the help I've received, I would not be sitting with you all at our thursday seminars.
I end on this note, and hope that you reflect on the words of Elizabeth Warren when thinking about the questions -
