Testimonies from the Spring 2013 European Fellows
Read the testimonies from the Spring 2013 Professional Fellows European Delegation visiting the United States in April 2013 – May 2013 of the 1st EU Fellowship Delegation who visited USA
Read the testimonies from the Spring 2013 Professional Fellows European Delegation visiting the United States in April 2013 – May 2013 of the 1st EU Fellowship Delegation who visited USA
The first delegation with a total of 19 fellows from Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia visited the U.S. from April 1 – May 11, 2013 and participated in group seminars, round-table discussions, site visits, and had have interactions with United States leaders..
U.S. mentors will travel for a reciprocal visit to Europe. The Out-Bound component will include at least two American mentors’ teams to travel to Europe (between June 2013 and March 2014) for up to 21 days to provide joint workshops with the alumni and on-site consultation and fieldwork, and conduct wider outreach programs. The first U.S. mentor group will travel to Europe from June 19 through July 17, 2013 with 8 Americans who hosted, trained, worked with the European participants of the Spring 2013 delegation. Americans will work with the European alumni in providing workshops, assist with consulting and mentoring. They will be involved in field experience and learn about best kayak reviews minority issues and gain cultural experience in Europe. They will have an opportunity to share professional expertise and gain a deeper understanding of the societies, cultures and people of other countries. This citizen civic exchange will promote mutual understanding, create long-term professional ties, enhance the collaboration between GLC and its partners.
The second European delegation is expected in the U.S. from September 29 – November 9, 2013.
The Great Lakes Consortium – through WSOS Community Action Commission, Inc. – as Contract Agent and Manager – received a grant for a two-way exchange between September 2012 and August 2014 from the U.S. Department of State for the “Building Grassroots Democracy in Minority Communities” with at least 32 participants from four countries of Europe and for 18 U.S. mentors.
Meet the U.S. Mentors:
My name is Anita Vodál, and I’m a trainee lawyer at the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union. I came to the U.S. through an international community organizing exchange. My previous intention was to learn how to combine legal empowerment with community organizing back in Hungary. Surprisingly, I learned that you cannot empower people without organizing them – making them aware of their own power.
I was so absorbed in the issues and social problems of Hungary that I didn’t have much time before I arrived to think about how things would be in the U.S. I spend most of my time in the “world as it is,” instead of the “world as it should be,” which means that I was complaining about social injustice all the time without taking any action.
Five weeks ago, I arrived in the U.S. with 18 other fellows from Central European countries with the enthusiasm to learn community organizing and how grassroots democracy functions. Our training included a three-week internship during which our group split up and each of us went to different organizations in various states across the country. We all work with minority groups back in our countries (Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia) as part of the legal, social worker or organizing staff. I was placed for my internship at the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless (CCH), along with Miro Ragac from Slovakia.
This exchange program, funded and organized by the U.S. State Department, also allows community organizers from the U.S. go to Central Europe in order to learn how things work there, how powerful organizations operate, what are the biggest social challenges organizers have to face, etc. Europeans try to get the same answers from American organizations and participants during the six weeks spent in the U.S.
I was completely aware that there are homeless people on the streets in the U.S. too, and that people are concerned about various social issues. However, I never thought that Americans struggle with the same challenges as we do in the middle of Europe – after 40 years of Socialism – nor that in the U.S. people also have to fight for democratic values and against racism. I had to realize that discrimination remains an issue even if we are across the ocean in a country ruled by a democratic leader. It seems to me that this struggle is something that we have to fight for, no matter where we live.
In Hungary, Roma people are the biggest ethnic minority, or about 10% of the entire population. The Roma community faces an enormous level of discrimination in every facet of life, including housing, employment, and education. They live in very poor living conditions, lots of them have no running water in their houses, the unemployment rate is almost 90%, and most of the Roma children go to segregated schools or classes. The far-right political party, Jobbik, has 20% of the representatives in the Parliament. This ruling conservative government supports the idea of “gypsy criminality.” This concept has significantly increased the level of racism experienced by Roma people in the last few years.
During my stay I the U.S., I have realized that this country also faces serious problems of discrimination and segregation, even though it is ruled by a democratic government.
I would like highlight the issue that surprised me the most.
If a person has a criminal background in the U.S., they have to carry this felony through their entire life as a stamp on their forehead. It stays there forever; anyone can have access to their criminal record. Related to homelessness, these people are excluded from public housing through the Chicago Housing Authority for at least five years, and have to wait at least another couple of years on the housing choice wait list until they can access an apartment. They cannot rejoin family living in public housing just because of the felony. They can hardly get a job, since their future employee can easily do a background check on them. What is the point of letting people out of prison if they are excluded from most services and their fundamental rights are curtailed? In Hungary, you can get rid of the felony after a certain amount of time, depending on the crime. There are some extensions, but in most of the cases your criminal record becomes blank and nobody can check it except certain authorities. It is your private information. It seems that there are regulations that are more humane in Central Europe and the U.S. has to improve.
Besides plenty of best practices, useful tools and great advice that I can take back home with me, I’ve learned during my time in Chicago to live sometimes in “the world as it should be.”
On 12th of April our fellows safety arrived to their fellowship placement site in 9 states at 11 hosting organizations. Read some of their first actions/meetings and impressions:
Raluca Negulescu, Romania
My first day at the Granite State Organizing Project was delightful. I met a group of fantastic Latin-American women from Nashua and we discussed about the main issues in their community. In the evening, I attended a fundraising event – the 2nd Annual Spaghetti Supper organised by Holy Cross Family Learning Center in Manchester. I met the Mayor of the city and enjoyed a Bhutanese dance show.
Martin Klus, Slovakia
I had a “sharp start” here in Little Rock and today became part of very strong state-wide initiative within Arkansas State Congress and will be famous for couple of seconds even in local TV.
Dzhevid Mahmud, Bulgaria
Csaba and Dzhevid met with senator Kennedy in Brockton, Boston during interfaith community action meeting.
Simona Barbu, Romania
Two very interesting meetings today in Seattle, the first one at CASA LATINA, where the Care Council meet to discuss about the national updates on the law of immigration and the activities they prepare for the next period: on the 9th of May they will put together and action called Mothers Day in order to highlight the role of the mothers in immigration.
Later on, in the Industrial district (aka China Town) we had the opportunity to participate at the meeting of the coalition for preparing May Day in Seattle, a totally different concept that what we usually celebrate in Romania. May Day is the Immigrant’s Day and will be celebrated by marching on the main important boulevards of the city and organizing the members of the immigrant communities to participate.
Together with Kovács Tímea Éva , we’ll be peace keepers during the march on the 1st of May! We are looking forward to it!
Miroslav Ragac, Slovakia
Very successful day today! Our S.A.G.E group (Survivor Advocacy Group Empowered) met with several members of the Illinois House of Representatives in Springfield and they got their support and commitment to vote for SB 1872!!! Well done girls!!!
The first delegation with a total of 19 fellows from Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia visit the U.S. from April 1 – May 11, 2013 to participate in group seminars, round-table discussions, site visits, and will have interactions with United States leaders. A tailored 3-week internship with mentoring, multicultural events, and participation in volunteer activities as well as in the Professional Fellows Congress in Washington, D.C. will be also included in the 6-week professional fellows program.
Participants will prepare a 6-9 month individual and group Action Plan for follow on activities. They have various opportunities to experience the American family life and the diversity in the U.S. through staying with American host families during their internship in Little Rock (Arkansas), Chicago (Illinois), Boston (Massachusetts), St. Louis (Missouri), Manchester (New Hampshire), Raleigh (North Carolina), Philadelphia (Pennsylvania), Charlottesville (Virginia), Seattle (Washington).
A second European delegation is expected in the U.S. from September 30 – November 9, 2013.
The Out-Bound component will include at least two American mentors’ teams to travel to Europe (between June 2013 and March 2014) for up to 21 days to provide joint workshops with the alumni and on-site consultation and fieldwork, and conduct wider outreach programs.
U.S. and foreign participants will be involved in alumni activities through an alumni social network in each country. We will also establish an online network for continued learning. This program is a collaboration between GLC and its overseas partners: CEGA in Bulgaria, Civil College Foundation in Hungary, CeRe in Romania and Center for Community Organizing in Slovakia as well as the European Community Organizing Network (ECON) and many U.S. partner organizations involved in the joint program and the tailored internship, and follow up mentoring activities.
Building Grassroots Democracy in Minority Communities is a project of Great Lakes Consortium – through WSOS Community Action Commission, Inc. – as Contract Agent and Manager – granted for a two-way exchange between September 2012 and August 2014 from the U.S.
Department of State.
Between January 25 – February 15, 2013 the delegation of 8 U.S. Mentors (U.S. organizations: Chicago Coalition for the Homeless (CCH), Step by Step (SS), Charles Stewart Mott Foundation (CSMT), Harriet Tubman Center (HTC), Maine People’s Alliance (MPA), Lakeview Action Coalition (LAC), One Village Council (OVC), and Poverty Initiative) gathered in Budapest to participate in 3-week trip in Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania and Slovakia in smaller groups.
They spent time interacting with local leaders and alumni friends, learning about the political, economic and cultural environment in each country, and participated in workshops, round table discussions and presentations, consulting, etc. They all contributed to the great success of this exchange program.
Check what they are saying:
A third U.S. Mentor group with 8 participants will travel to Europe from January 25-February 15, 2013. The U.S. participants of this exchange will have an opportunity to share professional expertise and gain a deeper understanding of the societies, cultures and people of other countries.
They will participate in workshops, seminars organized by the alumni of this program and contribute with presentations, discussions and mentoring.
They will also visit public and civil society organizations working with the alumni in implementing projects in minority communities and provide them on-site consultations.
We hope that community organizing will start and will have success stories in many communities in 2013.
Between November 24 – December 15, 2012 the delegation of 5 U.S. Mentors (U.S. organizations: Mahoning Valley Organizing Collaborative (MVOC), Community Voices Heard (CVH), Sunflower Community Action (SCA), Harriet Tubman Center (HTC), ACCESS/National Network for Arab American Communities) participate in 3-weeks trip in Hungary, Slovakia, and Romania or Bulgaria. They all contributed a lot to the success of the program in every country.
They spent the time with learning about the political, economical, cultural environment in each, and contributed to successful workshops, presentations, small group discussions, consulting etc. and strengthen the friendship and collaboration with 16 alumni and have workshop and interview meetings with candidates of the delegation for the next program.
For Delegation feedback testimony see below:
The GLC Professional Fellows Program brings emerging leaders from around the world to the United States for intensive short-term fellowships designed to broaden their professional expertise.
Great Lakes Community Action Partnership (GLCAP)
127 S. Front Street
Fremont, Ohio 43420
1-800-775-9767
The GLC/GLCAP Professional Fellows Program is supported by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of the Educational and Cultural Affairs, Global Leaders Division.