How Did I Become Interested in Global Citizenship/International Relations?

People ask me a lot about how I got to be interested in international relations and the global community, and I really have my senior year of high school to thank. My senior year history class covered topics about contemporary world issues, or CWI as we called it. We discussed western Europe first and spoke about Brexit specifically, then we learned about the Middle East and the Arab Spring, then spoke about Russia and their politics. When we learning about Western Europe, we first watched a video that interviewed British and French people on the street about how they viewed Americans, and how stereotypes affected their views. There was also a segment of the video which showed Poland and that Polish citizens often celebrate America by dressing up as cowboys and cowgirls. I was very shocked at the time to see how far stereotypes could reach, and how much people’s perspectives are really affected by stereotypes. When learning about the Arab Spring, we discovered the reasoning behind Mohamed Bouazizi’s decision to self-immolate as a statement of the injustice and pain he endures due to his cruel society. During our unit about Russia, we spoke about Vladimir Putin and how he has created himself as an irreplaceable icon through unique and unusual propaganda, as well as how the media and voting results are  likely fabricated. Looking back at what I learned about in this class while being enrolled in Citizens has made my view change about international relations and global citizenship.

Looking back at specific EU countries’ views on the United States made me recognize that I am an ambassador for the United States no matter where I am, and I should act as the way I want people to view Americans. I should be doing my best to be respectful of civil discourse and not discriminate, considering I grew up in a country full of diversity and was taught to treat people with respect regardless if they’re different than me. While there are still social issues regarding discrimination in the United States, I want to show non-Americans that not every person acts in that manner or is focused on racial supremacy. When my class and I looked into how Bouazizi’s choice to self-immolate and how it was the catalyst for the Arab Spring, I really began to believe than an individual does have the power to inspire change. At that time I wasn’t able to vote yet, but it made me recognize how much power I as an individual really do have. Elections can become really close between the winner and their opposer, and while one vote doesn’t sound like much, it still makes a difference. Lastly, when looking at how Putin was said to have an 89% approval rating in 2015, and an 81% approval rating in 2016, it made me realize how fortunate I was to be in America where I didn’t only have access to government censored media. Furthermore, I now recognize how important it is for an American citizen to look at multiple sides of each discussion to engage in the community and civil discourse. I believe that as a citizen of the United States, it is important to be aware of what is occurring in the US and I believe that it’s crucial to find some way to be involved as a citizen, especially during elections.

In terms of being a global citizen, I think more people need to be aware of what others are experiencing outside of the US, and I think we should work to try to spread knowledge about their situations so change may happen faster. There are fellow human beings that deserve release from oppression, but if there isn’t free press or media, I say it’s up to us and other countries with free press to make the oppressive situations known and move towards ending them.