Post Mumbai Attack Action Plan

I just got this email — I think it’s worth sharing, especially since I agree with it in toto:

Hi, My name is Vijay Parthasarathy, and I am a first year PhD student in media studies at the University of Texas at Austin. I have an idea. Some of you may have heard of Teach for India, a project that is modelled after Teach for America.

Now, many of us may not be in a position at this stage to spare two years of our lives. Perhaps instead we could volunteer to talk to kids at one school of your choice, once a year (if you live in India) or every time we visit India.

Something is making me want to channel my rage productively in the aftermath of the recent attacks on Mumbai — which is strange, really.

After all, outraged as I was, like most of us I did nothing three years ago when terrorists attacked Mumbai’s suburban train system. Shocked as I was, like most of us I did nothing when I heard about middlemen in Cuddalore selling tainted meat in Kerala. Infuriated as I was, like most of us I did nothing when a self-styled economic guru started pimping for the Indian Institute of __ & __, the kind of higher education racket that is a metaphor for Indian mediocrity.

I am sick of politicians. I have never exercised my vote, even if my justification — do I really want to choose between someone with a fourth standard pass and a seventh standard fail? — sounds a bit hollow.

So what’s new? Only that like so many of you, I’ve had enough.

At different moments in my life, India has left me feeling detached, cynical, optimistic, realistic. Since arriving in the United States, I’ve wondered how to deal with my conflicted feelings. I’ve decided I want to do something for young adults; they are the only ones worth investing any hope in. There are thousands of Indians with access to a world-class liberal education; unfortunately this is a privilege that is not available to hundreds of millions of our fellow citizens. I strongly believe this large, loosely-knit community of educated elites can do an incredible amount of good by offering up a little slice of their time.

One of the major problems with the Indian education system is that it renders students passive. The concept of researching and writing original essays is largely unheard of, even in some of the better urban schools. That needs to change. People need to be taught to think for themselves. I’m sure you know exactly what I’m talking about.

Let’s go back to school and share this wisdom of hindsight. This is where a prestigious degree or great work experience will come in handy… it will impress any school principal. It worked for me when I went back to my old school and spoke to the Rev. Father. I am now officially one of those success stories Indian mothers like to talk about, and so are you.

So you want to talk in class? You don’t need to be a trained teacher. Don’t lecture kids on the joys of quantum mechanics, just be direct and tell them what drives you. Give them your email address and encourage them to write to you. It’s much simpler than you might imagine. Be passionate, be imaginative, and above all, be utterly compelling. Raise subjects closest to your heart — “The importance of religious unity”, “What else the internet can do for you?”, “History is totally awesome!” — and you’ll find that many kids will listen.

A couple of years ago, I spoke to a group of 9th standard kids at my old school about writing. Now I have a Master’s degree in creative writing, and I have very strong ideas on precisely what constitutes good fiction. But aside from paraphrasing Graham Greene — “If there’s something about a sentence that you really like, tone it down because it’s probably sticking out” — I made sure not to burden the kids with my opinions.

The real point of my talk was merely to open their minds to fresh possibilities — Engineering? Medicine? Have you considered a career as a writer? I don’t for a second believe everyone can write fiction, but I do believe every single person is capable of coherently arranging their thoughts.

If, by my actions, I can inspire people to think critically, to think things through, I would feel a measure of satisfaction. As would you.

I am aware that many of you are already doing whatever you can to help kids back home. You have my respect.

It doesn’t matter if you are idealistic, or absolutely enraged about the state of our country; it’s just as fantastic if you are doing this to boost your credentials as an idealistic young politician.

Please send this email to everyone in your e-mail address book, so it reaches as many Indian citizens as possible. I plan to eventually start a facebook page, do sign up. I hate to sound dramatic — it’s not my style — but it’s time to appropriate Barack Obama’s message and apply it in the context of our own country. Fact is, India needs change even more desperately than America.

Best,

Vijay Parthasarathy

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Connecting Dots … » Blog Archive » Mumbai Attack Impact Update says:

November 28th, 2008 at 1:55 am (#)

[…] Think tank Stratfor has published a report on the geopolitical consequences of this attack. […]

Recovered from the site’s WordPress archive, where it was published on 2008-11-27.