ESSAYS By Nickole Evans

Youth Millennium Book Project  2/200

One person can make a difference

"It takes a whole village to raise a child" - really?  How about "it takes but one child to educate a whole village".  I'm only 15 but have seen much of the world through the eyes of other kids who live in joy, yet suffer from poverty; live in fear while surrounded by affluence; have risen above the horrors created by adults, taken a stand, and made a difference.

There's many ways I would like to make this world "PERFECT" knowing perfect is also a state of mind. Violence - what does this mean to you? When I ask my peers what they think about violence they really don’t know how to answer.  Sure it’s going on everywhere in the world but it’s not affecting them, so who cares? I get really upset when people are oblivious to the world around them and all they care about is money, cars, and boyfriends/girlfriends.

This is the society I live in. People in the United States are caught up in themselves. Sure people know about things like Columbine but teens seem to think nothing could ever happen to them. They are invincible (UNTIL IT HITS THEM RIGHT SMAK IN THE FACE).  They never learn. When talking to my friend Leonora from Kosovo, whom I met at the “Global Youth Peace and Tolerance Awards”, I learned many things that I could never imagined happening to me. I see the pictures on T.V and hear the radio, but it’s very different when I hear it from someone my own age. Leonora has seen her friends and families die right in front of her eyes.

Leonora is one the strongest people I know. The war itself has impacted her life so much, but she still loves it in Kosovo. She is so happy to be apart of her homeland. When I asked her if she ever regretted living in Kosovo she told me straight up - “No, this war was meant for a reason and even though it has taken so much from me, it has given me more strength than I have ever thought I had.”  Leonora is a survivor.  She has shown me how to turn negatives into positives and empowers others to do the same.

No matter where in the world a war is raging it effects every community in one way or another.

Two years ago we had Bosnian, Kosovoan and Ukranian refugees come and live in southeastern Washington State, a rural farming community. My next-door neighbor had only one leg because he had stepped on a land mine in Bosnia. This really brought me down to earth.

I will admit that I was unsure about these people at first. I noticed differences, like the way the men treated their wives, the parents treated their children, and how the kids acted in the neighborhood.  It wasn’t just language, but obvious cultural differences that I didn’t understand.  I did, however, become a good friend to most of them.  But two summers ago there was an incident that made me realize what a violent culture they had come from.

A friend and I were walking by two teenage Bosnian boys who were our friends.  They had, apparently, found two BB guns in the dumpster. They shot me in the side and my friend in the head.  Thank goodness no one was harmed. We called the police - we didn’t know what else to do. The parents were really shaken by this, because in Bosnia if the police came to get your children, you may never see them again.

I later went over to the families’ house and talked to them about the law in the United States, what was socially acceptable behavior, and tried my very best to comfort them. The really sad part of this story is that the boy’s behavior was just their way of flirting with us.

The refugee families have done well in adjusting to our laws and culture over the last few years.  Yet they can still retain their own culture and share it with others of us in the neighborhood.  My family and I started a family learning center in the apartment complex where we all live. English as a Second language is taught to Bosnian and Migrant families. Children come in after school get help on homework and learn to use computers through educational software. We have recycled over 150 computers to the larger community and over 25 computers to our neighbors. Many of the computers have been given to the Bosnian families as a result of the kid’s good behavior. The center has had a big, positive impact on the community.  The Bosnians, Kosovoans, and Mexican families feel much safer. War, hatred, violence – they are not just “somewhere else” – the effects can come to your neighborhood.  You, even one person, can help diffuse those effects and turn negatives into positives.

But enough with the bad stuff.  Here is some of the good. I’ve met many wonderful people during the years I have been a live but one of the most peaceful is Nelson Mandela. I met Dr. Mandela at an invitation only event in Seattle, shortly returning from New York City where I received the “Global Youth Peace and Tolerance Award” in technology.  Dr. Mandela promotes peace through his words, his actions, and by his very presence. It was so neat when he walked into the room. There was a silence and sense of awe. It was overpowering. I am incapable of explaining how I felt that very minute. His words came out more like songs you would hear on a summer’s day. It was beautiful. Certainly, this one person has made a difference!

The other “Global Youth Peace and Tolerance Honorees" are among the other wonderful people I have come to know.  “It takes but one child to educate a whole village" applies to every one of them.  Here’s some insight into the lives of those friends:

Jason Dean Crowe.  This 13 year old uses his literary talent to produce the monthly newsletter, “The Informer”. He reaches 13 countries and 15 States with his information about kids helping the world.  Jason uses the proceeds from the Informer to benefit Cancer research. He also has his own non-profit organization that raises funds to erect a statue for the Bosnian people as a reminder that the United States is here to help.  Jason describes the other awardees in his writings as follows:

“From the Congo, Didier Kamundu Batundi was honored for his work for human rights of political prisoners and refugees. Because of his outspokenness, has had to flee his country, to escape imprisonment or possible death, and continues his work from France.

From Kosovo, Leonora Shiroka, president of the Post Pestimists of Prishtina, accepted the award for her organization which advocates children working with children to solve social problems including the problems encountered by displaced refugees as a result of the recent conflict.

From Romania, Mircea Tancau was celebrated for his work with Save the Children and his prodigious artistic talent, which he uses to advocate for peace and social consciousness.

From Sierra Leone, Ibrahim Alex Bangura was honored en austencia for his total dedication to children’s rights for his unbelievable work rehabilitating the “child soldiers” who were brainwashed to torture and kill by rebels who have torn apart the country with fighting for seven years.”

Jason Dean Crowe and I met 2 years ago on-line, along with 1000 other children from around the world.  We communicated through forums and e-mail “Junior Summit 98”.  We discussed world problems, and how they might be solved.  Today, the communication continues through a monthly on-line magazine, by kids - for kids, called the “Junior Journal”.  The power of technology to reach the world’s children is awesome.  It brings about closeness; giving us hope for the possibility of world peace for the next generation.

Jason ends his article - “After 4 days in New York, it was time to say goodbye. This was hard. It was especially hard knowing that some of the award winners would be returning to dangerous situations and to places where life isn’t made easy by all the things we take for granted in America. The whole trip was a really humbling experience and made me realize how lucky we are in the United States that we can say and write whatever we want and don’t have to be afraid to step out of the house or to close our eyes at night. The honorees from Africa, Columbia, and Kosovo aren’t that lucky. They have seen their friends tortured, maimed, and killed. Peace just isn’t a nice word or something to be in favor of for them. It’s a matter of life; because without peace, they have no life.”

I have seen where “it takes but one child to educate a whole village”. I speak out to my community and the world through my web pages, showing alternatives to violence.  I encourage others that “if I can do it so can you”.  One person can make a positive difference and begin to create a world of peace.

3^rd Place Optimist Local Essay Award 6/2001

 "Are We Losing Our Freedom?"

I have met children and adults from around the world that have to fight day after day just to survive, to even think that the people of the United States are losing their freedom. What is freedom with out peace?

Gerson a 14-year-old Columbian boy has actively pursued resources to eliminate the landmines in his town, so that children are not killed.  At age 15, Leonora fights to reunite her community, overcoming racism and religions intolerance in war torn Kosovo. From the Congo, Didier fights for human rights of political prisoners and refugees. Because of his outspokenness, he has had to flee his country, to escape imprisonment or possible death, and continues his work from France. From Sierra Leone, Ibrahim age 13 with his unbelievable work rehabilitating the "child soldiers" who were brainwashed to torture and kill by rebels who have torn apart the country with fighting for seven years. Jason from the United States is raising funds to build a statue for the Bosnian people, to let them know that the U.S. is here to help. These personal friends remind me daily that we truly have freedom and peace in the United States.

For two years I have participated in writing articles along with world wide kids ages 10-18 for the Junior Journal. This on-line magazine written and produced by children of 115 countries in 16 different languages has opened my eyes monthly to the problems facing the rest of the world.  One young Indian girl had escaped child labor through taking wonderful pictures and getting paid for them. She cautions the West to not fight child labor with out raising the salary of the parents.  A Zimbabwe youth raises funds to help the orphans that have AIDS in Zimbabwe. All speak their minds on politics, religion, education, peace and freedom.

In the last year I have met three Nobel Peace Prize Recipients, Nelson Mandela, Mikhail Gorbachev, and Elie Weisel. Each one of the recipients fights for freedom and peace for their people. Each recognizes the immeasurable freedom and peace the people have in the United States. 

You ask are we losing our freedom in the United States? Many of my friends live in dangerous situations and in places where life isn't made easy by all the things we take granted in America. I have realized how lucky we are in the United States that we can say and write whatever we want and don't have to be afraid to step out of the house or to close our eyes at night. My friends from Africa, Colombia, Kosovo, Zimbabwe, aren't that lucky. They have seen their own friends tortured, maimed, and killed. Peace and freedom just aren’t nice words or something to be in favor of for them. It's a matter of life, because without peace and freedom, they have no life.