Melanie deciding to take steps to further expand her comfort zone

Human Rights

"Human Rights" written in many languages

This past weekend we ventured to the Goedgedacht Olive Farm for the Africa Unite Human Rights Weekend. I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect but overall had a great time. My roommate was Kanyesa, a high school student from Cape Town selected to join Africa Unite to help bring the information and skills she learns back to her school. Kanyesa’s attitude and knowledge amazed me. After speaking with her I learned she knew four or five languages and is continuing to learn more. She has plans to attend UCT and I’ll be eager to keep in touch and hear what she ends up deciding to do not only with college but also with her involvement in human rights education.

One of my favorite parts from the weekend was hearing everyone sing their national anthems while we were waiting for dinner. We had South Africa, Zimbabwe, USA, Swaziland, and Tanzania represented. I loved learning about the different countries and seeing the pride people had for them.  Another important moment from the weekend was when we were broken into groups, asked to choose a country, and given a scenario where the world was ultimately starting over and some countries were put in more powerful positions than others.  We were told to negotiate how the land would be divided and what the rules between countries would be. By the end when we were reflecting on the activity many of us realized we had been making decisions based out of fear of being dominated or a drive to be powerful. It was ultimately kind of scary that a group of people who, just that morning had discussed the importance of human rights and equality, made the decisions that we did. It was put best when one student commented that “we had an opportunity, a fresh start, to make the peaceful world we always dream of, and yet not a single one of us pushed for that.” It made me realize how difficult and complicated politics, especially international affairs, must be. Lastly, my ultimate favorite memory from the weekend was deciding to sleep outside because the stars were so incredibly bright.

Melanie with much to thing about

 Overall being surrounded by such as diverse group for the weekend made me realize how sheltered I have been not only in my life at home but also in my time here in Cape Town. Yes, we venture to our internships in the townships but then we return to a nice home surrounded by other UConn students who I am very similar are comfortable around. For example, if I see something culturally different at my internship that doesn’t sit well with me, I have the luxury of coming home and talking to a group of people about it who I can be pretty sure will agree with me. It makes me wonder how a study abroad experience would be different if we were more integrated with local or other international students. After this realization I’ve made a goal to find a way to culturally step more out of my comfort zone in a different way than I have so far. 

Melanie receiving her Africa Unite Human Rights Training Certificate from Ntombi Mcoyi