The International visitor Leadership Program &
What it Means to an Ordinary Girl from Borneo
I’ll break down my American experience in 3 parts. The first part is the preconception I had about America and her people before the trip. I had only spent in total less than a month traveling in the US prior to the IVLP and that was 2 decades ago. I had a bubble gum Disney version of the perfect American dream and aspired to greatness because of this. I admired the American’s sense of liberty and multiculturalism which seems evident in their Constitution and at least, superficially, from the media. Though I was aware that racism exists, I never found America to be relevant enough for me to be overly concerned with whatever misgivings they had in their system. The American response to 911 and the Iraq war could have evoked greater emotions but I had grown too old to accept a narrow minded or rose-tinted spectacled view of the world. I criticised America and Americans as much as I would any other country or people. Despite everything, America in my mind is a country that provided scholarships to people of talent and potential and I always admired the unselfish way in which Americans were ready to open their borders to those who could make a difference, even if they spent their entire life in hiding in their own countries. I envisaged that I would see an America where there will be a great disparity between rich and poor and smart and challenged because meritocracy is a way of life that would end up rewarding those who can and penalising those who can’t. Very little of this initial view has changed after my IVLP trip; if any, I would say that the American system is now relevant to me as part of the overall effect it would eventually have in international decision-making. The way in which civil society thinks in America will ultimately have an effect on the way Congress thinks and behaves which will ultimately affect the outcome of international negotiations.
The IVLP is the most comprehensive educational journey I’ve had so far; a perfect mix of academic, practical and social which is an entire year’s worth of experience condensed and summarised into 3 very fulfilling weeks. I realised why some of the smartest minds on earth are in America. It’s a country that allows you to appreciate your own talents and gifts. I may not have found every speaker relevant or interesting but I always walked away from them with a profound appreciation of their intellect and achievement. One could argue that the US State Department only exposed us to incredibly intelligent people but I took the liberty of speaking to the ordinary person; the airport security guy, the salesgirl, the check-out girl, the laundrette operator, the cab driver, the homeless man selling a newspaper for a living, the young man who owned his own store, the migrants and every conceivable American person of whatever colour from every walk of life wherever I went. The fact is they all had three things in common. They were proud to be American, they knew how to say thank you and they could engage in a serious conversation with soul and conviction. The fact is everybody had a viewpoint and was happy to express it. I realised that every country has issues with human rights, social ills and hardcore poverty no matter how high the standard of living. Though Americans may not inculcate compassion for those who fall helpless or hungry on their own streets, they are moral guardians of those who fall elsewhere. Americans aspire to heroism; the Metro driver in Washington D.C. sacrificed her own life to save her passengers, the driver on our private bus stopped in a horrifying 20 minute storm to save two families, a great businessman in Cedar Rapids hosts a fantastic Lebanese meal and shows me the side of America that cares about Muslims despite 911. They would care enough to ensure that nothing contravenes the laws that forbid prejudice. Nothing however forbids condescension to a smelly, hungry and homeless beggar. They were the most despised members of American society I found and I felt sad, only because I know that high unemployment and a terrible global financial breakdown would force many more perfectly decent human beings out into those streets. In the end there is one place where every true American would find a decent hug, a big kiss and unity: The baseball game. The highlight of my entire trip was Pablo scoring a home run for the San Francisco Giants against the Florida Marlins in my first ever live baseball game. My greatest souvenir to date is a Giants woolly hat that kept me warm in that blistering cold July evening..
The IVLP is a success for me. I walked away from 17 other international visitors who were remarkably similar in their outlook and I developed a great fondness for the English Language Officers (strange though it is but everyone in the group spoke English and the ELOs were not translators). They were so positive and vibrant that I actually cried at the airport on the way back home and felt that great big rock in my throat and a heaviness of heart that wouldn’t go away for weeks. I feel suddenly alone in my struggle and though I harbour great hopes of making a difference to my career and my country through my connections and my writings and my employer, I can’t help but develop doubts that anyone outside of America would really care to listen to that vast amount of knowledge that I gained through the program. With a group of like-minded individuals it’s easy to implement dreams. The reality of the world is that diversity of mindsets is often the biggest hindrance to progress.
I did not go on the IVLP to be the next authority on renewable energy or climate change issues. I did not go to America with the hope that it will change my view of the world. I simply went with an open mind and a handful of dollars to experience the gap year I never had and to be able to tell the story over and over again until I die, because one day someone will listen and make a difference.
This, I write; as my gift of gratitude to the US Department of State, the US Embassy in Malaysia, the Americans who made my day, the 3 great ELOs who cared and, most of all, the 17 other international visitors on my program who are all deserving of their titles as “emerging world leaders”.
God bless you all as God continues to bless America.
Love,
Nilakrisna Isnarti James
3rd August 2009
Climate Change and Renewable Energy, June 22-July10 2009.
Washington D.C., Des Moines, Iowa City, San Francisco
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