How do Secular Indians Organise in a safe and uplifting environment? The answer is guaranteed to surprise. It is simple, do-able and very effective.
The last-article in June 2010 exhorted secular minded Indians to organise. The communal minded already seem to have, under the umbrella of a communal minded politician. The secular minded are happy to co-exist and work or socialize with anyone they like, irrespective of the community they belong to.
In today’s climate, with the hardened attitude of the communal minded towards anyone who is different or anyone who from their own community is ambiguous about those differences, our laid back, easy going attitude is simply not enough.
There are a lot of suggestions, some very good, about what we can do to stem an intolerant communal mindset towards anyone who is different. But our efforts will come to nought if we don’t learn to organize first. Who would be more effective in combating the supreme power our politicians seem to enjoy?
A BILLION LONE INDIVIDUALS OR A BILLION STRONG FORCE?
Part II: Accountability is a very important aspect of any organization. (A link to accountability at the end of this post) We generally feel accountability is what is lacking in many of our politicians - communal or otherwise. What did India-Against-Corruption do? It organised us into a huge mass movement. ORGANISED us.
How else do we get organised?
So many Indians already know the joys of getting actively involved with charity. How will that help us fight communalism or racial politics, you might well ask.
The members of any charitable organization will tell you they
- are normally there to right a wrong; to help alleviate pain and injustice.
- need all the help they can get.
- are already organized into a formidable force that makes a difference.
- are often under resourced but know how to utilise whatever is at hand to make a difference.
- need all the help they can get. It doesn’t have to be monetary help. Morgan Hunt, in his article about the significance of volunteering time to non profit organizations agrees that donating your time is good for you; sometimes it is better than donating money.
Its members understand how essential it is to put aside individual egos and work as a team for a cause. And I cannot think of any other approach that lets us be altruistic as we simultaneously acquire the many vital skills of belonging to such an organisation.
This is but a start. This is what so many more of us than ever before can do right now. We can acquire the skills of organising through working for charity. Once we are working for a cause we passionately espouse and meet others who feel as strongly about it, we tend to forget which community the individual members belong to. Our appreciation is for that individual’s dedication, wisdom, intelligence and other qualities. In turn there is something in us that they appreciate.
In conclusion, the first step to making our communal minded politicians accountable is through getting organized ourselves. Let us give a small portion of our time and our trust to charitable organisations that already exist. We can help them even as they help us get to know and appreciate each other, irrespective of the community we belong to.
The link to "Accountability by Cass Wheeler and Ho Sun Yee: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPqYMS7KeOo )
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