Ben James: Profile of Empowered Leadership

I have to start by telling my Anytown experience first. Actually, now that I think about it, it is kind of funny. I remember that first morning as I awoke. I told my Dad, "I have to be early because they are going to tell us important information before we leave." In reality, it was just me wanting to see who was going to arrive and what everybody was like. When I got there I learned that only one participant had already arrived. This participant was just as nervous as I was but, for different reasons. I was nervous because she was "black" and this may sound crazy since I grew up in a predominately black neighborhood. Since I grew up in this neighborhood, I faced constant ridicule for being "different." It was Anytown that taught me that "different" is ok. Anytown itself is different, different than anything I had ever experienced before.

From the moment we got on the bus, this trip was different. This was probably the first time in my life where I was actually treated like an adult. There were rules, but they were common sense rules. You learned because you were accepted for who you were and not what you were. And just as much as I learned, I grew. That is where my journey as a leader began; I learned that what I knew as "right" is not always right. Sometimes, you have to make a mistake to learn from it, and then you can move on to teach from your field of experience. It is the field of experience that makes up who you are. While at Anytown you learn a lot about yourself and about others. Anytown has accomplished something that no one has ever done. It teaches you how to look beyond yourself and your field of experience, to where someone else's eyes are and see from their field of experience. This is something society can't seem to do alone.

Learning about my field of experience and how to look at everyone else's field of experience, started me on my path as an empowered leader. I started instructing diversity awareness workshops, and along the way taught some of my teachers new tricks. The school year following my Anytown experience is where I started to form my basis as a leader. In my Sociology class I asked the teacher if I could do a workshop on diversity. He asked to see some lesson plans, and what I would do. I told him to give me a week and he would have his request filled. To his surprise I surpassed his expectations and stunned the class. I did all sorts of things; I approached racism, classism, and heterosexism from varying angles. This approach reached people from aspects they did not expect to affect them. I showed how racism affects politics, music, and even the shows they see on TV. I explained how one spends money can give off bad impressions. I also let them explore what heterosexism is by giving examples and cross-relating the various systems of oppression. At that time I felt like I was trying to recreate the same experience I had, and for the most part I did. But it wasn't the same; I learned to create successful workshops. I must expect a different level of comfort from people who at the end of the day still go home and return to the "real" world. This is one of the hardest parts about applying the experience of Anytown to the workshops. I have to say that my workshops have not only coincided with high school but gone beyond.

I have continued my workshops with college. I currently attend St. Louis Community College - Florissant Valley where I still continue my goal of informing people how oppression really affects their lives. This new wave of workshops came about while I was enrolled in a Human Relations course. It seemed at that time that my professor was a little out of touch with current roles of oppression. I asked first, and then taught the oppression section of the class. After doing this in my class the Professor invited me to teach this section to all of her classes. I did and I was thrilled about it. That was 3 years ago. Today I still do this and much more.

Currently, I am still enrolled in Florissant Valley and continue to instruct these workshops. I have also coordinated an event that is even bigger than I ever imagined. Once a year I organize an event called Night of Hope. This event has two parts. One part is to remember all victims of violence and contemporary dangers (i.e. oppression, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, etc.) The other part is a learning and prevention process. I call this a process because the person can visit with several organizations and pick up information on how to prevent these tragedies from occurring; however, it is still up to that individual to use the new found knowledge. During this event I walk around and visit with individuals to find out if they are learning and to find out if there are any topics they would like to see at the next Night of Hope.

In addition to the mission of ending oppression, I am involved with my campuses Gay-Straight Alliance called Friendly Colors. I am currently the Program Coordinator for this student organization and in it I strive to create events that promote an end to harassment towards Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, and Transgender students. In this club I organize the Day of Silence Project. We as a club have worked on many events on campus, but the greatest achievement I am proud to be a part of is not just about gays; it is the work we have done as partners with the African American organizations on campus. We have united in several small events to make a difference when it comes to oppression. It is my Anytown training that I am happy to say has helped me in promoting the message of ending oppression.

Ben James