Staff Editorial

When students returned to campus in January after winter break last year, they launched efforts to raise money for tsunami relief, collecting a total of $9,900, enough money to help fund a preschool in Sri Lanka. Construction on the school is scheduled to begin next month. By holding benefits, selling bracelets, and fielding a donations box, the Tsunami Relief Task Force and the Vassar community made a very significant contribution that will now go towards a tangible rebuilding effort.

Students found themselves facing a similar crisis when they returned to school last month. On Aug. 29, Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast, and within the first week of school, students responded almost immediately: students held a candlelight vigil Sept. 2, ViCE raised over $600 at a comedy show, and Noyes House held an ’80s dance party to raise $1,818.

As Vassar Student Association President Rick Rodems pointed out in a recent Vassar Student Association Council meeting, it took the federal government the same amount of time to respond as Vassar students. Before official support could be mustered by the government and FEMA, college students at Vassar and around the country jumped to the cause.

In a dramatic example of support, three students from Duke University drove to New Orleans to help survivors exit the city, forging press passes to gain access, where they gave water to dehydrated victims and rescued seven people before heading off to school.

Vassar students continue to support hurricane victims through new organized campaigns. The ALANA Center put boxes in every dorm to collect food, toiletries, and clothing, which will be shipped directly to Louisiana and Texas. At a meeting last Sunday, over 30 students brainstormed ideas for further relief efforts.

Students plan to auction artwork created by Poughkeepsie Middle School students to raise money for additional supplies. Students also hope to collect food and clothing at the Arlington Street Fair and sell t-shirts in the College Center. Hip Hop 101 is planning a cabaret night for Sept. 24 and will ask for donations of food or clothing in lieu of an entrance fee. In addition, students are planning a trip to volunteer in the Gulf Coast with the Red Cross over October break.

While immediate action is necessary to help the victims, a long-term plan for recovery must involve education and understanding. To this end, students and faculty have been holding several panels to educate the community about the environmental, political, racial and socioeconomic issues that the current crisis involves. By staying informed on all the issues, students are more prepared to face these challenges, and are more likely to succeed.

Unfortunately, many students remain uninformed or apathetic to the crisis that continues on the Gulf Coast. At Vassar, it may be easy to escape the barrage of mass media news or current events. However, numerous forums for information and news are open to the Vassar community, and we, as members of an educational institution, are in a particularly unique and valuable position to make a difference.

Maybe more than anything else, it’s important to remember that the effects of Katrina will not disappear after one or two months. Only a sustained effort can help all the victims and solve the social ills exposed by the disaster. As is evidenced by the primarily Vassar-funded school opening in Sri Lanka, long-term change is within reach.