By: Alex Maseda
Injustice has been a heavy topic in my life this past year. Issues that have been around for hundreds of years continue to spout back up and make it known they have not been resolved. This is the reason Amnesty International stuck out to me as I reviewed the many tools available to educators and students. Right now, understanding injustice is something I believe is important for students to be aware of no matter their age.
The great thing about Amnesty International is that it does not center specifically around the United States. It is international and allows students to look at injustices that span across the whole world. The website allows users to search by region, issue, and content type for specific issues they may be interested in. The fact these topics can be brought up so easily helps the world in many ways. It gets kids educated about what is going on inside their country and outside. Often times the outside world can teach us about our worlds, tips we can take to find justice, how to prevent types of injustice, and how we can help though we are miles away. Amnesty allows people to donate to any specific campaign they want, womens rights, to protect activists, help research, and fundraising for campaigns. Of course it is ALWAYS important to know what you are donating to if you choose to do so.
In the classroom setting this tool works alongside tools that allow students and teachers to connect with people around the world. While American students are connecting with their European friends across the sea on learning techniques, they are able to understand the reality of those kids daily lives too. What types of injustices are the people over their facing? How can I educate myself and support them? Amnesty allows a new level of connection. It allows students to show they do care and can help the campaigns. It allows both ends of the spectrum to see someone is listening and someone is helping. This tool allows people of any age group to get educated on real life issues very easily. It’s important for these injustices to see light and be noticed and torn down.