2011.01.02: January 2, 2011: Peter Hessler, mostly an admirer of Goyal, concludes that "the failure of the Peace Corps is that former volunteers rarely play the same outsider role back home, at least politically"
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Activist Rajeev Goyal (RPCV Nepal):
2011.01.02: January 2, 2011: Peter Hessler, mostly an admirer of Goyal, concludes that "the failure of the Peace Corps is that former volunteers rarely play the same outsider role back home, at least politically"
Peter Hessler, mostly an admirer of Goyal, concludes that "the failure of the Peace Corps is that former volunteers rarely play the same outsider role back home, at least politically"
Rajeev Goyal went to Nepal as an English teacher but ended up bringing in a ton of outside money and expertise to build a water system. And he brought a similar militant, disruptive spirit to other activities in the village – and to Congress. Not everyone likes that style. The reaction of Sen. Patrick Leahy, for example, was "enough already." Hessler, mostly an admirer of Goyal, concludes that "the failure of the Peace Corps is that former volunteers rarely play the same outsider role back home, at least politically." I disagree. The Peace Corps should be a place for volunteers who are outsiders as well as insiders, who learn as well as teache. To me, Shriver's spirit of humility remains the Peace Corps' "brightest hope."
Peter Hessler, mostly an admirer of Goyal, concludes that "the failure of the Peace Corps is that former volunteers rarely play the same outsider role back home, at least politically"
The Reading Rack
Published: Sunday, Jan. 2, 2011 - 12:00 am | Page 2E
Suggested reading from The Bee's editorial board.
'Village Voice: The Peace Corps' brightest hope'
New Yorker, Dec. 20
In March 2011, the Peace Corps celebrates its 50th anniversary. President John F. Kennedy launched the idea in 1960 as part of an American attempt to win hearts and minds around the world, not just military battles or new markets.
It was voluntary government service – but not military or professional foreign service – tapping young people to live and work abroad, sharing skills and human warmth.
The aim was to create a corps of Americans who would have first-hand "knowledge of the world, its peoples and its problems," as the first director, Sargent Shriver, put it. Kennedy's idea was that young Americans would return home "better able to assume the responsibilities of American citizenship and with greater understanding of our global responsibilities."
I joined in 1981, the 20th anniversary, serving as a junior high math teacher in Swaziland for 3 1/2 years.
So I was intrigued by this article in the New Yorker by Peter Hessler, who served in China. He describes a different kind of Peace Corps – the volunteer as hard-charging trooper, promoting change with aggressive one-on-one tactics abroad and back at home.
He profiles a volunteer who served in Nepal from 2001 to 2003 – and who in the last two years has taken on Congress in an attempt to expand the Peace Corps.
Rajeev Goyal went to Nepal as an English teacher but ended up bringing in a ton of outside money and expertise to build a water system. And he brought a similar militant, disruptive spirit to other activities in the village – and to Congress. Not everyone likes that style. The reaction of Sen. Patrick Leahy, for example, was "enough already."
Hessler, mostly an admirer of Goyal, concludes that "the failure of the Peace Corps is that former volunteers rarely play the same outsider role back home, at least politically." I disagree. The Peace Corps should be a place for volunteers who are outsiders as well as insiders, who learn as well as teache. To me, Shriver's spirit of humility remains the Peace Corps' "brightest hope."
– Pia Lopez
Links to Related Topics (Tags):
Headlines: January, 2011; Figures; Peace Corps Nepal; Directory of Nepal RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Nepal RPCVs; Expansion; Nepal RPCV Rajeev Goyal
When this story was posted in January 2011, this was on the front page of PCOL:
Peace Corps Online The Independent News Forum serving Returned Peace Corps Volunteers
| Support Independent Funding for the Third Goal The Peace Corps has always neglected the third goal, allocating less than 1% of their resources to "bringing the world back home." Senator Dodd addressed this issue in the "Peace Corps for the 21st Century" bill passed by the US Senate and Peace Corps Director Ron Tschetter proposed a "Peace Corps Foundation" at no cost to the US government. Both are good approaches but the recent "Comprehensive Assessment Report" didn't address the issue of independent funding for the third goal at all. |
| Memo to Incoming Director Williams PCOL has asked five prominent RPCVs and Staff to write a memo on the most important issues facing the Peace Corps today. Issues raised include the independence of the Peace Corps, political appointments at the agency, revitalizing the five-year rule, lowering the ET rate, empowering volunteers, removing financial barriers to service, increasing the agency's budget, reducing costs, and making the Peace Corps bureaucracy more efficient and responsive. Latest: Greetings from Director Williams |
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Story Source: Sacramento Bee
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Figures; COS - Nepal; Expansion; More Peace Corps; Goyal
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