I have been disturbed. I have been disturbed by the state of inequality in our world, by the unbridled prevalence of injustice.
In the United States, a country which prides itself on championing the values of justice and equality, the top one percent of Americans control an unprecedented amount of wealth in the United States — 40 percent of the nation’s total wealth. Not since the Great Depression has income inequality been so disparate.
What disturbs me most, however, is the inequality that I see when I walk down my hall, and into Lowry and across campus — it is the inequality right here, at The College of Wooster.
It is one thing to think about statistics in abstract terms, but it is quite another to know the people that these statistics represent. These are the people who serve us food, clean our bathrooms and mop up our vomit when our drunkenness apparently outweighs our consideration and respect for other human beings. The work that they do is essential work. Imagine if you had to cook your food, clean your bathrooms and cut your grass. Think: you would have significantly less time to focus on your education.
Sadly, most of us fail to appreciate these people for their role in making our education possible, not paying them the respect nor the wages they deserve. In my time at Wooster I have had the pleasure of getting to know some of the lovely people that work here. Many of them love their jobs. They continue to come to work every day because they care about the College, in spite of the inequitable wages with which the College compensates them.
The Living Wage Campaign on campus has received significant attention as of late. I believe that it has become part of our lexicon here on campus, and for that I am grateful. This, I believe, is the first step: awareness.
Now that we have taken the first step together, I invite you, the members of The College of Wooster community, to join me in taking the second step: disturbance.
Please, I beg of you, be disturbed with me. Take the time to think about the real and immediate examples of inequality and injustice on campus.
Be moved by injustice. Cry. Realize that there is injustice here and we must do something.
Join me in taking a third step: action. I implore you all to just do something. The work you do here at the College is not limited to the classroom. Our College of Wooster education teaches us to “demonstrate ethical citizenship and leadership and embody a concern for social justice” and to “display self-reflective awareness of [our] role as citizens in a diverse local, national, and global community.” Let us embody these principles which guide our education and strive for justice here and now.
This being said, I invite you to join the Living Wage Campaign for our upcoming events demonstrating support for equitable compensation on campus. Your presence at these demonstrations is vital. I ask you to be aware, to be disturbed, to be empowered into taking action and joining us in striving for justice on our campus.
For more information about upcoming events, please see our Facebook page (Living Wage Campaign at the College of Wooster) and our Instagram hashtag, #LivingWageWoo.
Cullen Dolson, a Contributing Writer for the Voice, can be reached for comment at CDolson16@wooster.edu.