International Women’s Day is a special day to celebrate women’s achievement, raise awareness about discrimination and take action to drive gender parity. In this day and age, as we start recognising women for their efforts, it is a crucial time to advocate for women empowerment. Let us applaud thousands of women across the centuries who uphold their moral values and endeavour through the challenges faced while holding their feminine identity.
A distinct woman representative is Angela Davis. She is her own — independent, self-reliance and individuality. Serving as a catalyst for activism, Davis embodies ultimate charisma. Her presence is pivotal as a prominent civil rights activist; advocated for the abolishment of prisons and the prison-industrial complex. One of her key achievements is saving the lives of black people from the merciless hands of inequality for unfettered liberty. Therefore, through emulating her footsteps, we as youth volunteers can emulate her traits to better servants for the community.
Passion
Passion is like a continuous fueling fire radiating through the darkest times, motivating us to go deeper and deeper. As a remarkable figure, Davis is “still as intensely and passionately concerned about all of these issues as I was 20 years ago.” With an intense magnitude of concern about societal issues around her, Davis acts towards the community to make a change. An impactful change. The process of taking every small step towards planting the seed for woman and black empowerment is driven by her relentless efforts to strive for a tangible outcome. Her ardour as a believer of change, ergo, is the key to her success. Therefore, before diving into the volunteering sessions, do consider shifting the mindset towards it from “I need to accomplish this” to “This will fuel my motivation for a positive change to my community”. By exemplifying the mindfulness process, we manifest our intentions associated with our passion to act for a greater good in society which will translate into our every action.
Reflect
After a few decades of advocating for liberation, 80-year-old Davis is invited to MIT in February 2023 to share her abundant knowledge on civil rights. She actively strives to prompt individuals to reflect deeply on the long struggle for liberation that has already spanned multiple centuries, recognising the struggles and collective multigenerational vision. Practising the process of self-reflection can go a long way. Evident by the philosophy of “knowing yourself is the beginning for all wisdom”, the craft of self serves as a gear for self awareness. Try to recall after every session about your actions, the responsiveness and the overall experience. Simply purposefully recollecting a few minutes can improve the whole experience as you feel more connected towards your presence as a volunteer! For instance, processing out the session can cause you to credit your efforts and notice room for improvement, enriching the whole volunteering journey.
Courage
In Davis’s autobiography, it quotes “The struggle would be difficult, but there was already a hint of victory. In the heavy silence of the jail, I discovered that if I concentrated hard enough, I could hear echoes of slogans being chanted on the other side of the walls.” The journey of her legacy is not smooth sailing. From being an almost convict, Davis illustrates her journey with endless bravery. The courage to be in the unknown and the resilience to go back up from every setback. Such immense courage prevents her from falling to the traps of failure, transcending her fears and propels her to change these stepbacks to stepping stones towards success. Every volunteer session is always a mystery. Hence, by embodying courage to step out of our comfort zone, we can increase our exposure to different parts of the society as facilitators for spreading warmth to the community.
In conclusion, Angela Davis serves as an inspiring role model in the realm of volunteerism. She demonstrated that volunteering is not merely an act for charity, but a platform for societal empowerment and change. Following her with baby steps, we can improve ourselves as passionate, reflective and courageous volunteers.
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Article written by Hui En (Heartware Content Creator 2023 Cycle 2)
Graphic designed by Pauline (Heartware Content Creator 2023 Cycle 2)
