Justin Trudeau's proposal has fans across the spectrum Story tools presented by Justin Trudeau gave a speech in Toronto this week at 8 o'clock in the morning, in a basement conference room of a downtown hotel, in front of 45 businesspeople strewn between a dozen half-empty tables. Neither the dim setting nor early hour were uplifting, but the rookie politician, with his gift of earnestness, did his best to inspire the crowd. "If any young person wants to serve their country -- typically between high school and university for a year -- they should be given the opportunity to do so," Mr. Trudeau said, promoting his plan to create a nationwide battalion of teenage volunteers. He envisioned a renewed national commitment to volunteer service, "where we have young people discovering their capacity to make changes in the world, while we have communities receiving this influx of powerful, energetic, committed volunteers wanting to make a difference." Among the legacies of Mr. Trudeau's famous father, Pierre, is Katimavik, a federally funded youth service organization that was founded on his watch. It died, temporarily, amid the cost-cutting of the 1980s recession, but in this latest economic downturn, something of its spirit is being reborn. Justin Trudeau last month tabled a private member's motion in Parliament that would lay the foundation for a national volunteer service policy for young people. The proposal has garnered some praise from Conservatives and the NDP alongside Mr. Trudeau's own Liberal party, suggesting it is more than an airy-fairy notion put forward by the idealistic son of a former prime minister. Barack Obama, the U. S. President, has also launched a crusade to reignite his own country's commitment to national service. And citizens are heeding the call. This is not just a bunch of politicians offering variations on John F. Kennedy's "Ask not what your country can do for you ..." axiom. A survey recently released by Katimavik found 89% of respondents now felt Canadians have a responsibility to contribute to the betterment of their communities and the country. More than 8,500 public service events took place across the United States on Martin Luther King Day this year, up from 5,000 in 2008. And applications to AmeriCorps, a U. S. national volunteer service that functions as a domestic Peace Corps, tripled over the past year. Organizers within the volunteer sector cite a confluence of political and economic factors for the interest in their work, starting with Mr. Obama's advocacy. Days before his inauguration, Mr. Obama called upon Americans to make "a renewed commitment to serving their community and their country." The effect was dramatic, according to Siobhan Dugan, a press officer with the Corporation for National and Community Service, the federal agency that oversees the AmeriCorps. "When he talked about service, there was a huge jump in AmeriCorps applications, right away," she said. Mr. Obama has made serving one's country seem both hip and once again noble. Actor Kal Penn left his role on House, the hit television show, this week to take a position within Mr. Obama's administration. Admittedly, Mr. Penn will not be volunteering, but his switch from Hollywood actor to mid-level bureaucrat seems to be motivated by a commitment to public service. "There's not a lot of financial reward in these jobs," he told Entertainment Weekly. "But, obviously, the opportunity to serve in a capacity like this is an incredible honour."Youth called to serve
Friday, 17 April 2009
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