They may be brand new, but they’re ready to go. Amnesty International, USM’s newest student organization, is already busy planning a week-long series of discussions, music and films for Human Rights Week.
Amnesty, which was officially recognized as a group by the Board of Student Organizations (BSO) at their meeting on March 7, seeks to inform and sensitize USM students, faculty, and the public to human rights issues.
“We’re taking on a whole array of campaigns,” said Rob Ellis, a junior political science major and the organization’s events coordinator.
The upcoming events for Human Rights Week, which begins March 31, will cover issues of hunger and homelessness, income inequality, media censorship and the consequences of torture, among others. The events are co-sponsored by PIRG and the College Democrats.
The professors featured throughout the week come from many different disciplines, which is something the organization has worked hard to do.
“These issues touch many different people,” said Ellis, and so they’ve worked to represent as many of them as they can. They’ve also worked hard to get professors involved. After all, says Ellis, “it’s their university.”
All events will be held at the Woodbury Campus Center between 11 a.m. and 9 p.m.
The impetus to bring Amnesty International to USM began with senior political science major Marisa Faietta, now the group’s president.
“It was just something I’ve been thinking about for a long time,” she said. After a conversation with political science professor Lynn Kuzma, the group’s faculty advisor, Faietta began to gather her fellow students and approached the BSO and Student Senate in order to become recognized. Joining the BSO gives them access to funds through the Student Activity Fee, as well as the official endorsement of the university.
The group’s first unofficial meeting took place December 10 on Human Rights Day.
At first the members weren’t sure they wanted to join the BSO, but they decided that the benefits out-weighed the amount of work needed to become official.
Elizabeth Trask, a senior political science major who also heads the College Democrats-another BSO group-said that the access to funding was a large reason to join the BSO, as well as the fact that it would make it easier to work within the university.
Since the first meeting the group has seen an influx of students from all disciplines.
“The only thing negative is that we aren’t really accessible to students on campus,” said Faietta.
To fix that, they’re looking to create a sister group specifically for Gorham students.
The influx has also seen a growing membership of younger students, which should help sustain the group’s status on campus next year.
They also plan to do more work with other USM organizations and The Greater Portland Chapter of Amnesty International.
The group meets every other Thursday at 4:30p.m. in the Woodbury Campus center. For more information, contact Faietta at [email protected].