Belgium & The Netherlands

Dear future American citizens,

For many years now, I have vowed to serve as your humble leader as President of the United States. Since the second grade, I knew that the White House would be my home and that I would lead this country to greatness, all the while enjoying cool rides in my private jet and exciting gifts from other heads of state. 2044 was going to be my year... the year where every car was emblazoned with a "Nicole for President!" bumper sticker. Unfortunately, since second grade I've learned two things:

1. I am not at all suited to being a world leader, and
2. Being President is a ton of work.

Alas, although I am a political science major, I have discovered through the years that maybe the role of "President" is not for me. I will happily step down to a pleasant VP or Congressional seat.

It was in Belgium of all places that I learned another reason I'm probably not suited for the highest office: you have to represent totally different kinds of people. Growing up, you think you know what it means to be an American, and then as you get older and meet people with vastly different opinions you learn that there is no one meaning to the word American. We all come from different pasts; we have our own narratives, thoughts, and beliefs.

After docking in Antwerp, Belgium, last week, some friends and I decided to take the train to see Brussels, Belgium, which is the capital. We had lunch and walked around the city, and eventually ended up talking to a shopkeeper in a mall. He was Pakistani but had lived most of his life in Brussels, and before long we ended up talking about what life is really like in America and in Belgium.

The most striking moment for me during that exchange was when he asked the four of us: is there still racism in America?

This is, of course, a big question. The answer is also, in my opinion, very important. Traveling abroad, you're confronted with these moments often. How do you sum up your entire country? How do you tell people who have never been there, and maybe never will, what it's truly like?

The first of our group responded and said something along the lines of "racism is a huge, awful problem in America, everyone there is racist! Life is impossible as a minority."

I've never thought of myself as some back-country "America is King!" patriot blind to the bad things my country has done, but I was taken aback by her account. Yes, it's something we struggle with, but is life really impossible as a minority? At first, I was angry to hear such a negative portrayal that seemed to leave out the important nuances.

As we chatted longer, eventually we came to a balanced conclusion that included some of the unfortunate incidents in the past few years as well as the more subtle ways race plays into society and achievement. But I couldn't shake my initial feeling. The group of people I was with were my friends because we shared common interests and experiences. Yet every one of us described our experience with race in vastly different terms. What does it mean to be American, then? How do you sum up a culture?

After Belgium, I have immense respect for people who are accountable to and who represent all sorts of people like and unlike themselves. I like learning from people different from me. But answering important, worldly questions on behalf of others? That's hard.

I know that many of you are disappointed to hear I won't be your next President. I sincerely hope you are able to continue on with your day in light of this grave news.

In other news, I had a great time exploring Antwerp, and also The Hague, in the Netherlands! At the Hague my class visited the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia where we learned more about the atrocious war crimes committed in the 1990s and the work being done to prosecute war criminals. More on that to follow!


Love,

Nicole