PEACE CORPS IN THE 21 ST CENTURY: A RHETORICAL ANALYSIS

62People of ColorThe largest, most aggressive recruitment efforts are geared toward non-whitevolunteers. Gaddi Vasquez stated in an interview that one of his major goals as directorwould be to “build a Peace Corps for the 21 st century that looks like America, one thatincludes all colors, all faiths, all backgrounds.” 119Unlike the other sections on the website, the “people of color” pages are many and detailed. They are full of informationabout why non-white volunteers should join. The Peace Corps states, “Families andfriends respond with caution or outright opposition when they hear of their loved one'sinterest in the Peace Corps. It's easy to understand why.” The reasons “why” arearticulated clearly, and strategies to deal with unsupportive family members are alsogiven.Since its inception, the Peace Corps has recruited predominantly white volunteers.Volunteering is most often performed by people from higher socio-economicbackgrounds, which unfortunately tends to exclude the majority of “people of color.”People of higher educational levels and socio-economic background are more likely to be“joiners and trusters” because of the resources and inclinations that were imparted tothem at home and in school. 120As a practical matter volunteering is a practice thatpeople from higher socio-economic backgrounds find themselves free to consider. As acultural matter those who find themselves “better off” traditionally consider volunteeringennobling. Historically, “people of color” have not found themselves so free of the dayto day processes providing for family and home to consider service outside of their owncommunities.