Press PassportCrossing the sea ofsocial awarenessOne student’s journey to 11 countries in 100 daysStory byLaura Jane Walkerfall <strong>2007</strong>
For Jessica Thomas, studentactivities aboard the24,000-ton passenger shipMV Explorer during thespring <strong>2007</strong> Semester at Sea did notvary from her normal routine atthe University of Tennessee. A seniorin journalism and electronicmedia, Thomas is also a member ofProgressive Student Alliance at UT.During her approximately 100 daysat sea, Thomas got a chance to expandher global perspective and internationalizeher social activism.The semester began at the Nassaupier of the Bahamas. Ports of callcovered four continents, includingstops in Salvador, Brazil; Chennai,India; Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam;and Kobe, Japan. Thomas says herregular school schedule was similarto her schedule at UT, with classesfrom 8 a.m. to noon. However, theports of call often interrupted thetypical day’s schedule.“Some days, we would have classeson Saturdays and Sundays,” Thomassaid. Her social activities, coined“aft-er” hours by the students forthe nautical term for the stern of aship, depended on Thomas’ energylevel. Balancing schoolwork, activismand touring the globe was taxing.“If there was a big event (on theboat) we would usually go. It justdepended on how much homeworkyou had — how tired you were. Youwere tired a lot on the boat. I went tobed probably earlier than I do normallyhere,” she said.Her seven-day stop in CapeTown, South Africa, representedmore than just the longest portof call, though. Thomas, who wasan active member of the ship’sDiversity Committee, participatedin an on-board ApartheidDay leading up to the week inSouth Africa. Apartheid, Thomasexplained, technically translatesto “separateness” and representsgovernment laws allowing Englishand Dutch descendants in SouthAfrica to gain power. Townshipswere developed for black SouthAfricans, who were pushed to theoutskirts as racial segregationprevailed under social and politicalforces from 1948 to 1994.While in Cape Town, Thomas visitedthese townships with friends.“Some people went (through thetownships) with a group from theSemester at Sea,” she said, but hervisits were more subtle. The realitiesof racial oppression and social injusticeare still prominent in SouthAfrica, even after apartheid wasdissolved.Cape Town’s Archbishop EmeritusDesmond Tutu, one of the top religiousleaders against apartheid, wasa guest lecturer in all of Thomas’classes. Tutu, she said, unlike otherleaders against apartheid, was notarrested as his friend and ally NelsonMandela was. He maintained hispassport and was able to gain globalsupport against apartheid.“He was really passionate abouttrying to empower us and keep usenergized to try and make goodchanges in the world,” she said. “Hetalked a lot about how young peopleare still optimistic and still hold alot of power in the world.”On board, before the stop in CapeTown, the Diversity Committee hadPress Passportan unannounced Apartheid Dayto help students better understandthe social injustice. Students whohad shaved their heads as part ofthe Semester at Sea tradition whencrossing the equator, Thomas included,were allowed certain rightsthroughout the day and representedthe “privileged” class. “(The privilegedclass) could use the pool andthe seventh deck. They could kickanyone off the machines in theworkout room,” she said, “so peopleorganized mock protests against it.… People actually got mad about it,which was surprising.”The effects of events like ApartheidDay carried over to other activistevents, like the Day of Silence.Thomas recalled that the 12-hourstance was in solidarity for “peoplewho were oppressed for any reason,like gender, race and AIDS.”The MV Explorer contained aminiculture of its own. Thomassaid students’ majors varied, althoughthere were quite a few businessmajors. “There were a lot ofbusiness classes, global economicsand a lot of biolog y and earth-type(classes),” she said. “Really most ofJessica Thomas traveled to many parts of the world, including South AfricaPhoto provided by Jessica Thomasfall <strong>2007</strong>
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