Movement 101

Ethics don't betong in the reat wortd. You can have ideats through university as tong
as you abandon them when you enter the tabour market. Right?
Simeon Mitchell tetts us otherwise...
From free love to fair trade
I
ilO tErRS rCO I ilS DEEP trt
ll;T^:;ffi[ffi"J[::ily
utopian communities of 19th Century Ameri_
ca. One graduation ceremony, 11 months
volunteering in the inner city, and many hesitations
later... I find myself paid to spend
my days promoting Fairtrade, a pioneering
trade system which means third world farm_
ers are given a better deal for their produce.
I would never claim to have experienced
something so dramatic as a decisive
'calling'. Like conversion or certainty, it is a
concept which has apparenfly eluded me as
faithfully as it has inspired others. yet as I
came towards the end of my studies, per_
sistent manila envelopes from the
university careers service
nudged me to think about
what I would do next. Or
what the chaplaincy
more dauntingly
called 'exploring
vocation'
As always with me,
the process began with
ideas and values. Believing
that faith without action is
hollow, a commitment to
socialjustice was for me an
essential aspect of my discipleship
and belief in building Christ's
Kingdom on earth
- as well as an
inherent obligation of our common
humanity. My political convictions, too,
were insplred by the holistic visions of a
better world I found in the history of idealist
radical movements, alongside an instinctive
loathing of injustice. I knew that it was this
that motivated me most strongly, but any
specific thoughts about the future had been
somewhat more tentative, revolving around
a hazy desire to play a part in changing the
What need have Africans
for Engtish historians,
and I for mataria?
skills,
world for the better; I thought that thls
vision was all I had to offer.
However, I soon became aware ofthe
importance of reconciling my fundamental
concerns
- humanity, social justice,
sustainable progress
- with my usefulness,
and needs. So far in my life, my skills
and values had only practically manifested
themselves in separate activities: the former
in academic success; the latter in voluntary
activities, campaigning for Oxfam, Christian
Aid, and Shelter, among others. lt may have
been inspired by the right values, but I
would have been more burden than aid if I
had simply jetted off to Africa to
devote myself to the poor. What
need have they for English histori- \
ans, and I for malaria?
Nonetheless yearning for
some
real
t
rt
**r"
'iJ
challenge
to put
my values to the
test, I instead opted for
the rather less romantic destination
of a Manchester housing
estate, where I lived in a community
of volunteers, on a one year
Jesuit-inspired development
programme, JVC. Here I worked
part-time in a hostel, learning
pool and doing resetflement
work with homeless men. I
balanced this unfamiliar practical
project with a support role
in a church-based
housing campaign group, CNHC. lt was a
difficult year, where my ideals and reality
clashed initially; but, with reflection I see
they eventually integrated. My previously
black and white world-view turned, not into
shades of grey, but glorious colour.
As the year drew to an end, my focus
turned once again to the developing world _
and the clear injustices of the trade system.
I was lucky to be offered a job at the Fairtrade
Foundation, drawing together strands
of my practical experience with a passion of
my student activism, justice for the developing
world. I'm glad to be part of a small
team, where the freedom and
quality of working relationships mean that
each member is valued for what they
can offer. My role is about
producers, through
buying products
bearing the Fairtrade
Mark.
As for the next step
- who knows? The politi-
. cal world, the church, and
the voluntary sector all
appeal. Much as I loved
escaping into the utopias of history,
honing my opinions, I think
that now I'd rather be there
myself, doing my small bit to shape
it. After all, concern
- about injustice,
homelessness, the environment,
poverty, freedom, or whatever _ is
good, but not in and of itself, only as a
pointer to action (whether a vote turned,
another heart
awakened, a project born or a single act of
defiance). So if you must judge yourself,
don't do it by how 'right-on'your views are.
What good are opinions, when you are hun_
gry, oppressed or roofless? Do it on what
you have done, what action you have taken,
to challenge the source of your concern.
Otherwise, how are you different from those
who don't care? So while I have never felt
called, I find this a vocation
- to work
towards making my dreams a reality. Which
is perhaps what Christians should be all
about anyway.
Y lt you would like to know more about
Fairtrade, contact Simeon at the Fairtrade
Foundation on OLTI 4OS 5942, or e-mail
fairtrade@gn.apc.org
Y IVC: Britain, the housing project, is on
oL6L226 67L7.
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movement 12