Understanding Salaam from the inside
The Salaam Program - update from Jen.
By now I have done more presentations about the Salaam program then I care to count. I am an Ambassador for the US Department of State and AIESEC US and try to portray as well as I can the experience people will embark on with our program. So you are not an AIESECer and reading this and still thinking, what the hell is this AIESEC (eye-sek) all about ? Well the Salaam program epitomises all of this. It takes AIESEC today, makes it relevant in addressing a social issue while at the same time ensuring the long term professional and personal development of both the exchange participant and facilitator.
I have had to learn to sum up the Salaam program in less then a minute and simply explain this to people. So if your reading this and finally understand what I am doing the HORRAY I have got it.
"We change lives" is not enough any more. The Salaam program makes a lasting difference on every stakeholder that it comes into contact with, it is a program that NEEDS to exist, and even if we did not have the support of the US government to make it happen - it should happen.
So what is it ?
You are a young Moroccan girl sitting in a class room thinking about how to get above the high unemployment rates which plague your country. Your thinking about how to you make yourself stand out, how even with your 3.6 GPA you need to be different. You see a sign to work abroad. Cool ... Get some professional experience oversea's and then you will have something unique.
You turn up at a seminar for AIESEC, you still can't say it but hey if it gets you a job overseas, cool.
As you watch the first PPT about AIESEC you see how global the organization is, 89 countries, 800 locations, 20,000 people - all these numbers flash across the screen. Throughout the day you hear about all of these people whose experience's have changed their life. Hmmm, you came here to get a job and now you need to play a role in changing the world too ?
But you get the chance to reflect. Do you just want a job ? Or do want an experience of a life time ? You here this word - SALAAM. Another young Moroccan girl gets up and talks about the Salaam Program. There is much hostility in the world today, wars fueled by a lack of understanding - have you ever thought about the role you could play in this.
Our young friend is thinking, hell no. I just need a job. I want to be able to support myself, challenge myself professionally and create a life for myself. But then she thinks, you know what ? I need to take responsibility for what is going on in the world right ? Let's hear more about Salaam.
Mona, the girl at the front talks about the impact this program had on her. She worked in Chicago and got professional experience in the feild she has studied at school. She learnt about Moroccan culture BEFORE she went abroad and thought about how to present this. She prepared for questions she knew people would ask her - what is Islam, why do women wear viels, are people supressed in Morocco, are you African, why are you not black, what does it mean to be Moroccan ?
Then she had the chance to go abroad, work and live alone for the first time. She learn more about herself in these 3 months then she thought possible. Imagine having to fend for yourself in a strange place with no family to support you. Yes it was hard but it made her a better person.
She had the chance to explain to a room of 300 people what is Moroccan culture and let people freely talk about these questions - hijab, Islam, women, Berber's, Morocco. She also had an opportunity to do this at her work place to another 40 people and again at an AIESEC meeting in her city to 25 people. Plus each day she talked to her American room mates and learnt more about them and the US as they learnt about her.
It was the first time in her life she worked in a 9-5 job and was completley responsible for her work. She had to speak up when she needed more challenging work or let people know when she was struggling with something. She had to work in teams and work alone. She had to work on weekends when she had too much to do and got to take time off for a trip to another state to learn more.
At the end she sat back and though about the impact of her traineeship. She maybe spoke to more then 500 people about Morocco and helped to challenge their views and stereotypes. She herself saw the US first hand. She travelled to 4 different states and saw differences in US culture from one state to the next. She was able to gain skills in her field and learn to work in an international business enviornment. And above all she was able to think more about what she wants in life and the type of life she would like to lead.
Mona is now back in Morocco and standing here in front of you telling you about her experiences. She has a smile across her face and is now telling you this experience changed her life. So now you the Moroccan girl are thinking WOW, I want to be a part of that. I never thought working abroad would be so fulfilling. I just wanted a job but here Ihave the chance to create a real impact.
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I know this all sounds happy and lovely but this is exactly what I was told over lunch today by a young Moroccan girl. She walked into the preparation seminar wanting a job and walked out already thinking about where in the world she could go and challenge people's views. She confided in me that she is afraid to do this as she wears hijab. I told her this is WHY she needs to do it. It may not be the USA through the Salaam program. But it will for sure, help to create ... Salaam.