What is our duty as American citizens? A reflection on the musings of five present-day revolutionaries.

by Adriana DeGirolami (Renee Ramirez)  

 

I was fortunate enough to have attended Lauren Ferebee's Insurrection Roundtable last night, hosted by a panel of wildly intelligent, empathetic and thoughtful modern-day activists who all had remarkable things to say about our responsibilities as participants in society - should be choose to engage - and our larger duties as Americans in the wider scope of the world at large. While the spectrum of perspectives was largely leftist, if not exclusively so, the opinions were varied and informed, often from a first hand account of everything from the OWS movement to a three year stint in prison.  
 

Personally, I resonated most profoundly with political commentator and activist Matt Sky who insisted that the current state of apathy plaguing the large majority of Americans stems from a complicated, over-saturated and even passive absorption of the news. He believes, and I agree, that in order for people to feel invested and motivated to partake in the further development of our society and culture, not only must the content of our various news outlets be more relevant on a local level, but even the format must take a more accessible form. This does not mean catering to the lowest denomination, but rather simplifying its message so that the audience can more readily grasp the material and, ideally, get involved. 

 

Overall, it is our responsibility as citizens of this country to respect the freedoms we've been blessed with as Americans and demand from the government and our news sources to provide unbiased, relevant information so that we may best assist in the maturation of our nation. Once armed with insight we can move the mountains of complacency that have the residents of our country enclosed and ignorant. It's simply unacceptable to be uninformed in this day and age. Having said that, what I witnessed last night was the best representation of hard-earned wisdom and inspired vision I have seen in a long time. And I woke up this morning hopeful. Very hopeful, indeed.

 

 Adriana DeGirolami plays congressional aide Renee Ramirez in Somewhere Safer, which opens Sunday, August 11th as part of the 2013 NYC International Fringe Festival. Find out more about the play here, or purchase tickets.