young villanovans, it's our time.

it's easy for a university to fall into that "bubble" trap--where it becomes apparent that the only world its students are aware of is the one occurring within their own 5-mile radius. with classes, campus events, friendship drama, and relationship troubles, it's not hard for students to get wrapped up in themselves and their own lives.

but villanova, luckily, is not one of those schools. with the city of philadelphia just twelve miles away, it is impossible to forget that the campus is just one of many throughout the united states, and that the united states is just one country in an expansive global community. it is a school where major newspapers are available, free of charge, to all students; and, a school where those students actually pick them up and read them. it is a school committed to service, charity, and compassion. whether you are the occasional volunteer, the habitual fundraiser, the weekly child mentor, or the passionate Habitat for Humanity trip coordinator, you can bet each Wildcat has at least a modicum of dedication to helping others. it is a community of which anyone would be proud to play a part.

which is why GCNova has the overwhelming potential to not only succeed, but thrive. this is an organization that has identified a social illness, a ravaging epidemic, and a cry for help. though we cannot contribute physical manpower in south africa or in GCNW's headquarters in the UK and California, we can play our part with vocal advocacy and fundraising. we can help bring attention to an often overlooked, underexposed, underestimated crisis. we are a university of approximately seven thousand undergrads. that's seven thousand voices we have available to us. and if we can raise those voices to cheer for our Wildcats as they make it all the way to Detroit's Final Four appearance in the 2009 Men's NCAA Tournament, we can surely lift them a little--or a lot--for the silenced women in Zimbabwe, South Africa, Liberia, and around the globe.

And even if you are inclined to stay confined within your own little bubble, don't forget that these issues have the power to encroach upon your life as well. it is not as difficult a stretch for girls to imagine how their life may be turned upside down by sexual assault; in fact, many college girls have had an experience of sexual assault already. but for the men, just imagine if it was your mother, your sister, or a close friend who could no longer bear the thought of facing others for fear of shame, who has had her innocence violently stripped away from her without care, who could no longer look forward to the prospect of having children one day, who now faced a future of endless medical treatments and certain premature death because she has been viciously infected with HIV/AIDS. imagine if you met a woman one day, fell hopelessly in love with her, and then found out she could no longer fully accept a man into her life because she was once abused and violated and never healed from her wounds. would you not want to do everything in your power to help these women, to give them life again?

Many young people think that they don't have the power to make a difference. They think that their dollars can't do much, and their voices will be stifled. How can you stop rape? Educate, inform, and empower. These are things that we all have the power to do. If anything, now is our time. As we leave our teenage years behind and look to our futures, how can we ignore the world which we stand to inherit? We are young, we are bold, and we have power. Our generation helped to elect the United States of America's first African American president; and whether you supported President Barack Obama or not, you cannot deny that the day was not a monumental, historic, unforgettable one. For the youth of America, it was a triumphant announcement of our arrival; we had exercised our rights and we had made a difference.

We can make a difference again. And again, and again. To be young is not to be at a disadvantage; if anything, we have the upper hand. We are still naive, we are impressionable, and we are innocent. We have not been hardened by rejection, failure, or cynicism. We have vision, dreams, and lofty goals. And, our young age means we have years ahead to try and try again. So grab hold of your ambitions, no matter how impossible they may seem, and chase them down with all the strength your youth has blissfully given you.

Our dream is to fight for the protection of women's and children's rights, to eliminate sexual violence, and to raise up the survivors of abuse to a place where they can feel powerful, strong, and happy once more.

Contact me today to learn how you can get involved.

All the best,
Jessica
jessica.lu@villanova.edu; gcn.nova@gmail.com