One person who has opened my mind and helped me to see the world differently would be my old friend Cameron. I met him a few years ago at the end of 9th grade. At first our relationship was very basic, we talked about ex girlfriends, eagerly discussed our favorite bands, and shared stories of our antics throughout middle and early high school.
Cameron was a budding activist. At 16 he had already organized several anti-war demonstrations at his previous high school and was either suspended or put in detention for nearly all of them. Despite the negative reactions Cameron received he pushed on with his strong-minded politics and beliefs.
At the time I wasn’t politically active nor did I have any ideas of my own. I was simply following along with parent’s views as a quiet democrat. When Cameron and I began having political discussions it was like a door was opened and beyond it a new world was waiting.
I began reading articles from Indy-Media groups and listening to other activist leaders. As time went on I became a stronger activist and helped my friends coordinate anti-war rallies in our hometown. We also joined the 4,000+ people in Minneapolis to march against the war last spring.
Cameron’s passionate and fearless determination inspired me greatly but I wasn’t the only person he affected. Over the past few years we accumulated more friends and activists and created our own group. M.A.A.C. (Mankato Area Activist Collective) started with only a handful of members but now has grown to over 100 people.