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社会という布を織り上げて
社会という布を織り上げて
カナダのある少年が5年前に、
友人らと児童就労に反対する団体を作った。
現在、その団体は大勢の大人たちの支援を得て
世界中に学校やリハビリ施設を建設している。
その少年は現在17歳。
同じく17歳で殺人を犯した日本の少年には
大人たちによる支えが足りなかったのだろうか。
Weaving the Fabric of Society
By JOHN GATHRIGHT
Headline news, Friday, Feb. 4, 2000: "Seventeen-year-old children's rights advocate
Craig Kielburger arrives in Israel to encourage children to implement peace on a grassroots level."
Craig founded the international organization Free the Children
(www.freethechildren.org) at the age of 12. Now 17, he was recently given the title of "global leader of tomorrow" at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
I first heard about Craig when my cousin sent me a clipping about him from a
Canadian newspaper. There was also a short note that said, "John, I heard his speech *
it was fantastic! You would have loved it! He has real vision and the power to change
the world. Now, all he needs is the support and help of adults who can see the vision
too! It is great to have a young Canadian hero."
Craig has changed the world. Free the Children, which he started with friends in
his home, has become an international organization with offices in over 27 countries.
It has opened more than 100 schools and rehabilitation centers for children
worldwide, helping poor families to free children from hazardous
work and starting leadership programs for youth.
Craig is a fantastic leader and deserves much credit for his vision and
accomplishments. I consider him a hero for both teenagers and adults. And I feel that
credit should be given to all of the adults who were able to catch his vision and help
to strengthen his organization.
Craig himself has offered much praise to his supporters, including teachers,
lawyers, fund raisers, political experts, world leaders and especially the army of faceless, nameless people who offered praise, a handshake or even a smile.
All of the busy people who took their time to listen and see his vision — they, too,
are part of the material that makes up his hero's cape. I hope the encouraging
e-mails I sent a few years ago could be counted as a tiny thread.
Recently, a 17-year-old made headline news in Japan, too, but it was for a hideous
murder in Aichi Prefecture. The power that 17-year-olds have to move society — whether
to pride or to despair — has been very obvious to me lately.
I can't help but feel that the faceless, nameless adults that had a big hand in helping Free the Children failed this other 17-year-old. My proximity to his
neighborhood may have added to my sensitivity.
For a motherless boy hooked on horror novels, could a kind word from some soul
moments before the crime have affected the outcome? Could more care, support and
compassion from relatives, teachers and neighbors during his delicate childhood have
given him a positive vision?
Would many tiny threads of kindness have been enough to make him a hero's cape,
rather than a villain's cloak?
I wonder if I ever met him in passing. If our eyes met, did I smile?
As a society it is easy to turn a blind eye to the problems of youths. We also tend
to forget that the threads of Craig's hero's cape and those of the Japanese youth's
cloak are all part of the patchwork quilt that is the society in which we live.
Headline news, Friday, Feb. 4, 2000: "Seventeen-year-old children's rights advocate
Craig Kielburger arrives in Israel to encourage children to implement peace on a grassroots level."
Craig founded the international organization Free the Children
(www.freethechildren.org) at the age of 12. Now 17, he was recently given the title of "global leader of tomorrow" at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
I first heard about Craig when my cousin sent me a clipping about him from a
Canadian newspaper. There was also a short note that said, "John, I heard his speech *
it was fantastic! You would have loved it! He has real vision and the power to change
the world. Now, all he needs is the support and help of adults who can see the vision
too! It is great to have a young Canadian hero."
Craig has changed the world. Free the Children, which he started with friends in
his home, has become an international organization with offices in over 27 countries.
It has opened more than 100 schools and rehabilitation centers for children
worldwide, helping poor families to free children from hazardous
work and starting leadership programs for youth.
Craig is a fantastic leader and deserves much credit for his vision and
accomplishments. I consider him a hero for both teenagers and adults. And I feel that
credit should be given to all of the adults who were able to catch his vision and help
to strengthen his organization.
Craig himself has offered much praise to his supporters, including teachers,
lawyers, fund raisers, political experts, world leaders and especially the army of faceless, nameless people who offered praise, a handshake or even a smile.
All of the busy people who took their time to listen and see his vision — they, too,
are part of the material that makes up his hero's cape. I hope the encouraging
e-mails I sent a few years ago could be counted as a tiny thread.
Recently, a 17-year-old made headline news in Japan, too, but it was for a hideous
murder in Aichi Prefecture. The power that 17-year-olds have to move society — whether
to pride or to despair — has been very obvious to me lately.
I can't help but feel that the faceless, nameless adults that had a big hand in helping Free the Children failed this other 17-year-old. My proximity to his
neighborhood may have added to my sensitivity.
For a motherless boy hooked on horror novels, could a kind word from some soul
moments before the crime have affected the outcome? Could more care, support and
compassion from relatives, teachers and neighbors during his delicate childhood have
given him a positive vision?
Would many tiny threads of kindness have been enough to make him a hero's cape,
rather than a villain's cloak?
I wonder if I ever met him in passing. If our eyes met, did I smile?
As a society it is easy to turn a blind eye to the problems of youths. We also tend
to forget that the threads of Craig's hero's cape and those of the Japanese youth's
cloak are all part of the patchwork quilt that is the society in which we live.
Shukan ST: May 26, 2000
(C) All rights reserved
- children's rights advocate
- 子供の権利の擁護者
- implement
- 実行する
- on a grassroots level
- 一般大衆のレベルで
- founded
- 設立した
- (was)given the title of 〜
- 〜 という称号をもらった
- World Economic Forum
- 世界経済協議会
- clipping
- 切り抜き
- rehabilitation centers
- 治療やカウンセリング、仕事を得るためのトレーニングをする施設
- hazardous
- 危険な
- deserves much credit
- 称賛に値する
- accomplishments
- 成し遂げたこと(著書"Free the Children: A Young Man's Personal Crusade Against Child Labor"はドイツ語、フランス語、スペイン語版があり、日本語版も出版予定)
- strengthen 〜
- 〜 を強くする
- has offered much praise to 〜
- 〜 を称賛した
- fund raisers
- 基金調達者
- political experts
- 行政に関する専門家
- army of faceless, nameless people
- 大勢の無名の人々
- makes up
- 構成する
- hero's cape
- 英雄のマント
- could be counted as 〜
- 〜 とみなしてもらえる
- tiny thread
- (マントを構成する)糸のほんの一部
- hideous
- ぞっとする
- (move society)to despair
- 社会に絶望をもたらす
- obvious
- 明らかな
- lately
- 最近
- had a big hand in helping 〜
- 〜 のために大きな力を貸した
- failed 〜
- 〜 の役に立たなかった
- proximity to 〜
- 〜 に近いこと
- may have added to my sensitivity
- 私が敏感になっている理由の一つかもしれない
- hooked on 〜
- 〜 に夢中になる
- horror novels
- ホラー小説
- some soul
- だれか
- have affected the outcome
- 結果に影響をもたらした
- compassion
- 思いやり
- villain's cloak
- 悪党のマント
- in passing
- 通りがかりに
- turn a blind eye to 〜
- 〜 を見て見ぬふりをする
- patchwork quilt
- 端切れを縫い合わせ、芯を入れて刺し縫いした掛け布