So a friend of mine, who is a passionate activist, looked over my blog and had a question about Christian Aid's stance on rights and justice. She has an issue with the wording that they desire to give "power" to the people. She says that as an activist she desires to give the people resources to better their life, but not necessarily the "power" to become the dominant force. That we should strive to create equality within the government to where those who are in poverty have a chance to rise out of their situation and create a better life for themselves. That the word "power" has the connotation of being oppressive, which she admits is not always the case, but more often than not.
I would agree with my friend that we do have to be careful as activist to watch the semantics that we use. However, after studying further Christian Aid has this to say:
The victory is a good illustration of one of Christian Aid’s major concerns, giving people power - giving people the information, skills, tools and confidence they need to get what they need from those in authority and ensuring that local leaders and government officials listen and respond to people living in poverty.
I believe that Christian Aid would agree in social theory, yet choose different wording for the same idea. It seems as if C.A. desires to empower the people by education them and showing them that they can create a world in which their voice is heard and not drowned out. I don't believe their desire is to give them full reign or control over a government. More just control over their ability to be heard.
All a misunderstanding in semantics.
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