Camp Anytown dismantles stereotypes

Camp Anytown Las Vegas https://campanytownlasvegas.org/

Much of this blogpost is quoted from the website and its links; but my comments promoting another layer of quality thinking are found only here. First, some historical background.

Founded in 1928, The National Conference of Christians and Jews (NCCJ) was a human rights organization focused on combating intereligious prejudice. NCCJ’s origins can be traced back to 1924, when the convention for the Federal Council of Churches of Christ began to discuss the growing power of the Ku Klux Klan. As a result, a committee on goodwill between Christians and Jews was developed. As NCCJ’s foundation was rooted against racial and religious prejudice, the organization created the Anytown program in the 1950’s in the state of Arizona. After the birth of Anytown in Arizona, the program made its way to Las Vegas in 1983. During the same time, the NCCJ changed their name to the National Conference for Community & Justice.

Watch the 16:02 video or listen to the audio file.

            Since 1983, Camp Anytown Las Vegas has directly impacted over 4,000 high school students in Southern Nevada with 30 different ethnic backgrounds and 25 religious traditions and/or spiritual or humanistic beliefs represented. As a result of Camp Anytown, delegates in Southern Nevada have launched national campaigns, learned to lobby elected officials, founded social justice programs and clubs in high school, been elected to high school leadership positions after attending Anytown, traveled to the United Nations, presented workshops at national conferences, been elected to local and state office, passed laws that support homeless and education initiatives, and return to volunteer for the Anytown program.

At Anytown, we establish young people as leaders at an early age despite their lack of educational or personal accolades, empower youth to be at peace with their imperfections and brilliance, and equip them with the tools to combat racism and other forms of discrimination in their community.

            On the Anytown Youth Council is Skyyler Jordan. This statement of hers got my attention and profound respect.

I try and make sure that each idea is heard and understood fairly while making sure not to disagree or agree in an obvious way that may sway the conversation. It is important that a delegate feels heard and taken seriously, without feeling like their feelings are heard louder than others. Delegates need to feel validated as much as possible, but not favored over others. 

Another quote. “I am not crazy to think I can change the world, I am crazy if I think if I can do it alone.”              

70 high school students from different high schools throughout Southern Nevada attend each Anytown session. Participants are supported throughout the week by 30 volunteer staff members.

The Executive Director of Camp Anytown is Rico Ocampo. Here is a transcript of an interview with him done November 2019. https://uri.org/uri-story/20191118-inner-voice-leadership-rico-ocampo

Interview with Rico Ocampo, Director of Camp Anytown (a URI Cooperation Circle in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA), and Sally Mahé, Senior Consultant URI

Let’s begin by learning more about what you do. Please tell me about Camp Anytown Las Vegas?

Camp Anytown Las Vegas is a hidden gem in the Las Vegas valley. Camp Anytown teaches leadership and diversity awareness to high school youth.  Camp prioritizes recruiting students from the widely diverse population reflected in the Las Vegas area and in the world. At Camp Anytown, everyone is a delegate. All are on an equal level.

High school delegates participate in activities that engage them in issues of social justice, power dynamics, privilege, advocacy, interfaith bridge-building and living the Golden Rule. Anytown seeks to reveal and bridge gaps that cause tension and are at the root of stereotyping.

There are many “firsts” that happen at Camp Anytown. Many students experience for the first time sharing a room with someone very different than themselves. Some people say that the most segregated day in the US is Sunday, because people are divided as they go to so many different places of worship. I believe that the first day of Camp Anytown is the most segregated day! Delegates feel tension and discomfort when they are immersed with a wide diversity of people often for the first time.  They want to stay separated. A recent Camp brought together students from 10 different nationalities and 13 different faith traditions.

While students are very reluctant to room with a person from a background they don’t know or have a negative attitude about, at the end of Camp they have changed and recognize that they have been holding onto unfair stereotypes. They share these realizations with their own communities back home.

The purpose of Camp Anytown is to do life with the students and provide the culture and the circumstances to promote positive change. Camp presents delegates with real-life people with whom to learn together in order to create a community based on a culture of acceptance. Letting go of judgments and stereotypes of others allows for personal, internal transformation to happen as well. Students experience themselves in authentic ways where they can say, “This is who I really am.”

What brought you to your current position as Director of Camp Anytown?

I attended Camp Anytown when I was 17 years old! I benefitted greatly and it changed me. I held prejudices: whites vs blacks and Hispanics vs others. I had learned to stick to my own. To see the  ”other” as “them” and to have nothing to do with them. It was at Camp that I met and hugged a Muslim person for the first time. I was personally transformed to look into people’s hearts. I said to myself that one day I will lead this program. I volunteered at Camp Anytown for 10 years and have been the Executive Director for the last 3 years.

Was there a deeper conviction or motivation in you that led to this vision for yourself?

As a young boy I clearly remember a phrase my mom said: “estoy a su servicio.” It took me some years before I really understood that phrase and why she said it so often. By the way, I grew up with loving parents but we did not have luxuries. For us, having a simple can of a cold Coca Cola after working hard was a luxury we cherished. One day, a lady who looked homeless passed by our home. My mom noticed her and invited her into our home. My mom directed me to get her a cold Coca Cola from the fridge. Mom also gave her clothes and food. When she left, I was angry at Mom and said, “Why did you do that? You gave her the last soda we had. We won’t be able to get more for a few more weeks!” Mom told me that when I say, “estoy a su servicio” it means I am in service to everyone who comes my way. It means to give the best of what we have in our home. That day Mom told me that I would grow up and have a servant’s heart and I would impact thousands. Mom gave me this extra push – she helped me see this beautiful gift God had instilled in me. To this day, I have gratitude in my veins for this gift.

I realized that I was not prepared for leadership in the conventional sense. I was not prepared for leadership on a glimmering platform but on the backside of a mountain. I learned to look at disadvantages that I had growing up not as a negative but as a positive for my leadership. I did not look at circumstances to evaluate my value. In my youth, I figured I would grow up and be a construction worker because I thought that was the highest I could go in life. Then I realized that I could dream bigger. I broke a barrier within my own mindset and allowed myself to thrive regardless of my circumstances.

What do you value most about your leadership?   

For me, my biggest accomplishment that I bring to my leadership is that I still hold firmly to remaining humble and a servant to others. This feeling of committed service comes from my faith and my mother and it is as authentic as it can be. I picture it as if I am watering a field of beautiful plants. Like a garden, I must take care of it, nurture it every day. I appreciate what comes to me and the gifts given to me every day. My parents, with their wings cut off, taught me how to fly. I soar with pride and humility – because I’m flying for my parents and my people.

How do you handle hard things, when you feel you go off track?

I call them stinging darts. I had internalized my own “stinging darts” from inside myself as well from outside. I was hurt by comments from others about my race, value, and color of my skin. I had to teach myself that being a brown Latino God-fearing man was nothing to be ashamed of. I heard God leading me and realized that I needed to confront these stinging darts because I had God on my side. I said to myself, “I will speak out even if my voice trembles.”

What values of leadership would you like others to know about?

After working with high school delegates over the past 10 years at Camp Anytown, a lot of folks expect me to have all the answers. My work is not to give answers but to disrupt your souls with a whole lot of right questions. I help young people see that there is a link between you and who helped you get to where you are and it’s important to honor those who paved the way for you. I come as one but stand as 10,000.

Compassion should be at the core of who we are as human beings.  If your ship is sinking because it’s taking in water, you don’t jump, you grab buckets with the others because we are are all in this together.

What does the term “life-giving spirit” mean to you?

Vida! Viviendo mi vida!

To me “vida” is much more than a Spanish word.  It is a symbol that says I belong here and I am going to do the best that I can while I am here. I am living my life not just for myself, but for humanity.

Your words are powerful, Rico. Can you tell me more about this special gift with words?

My father sold peanuts to put food on our table when I was growing up. He still sells peanuts today. When I was little he would stand me in front of his peanut cart and tell me to yell, “Peanuts! Come get your peanuts!” I became an orator at a very young age! I still honor the sacred presence of the peanut because it provided a way of life for me. My compassion and inner strength is strongly linked and reinforced by my ancestry and history.

Thank you so much. Rico! May you and all involved with Camp Anytown Las Vegas CC fulfill your aspirations and live in peace.

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The video/podcast episode raises a few concerns/questions/objections regarding the quality of thinking evident in some of what I found on the website.

“#TheNextWave initiative was created in 2019 by former Anytown delegates who wanted to establish more opportunities for young people to speak for themselves and were willing to disrupt the status quo. Our message is clear, we are no longer asking for permission, we’re simply giving the world notice that we have arrived.” (emphasis added) 

Jeff’s comment. Is there only a stark alternative between inappropriate meekness and what I would call—especially in the light of the next paragraph—self-assertion, which I regard as dangerous? Is there a middle way that would be more wise and powerful in its long-term effectiveness? The term “disrupt the status quo”—on the surface—could be taken to imply that present conditions have nothing good about them, no structure worth preserving. I doubt that this foolish idea was intended, but I believe that it is worth the time and effort to express a high quality of thinking, which leads to a finer quality of feeling and a better quality of action. 

“In April 8th, 2019, Camp Anytown Las Vegas joined Make the Road Nevada and the Nevada Youth Activist Alliance for their inaugural NYAA Youth Activist Lobby Day in Carson City, NV. Together, 200 youth activists marched toward Nevada’s state legislative building and met with their elected officials to inform them that they expect serious, bold, and immediate action on issues affecting their community.” (emphasis added)

            Jeff’s comment. Met to inform them. What happened to the spirit of equality and dialogue? Expect serious bold and immediate action. This demand assumes that they know that the legislators have nothing else pressing that could possibly justify delay in taking up their concerns. People who have competence in one area easily assume that their competence extends to other areas as well. 

As a specialist in ethics, I have learned that the ideals for expertise in politics are very high. No one, not even any one group, is likely to satisfy all aspects of these ideals. Humility is lost when we speak as though we have all the essential knowledge relevant to a particular set of issues that concerns us. I find it very rare in religious groups, and even in academic groups, to find anything like an awareness of what these ideals are.

An excellent discussion of an issue requires input from all stakeholders, plus an integrated weaving of many layers of expertise. All the sciences that are relevant to the debated topic need to be represented. And since every scientist and scientific research program operates with philosophical assumptions that are usually unconscious and often biased, philosophers of science need to be part of the team, and scientists representing different philosophical assumptions need to be found (or trained). Philosophers representing the major relevant competing approaches need to be included. And law review articles are a superb and almost universally neglected source of information; they are usually 70-90 page scholarly discussions going into the details of working out justice in one particular case after another, organized (of course) from a perspective which needs ideally to be complemented by diverse views. How often people assume that some scientists (gathered because of their political perspective) can be arrayed against some politicians in order to represent the debate adequately! Of course, this ideal cannot be satisfied in practice, but the complete neglect of anything approaching excellent fairness and intellectual diversity for dialogue on ethics or policy is a commentary on our educational system. 

In society today, how many people assume that they are fully qualified to judge a complex issue based on information gathered from personal experience, journalism, and social media? A fine start. But only a start. This comment is not to disqualify anyone; it is a protest against presumption designed to add humility and open the doors of inquiry for more intellectual diversity.  

Let me say this, however, regarding the current peaceful protests and unrest in response to the death of George Floyd. In this case, I believe that social media and journalism are sufficient to justify the protests and the demand for better training of police.       

“Our annual Golden Rule campaign highlights the power of youth voices and celebrates the universal principle of treating others the way that we want to be treated. It is a powerful tool for all of our relationships – with ourselves, others, animals, and the planet. The Golden Rule is powerful only when we practice it.

Comment. Although I would not stretch the application of the rule of living to treat all persons the way we want others to treat us this far, I believe the golden rule does have limited application to our relations with animals. Furthermore, identification with cosmic reality gives support for applying GR to the planet, and I’m grateful for the stimulus of this challenging interpretation, even though, at present, I don’t embrace it. I believe that other lines of thinking provide a fully adequate foundation for ecological activism. Not every philosophical and religious principle needs to be reinterpreted in order to bolster that essential realm of duty. I believe that living as members of the family of God, and learning to love God and the neighbor well, is the enduring core of spiritual living; if we learn these priorities, we will find ourselves marvelously more effective with other urgent matters as well, including social, economic and political ones.

“Camp Anytown welcomes all students, regardless of their gender identity and/or expression. In order to create welcoming and safe spaces that respect the full gender spectrum, we offer a gender inclusive cabin which houses campers of different sexes and gender identities. We offer traditional single-gender cabins as well! Unfortunately, single rooms are not available at camp.

“It made me feel like I could be accepted by a people where individuals can learn from me and use my pronouns. I no longer have to fake being myself – I have never felt more me than before. Thank you.  

Jeff’s comment. I give thanks for the spiritual, psychological, and personal welcome extended to every person, no matter what. But I observe that this spiritual and compassionate regard is also often goes along with the assumption that these matters are simply a matter of personal choice, and the assumption that our profound spiritual-personal regard for one another is inconsistent with raising ethical questions about some of these choices. I have no idea how CampAnytown handles these matters, so my comment applies primarily to situations that I have experienced. but my soul cries out in anguish when perspectives are suppressed in the name of “respect for diversity.” I am a specialist in intellectual diversity. I also regard truth, not equality of regard, as the goal of discussion and debate. Equal regard for persons is a spiritual and ethical foundation; but not everyone’s view is to be treated as an opinion of equal value. To move from an authoritarian approach to conversation to a democratic approach does not automatically bring insight, though it gives a far better chance for insight to dawn. 

            In case you would like to see more of my ideas about cultivating quality of thinking, see chapter 2 in Living in Truth, Beauty, and Goodness.  

I conclude this blogpost with additional information that helped me understand this remarkably successful and beautiful initiative. Having spent only a few hours in my exploration of CampAnytown Las Vegas and links from its website, my overall view of CampAnytown is strong positive. Having attended over the years some training exercises similar to the ones I imagine occupy the delegates, I can guess at the curriculum in a very vague way. My dream is that this model would be replicated widely, with perhaps the addition of a component on quality of thinking.

Delegates are told not to bring alcohol, drugs, cigarettes, vapes, tobacco products, weapons, lighters, iPads, iPods, tablets, or speakers.   Camp Anytown Las Vegas is a technology free space – we ask that students give up their cell phones upon arrival. This not only limits the distractions and allows us to really dive deep into what camp is about. There is no cell reception at Camp Lee Canyon, however, the campsite does have a landline for usage:    At Camp Anytown, we have an interactive program called “Anytown Celebration Night” where we host an open mic night, play games, and eat s’mores while gathered around our indoor fireplace. The dress code for the night is onesie pajamas or simple pajamas. Musical instruments and cultural dances are encouraged!

Camp Anytown is held at Camp Lee Canyon Youth Resident Camp, a 45-minute drive from Las Vegas.  Delegates sleep in cabins that are all equipped with heaters and are served meals three times per day. The campsite does not allow food or beverages (only water) in the cabins so please do not bring food or snacks from home.

Our volunteer staff is made up of a diverse group of individuals from various cultures, religions, ethnicities, and backgrounds across various fields such as education, social services, non-profit, government, criminal justice, retail, and hospitality. All volunteers are background checked & receive 24 hours of training prior to attending camp.

$400 scholarship for each (unless cancel 5 days or fewer from the start date)

ADVISORS Preferably at least 25 years old and have experience working with youth in the community or in groups. Advisors need to be able to lead and facilitate a small group of high school students from different backgrounds. Professional background and personal traits should blend with the general requirements for background diversity and qualities sought among Anytown staff members. Must be in good health and capable of working in group settings for long hours.

In developing a team of Advisers, a deliberate effort is made to represent various occupational fields (business, non-profit, counseling, education, public administration, law enforcement, and others), genders, ethnicity, races, cultures, and experiences.

COUNSELORS

1. Facilitate small group discussions of high school students from diverse backgrounds in breakout sessions and cabin time.
2. Encourage delegates to extend boundaries regarding what they think and what they feel.
3. Participate in all activities with enthusiasm while allowing the delegates experiences to take priority over one’s own experiences.
4. Deal sensitively with the process of growth of the delegates.
5. Lead by example.
6. Supervise assigned delegates at all times, including during sleeping hours at night.
7. Get delegates to activities, exercises, and meals on time.
8. Ask for help when you need it.
9. Follow and enforce camp rules.

1.  
   1. Exhibits leadership
   1. Some familiarity with issues regarding cultural diversity including, but not limited to, race, ethnicity, socio-economic status, interfaith, gender, sexual orientation, and ability.
   1. Has interest in social issues.
   1. Has a cooperative attitude.
   1. Exhibits maturity of expression.
   1. Is able to sensitively deal with emotionally charged topics.