For many years Campus Ministry has organized an event called Cardboard City. The purpose of this event is to raise Fairfield students’ awareness about the reality of homelessness.
It is (or at least should be) upsetting that a substantial number of people in America are homeless. We are the wealthiest and most powerful society in the history of the world, yet we have not developed enough of a social conscience to take responsibility for those less fortunate than ourselves. Cardboard City is a small reminder of the responsibilities that we, as students at a Catholic university, have for pursuing social justice.
The point of Cardboard City is not for students to have a chance to “feel homeless” for a night. We are not so foolish as to think that a bunch of middle-class and upper-middle-class college kids can approximate what it is like to be homeless by sleeping outside the campus center. We are simply trying to make Fairfield students aware of the reality of homelessness.
While we sleep in our dorms and townhouses there are other people – yes, real flesh and blood people with just as much innate dignity as you and I – who sleep on the street every night. The suffering of others is not something Fairfield students are particularly accustomed to reflecting upon.
We generally worry about class, extracurriculars and our social lives – and with good reason. We are, after all, in college. But we also have a responsibility to contemplate how we can best serve our society both now and in the future. Cardboard City is an opportunity for Fairfield students to engage in such contemplation.
Some students object to the spectacle of their classmates constructing, sleeping in, and then taking down Cardboard City because it is so very public. Can’t those Campus Ministry kids just give out pamphlets or put up paper tents in the dining hall? Yes, we could. We have, in fact, and will continue to do so. However, if I hand you a pamphlet or fact sheet you may or may not read it.
If I and several other students engage in an active, ongoing demonstration like Cardboard City, then you will at least wonder what’s going on. You may wander over and ask us a few questions, or even decide to join us for a bit and learn a little more about why we are doing what we are doing.
Cardboard City is about the power of community. It is a challenge to the individuals walking by to stop for a moment and consider their place in the community. What kind of connection to the community do I have? What concerns, goals and responsibilities do I share with my peers? What, if anything, do I owe to those less fortunate than myself? And what about God? These are the questions Cardboard City attempts to stir within the minds of Fairfield students.
Cardboard City is, of course, not perfect. There is always more that can be done to engage the minds and imaginations of our student body. There is always another person who wishes to be included within the community.
Campus Ministry Council meets every Thursday night to discuss just how we can improve what we do here at Fairfield. If anyone has any questions, comments or criticisms regarding Cardboard City or anything else Campus Ministry does, please do not hesitate to come to a meeting. We believe in what we are doing, but we are always open to improving our methods. If you want to help, we welcome you gladly. God Bless.
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