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Jesuit Volunteers serving in JVC East, 2008-09
Jesuit volunteers serving in the East work and live in inner-city environments from North Carolina up to Maine with people from a wide range of ethnic and racial backgrounds. Poverty, homelessness, racism, addiction, abuse, unemployment, and lack of housing and quality education are prevalent. East Coast cities are often a patchwork of ethnic neighborhoods and diverse peoples’ locales providing an abundance of historical and cultural resources. National and international institutions on the East Coast draw people from around the world engaged in social activism, providing unique opportunities for JVC East volunteers to participate in important social movements.
- In Boston, New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C., the volunteers are immersed in vibrant, densely-populated neighborhoods within cities where there is stark contrast between those with wealth and power and those in great need.
- Smaller cities like Syracuse, New York; Hartford and Bridgeport, Connecticut; and Newark and Camden, New Jersey, are hard hit economically, and have fewer resources and less public attention. These smaller cities provide a unique, manageable vantage point on urban life, politics, and culture.
- JVC East’s northern-most point, Portland, Maine, is a beautiful ocean-side city where unemployment and homelessness are increasing.
- To the south and towards milder climates, Raleigh, North Carolina has a complex blend of urban, rural, and migrant poverty.
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People
