Defending the Oxfam Fast

To the Editors of the Crimson:

There are two issues I would like to address regarding those students who chose not to participate in the Oxfam fast:

Firstly, I respect the right for any student to refuse to fast. I realize many people feel that the fast is a useless gesture, $1.25 is a small amount of money, or that the particular date of the fast was an inconvenience.

I'd like people to know that the primary purpose of the fit is educational, not fundraising. There are much more effective ways of raising money, as the Ride for Life ($80,000 in 1983, $200,000 in 1984) aptly illustrates.

The Fast is designed to make people think. To think about what it is like to be hungry for a night, to think about the fact that 35,000 people die every day of hunger and that an estimated 10 million Africans may die in 1985.

We are not trying to make students feel guilty or to pat ourselves on the back for giving up dinner--we are trying to make the Harvard undergraduate body an informed, compassionate group of people.

Secondly, if there are students who disagree with the practice, not the promise of the Fast, I ask them to do something else. I understand the Fast does not offer the perfect solution to ending world hunger through education or funds. There must be better ways; if you feel dissatisfied, do something.

If you don't want to end up going out to eat on the night of the Fast, come to the Hunger Banquet; If ou don't like Oxfam's relief efforts, give your money to H.E.L.P.; If you want to earn $500,000 for Oxfam, join the Ride for Life; If you want to learn about development, go to a discussion sponsored by H.H.A.C. or H.R.I.D.F.; If you want to physically give food to the homeless, show up at PBH and join the Food Salvage program; If you can't or won't do any of that, do something else.

I've been asked why, in spite of "student apathy," an event such as the Hunger Banquet could keep 60 people interested for three hours and raise $250. I answer that students are not apathetic when faced with the problem and what can be done to solve it. The problem is that people are starving, I've listed what can be done to help them. Am I right or wrong? Ranee Chang   President, N.N.A.C.