Submitted by Thomas Sharp on the 2015 winter session program in Italy sponsored by the College of Engineering…
This week my study abroad group arrived in Milan, where we will be studying at Politecnico di Milano. Milan is a great city, best known for its Duomo, or cathedral. The Duomo is absolutely beautiful, all made with marble which was transported by canal to the center of Milan. I was amazed not only with the Duomo, but with the architecture in general. The people of the city are welcoming and many know enough English to help us get around, which was surprising to me.
This past weekend was the most interesting experience so far. On Friday, we traveled to Paris, in the midst of the chaos of the aftermath of the terrorist attack on the magazine Charlie Hebdo. All throughout the city there were posters of the famous line: “Je Suis Charlie”, or “I am Charlie”. These posters are more than just a sign of Parisian unity in the midst of tragedy, they are a symbol for the fragility of liberty and freedom that the French people once did not have. It seems to me that the French people understand so well that this attack was not just on Parisian lives, but on the freedom of speech that they seem to respect to the highest degree. To them, this was greater than just violence and death, it was about human rights. I cannot help but wonder, as I think most Americans would, what result the same tragedy would bring about in the United States? Would Americans disregard the fact that their liberty and freedoms were threatened, or would it solely be an outcry of the violence and deaths that occurred? These are the kind of thoughts that go through my mind that I may not have had I been in the States.
To see the people of the city and those posters in person made it a little more understandable. I am glad that we were in the city during the aftermath since we were able to experience something truly historic. I am eager to hear the reactions of my friends and family to this situation when I return in a few weeks.
