Movimiento Activista Social, a University of Idaho student group, has worked to bring awareness to social issues throughout Idaho for the past five years.
The student led organization advocates for equal and just communities throughout the state, said Viviana Gonzalez, MAS member.
Gonzalez said the organization was started by a group of freshmen and sophomore students who realized there were issues on campus and around the state that weren’t being addressed.
“Overall, we’re a social justice organization,” Gonzalez said. “We strive for gender equality, social equality, equal access to education, immigration issues and women’s issues.”
Gonzalez said because MAS is a group focused around equality, they choose not to elect a president for the group. Instead, everyone in the group is a co-chair.
“We don’t go, I guess, by a hierarchy. We believe that we are all leaders and that we should all present ourselves as leaders and take leadership positions,” Gonzalez said.
MAS was founded at UI in 2009, and has since developed branches at Washington State University and in southern Idaho.
Gonzalez said anyone is welcome to join MAS.
“We’re open to anyone, and we really mean anyone,” Gonzalez said. “Anybody who is interested in social justice and a majority of our members are Hispanic — but that’s not by any means a requirement.”
Cruz Araujo, MAS member, said because the organization is made up of mostly Latino students does not mean the group focuses only on Latino issues.
“MAS is characterized by taking action when there is an issue presented,” Araujo said.
Every year, MAS has a list of events to which they plan to bring awareness.
Their first event of this year will be El Color De Nuestra Tierra, The Color of Our Land, on Nov. 12.
This event is designed to showcase the cultures and diversity of different countries in Latin America.
Another event — Atrevete A Ser Mas, Dare To Be More — takes place during spring break where members of the group travel to different high schools and alternative schools in southern Idaho.
“This last spring, we took action by going around to different high schools and alternative schools and talked to them about college and tried to motivate students to receive higher education,” Aruajo said.
MAS is involved with planning a rally scheduled for May 1 in Moscow. The rally is intended to bring awareness to immigration reform.
Every year, MAS works closely with the College Assistance Migrant Program to plan Farm Worker Awareness Week.
“The opportunities that MAS has given me have been great,” Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez said one of her favorite experiences while advocating for MAS was when she had the opportunity to travel to Washington D.C. to lobby for immigration reform.
She said without the help of funding and support from MAS, this opportunity would not have been possible.
“I think MAS is special to me because I see the other members and I see their passion and I not only get more passionate about it but it makes me want to take action and just create awareness of the issues that are occurring,” Aruajo said. “I think MAS is that space where you are able to not only develop more culture but also inform. I feel comfortable and … that the students I’m working with share the same passion.”
Iris Alatorre can be reached at arg-news@uidaho.edu