Ani Zotti on Starting JYAN in Argentina

As a junior studying abroad in Buenos Aires, I am interested in the political/cultural/religious nexus that the JYAN is founded on. Buenos Aires, and more specifically the Universidad de Buenos Aires, is a fascinating place from which to study this relationship. The University is at the heart of political society in Argentina, as it hosts most of the brightest minds - both very young as well as very old - in the country. It is also completely free, allowing its exclusivity to be founded entirely on intellectual grounds as opposed to economic ones. As such, political activism is a huge part of the daily student life; controversial issues - like the ones between religion (90% of the country is Roman Catholic) and gender rights, for example - are constantly being debated everywhere from classrooms to clubs. Comparisons to and critiques of the Northern half of America (students learn here of only one continuous continent, not the North/South division that I am familiar with) are also frequent. McDonalds' abound, as do U.S. music and TV shows, but both the political culture as well as nature of quotidian personal relationships remains strikingly different. As an U.S. citizen who was taught only of the merits of the capitalist, individualistic system, learning about and experiencing life in a far more socialist environment is teaching me a lot about the ingrained culture of the U.S.