How do you fire 7700 young people from around the world that have done nothing but give.
Yes! The Government in one of its finer moves fired every single Peace Corps Volunteer from 6 different continents around the world. This was their response to the Covid19 Pandamenic.
No they have not furloughed or fired their permanent staff that are paid well and manage the Volunteers.
No they have not given the Volunteers any guidance on what their options are on return to the USA. What they have done however is create a paperwork nightmare for all of these young people.
The majority of them have not received their stipends. The majority of them have not received their Certificates that allow them certain allowances for graduate school or other permanent government jobs.
The Senate has passed legislation authorizing them unemployment due to the Covid19 virus but no one has been given any guidance on how to apply for this and the Peace Corps Management seems to have already forgotten their 7700 Volunteers as they begin to recruit new ones for next year!
These young people did much more than play with children and entertain the locals. They were immersed in the lifestyle of their communities by teaching and sharing valuable information such as healthy eating, how to garden, the correct way to plant, teaching English, building master farms, teaching true economics and so much more. They had to learn the local language. They lived in the villages with the locals.
They were usually on their own in the villages with no communication except with the locals or monthly when they would see other Volunteers for various reasons.
They truly did represent the best of what we are. There was nothing for them to take except the love of the their locals, the comradarie and respect they developed for each other and wonderful but hard memories.
And what did we do! We fired them and sent them home without a thank you! Just another reason to be embarrassed by who we have become.