They tell me it’s 26 hours of dancing instead of 24
because it’s a marathon ““ 26 miles.
Either way, more than a full day of dancing is kind of insane. I
never really understood the logic that connected pediatric AIDS to
dancing until you want to die.
Don’t get me wrong, I think Dance Marathon supports a
great cause and am actually registered as a dancer, but I am still
confused about the whole thing.
UCLA students who sign up to be dancers have to raise a minimum
of $225 in order to participate.
If they can’t, they are “moralers” who only
shake it for six to seven hours (“only” being a
relative term here).
The fundraising aspect works really well ““ what we raise
primarily goes to the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation
and then Camp Kindle and Camp Heartland, which counsel children
with HIV.
But apart from money, we have so much more to offer. We’re
talking about 700 UCLA students’ 26 hours of time. This is
such a powerful resource that dancing it all away makes me kind of
uncomfortable. I thought other students would feel the same way,
but apparently not.
“I feel that connecting dancing with charity is a really
good idea. People don’t have the time and it’s a good
way to get them involved,” said Sonia Hingrajia, a
second-year psychology student who is a returning dancer.
I definitely agree with the fact that pushing it as a dance is a
great gimmick and reels people in quickly, but shouldn’t
there be more to it?
Those 18,200 hours of enthusiastic support could be utilized in
a much more meaningful way.
Even if we danced for 10 hours, it would still be a challenging
task that would make anyone feel accomplished at its end.
Then later, we could actually personally help the kids. This
could mean making toys or teddy bears for the kids who arrive near
the end of the marathon, or actually going to their camps and
volunteering there.
“There is a silent auction going on the whole time where
students can buy items and have the proceeds go to our
charities,” Dance Marathon Fundraising Chair Andrew
McLaughlin said.
OK, I know, money is a great resource, and charities definitely
need as much of it as they can get, but what is gained by dancing
for 26 hours?
For five years now, hundreds of UCLA students have driven
themselves to exhaustion, showing that they can push physical
limits beyond even their imaginations, but all that is being
concentrated in a dance hall under disco lights.
If you think of the dancers as an expensive resource with wild
potential and high skill levels, doesn’t
windin’/grindin’ for all 26 hours seem bizarre?
“If you advertised it as “˜Come Volunteer for 26
Hours’ no one would show up,” McLaughlin said.
“Dance Marathon is about the money, but so much awareness is
also spread among the students. Education is spread.”
I asked another student returning to this event what she knew
about the cause and the charities.
“Not much,” admitted Marissa Lashbrook, a
second-year psychology student, with a small smile. “But
there are a lot of great speakers who share their personal
experiences at Dance Marathon so it helps you embrace the
cause.”
For me, it is a wee bit strange that, after we donate money to
stop children from dying and hear stories that leave “not a
dry eye in the whole room,” according to McLaughlin, we turn
around and concentrate on bringing sexy back.
Most everyone I have talked to has said Dance Marathon is an
amazing experience, something so very “UCLA” and
youthful in its spirit that it is impossible not to join in the
fun.
I agree with all of that, but it also needs to be taken a step
further, to direct interaction with and service to children with
HIV.
“We are planning to incorporate the camps more into the
Dance Marathon in the future,” McLaughlin assured me during
our talk.
I just wish this was not simply a possibility, but more of a
central goal.
I am planning to wheedle much of my family and many of my
friends for donations toward this cause in the upcoming two
weeks.
All my techniques, including the large sad eyes, the guilt trips
and the heart-wrenching tales are on their way.
It would be nice to know that, after all that, I would feel a
direct interaction with the cause.
Maybe this is asking too much, but it is asking for something
sorely needed.
Hours upon hours upon hours taken from highly competent young
people should result in more than just dancing and money.
E-mail Joshi at rjoshi@media.ucla.edu if you want to
practice making puppy faces. Send general comments to
viewpoint@media.ucla.edu.