I used to associate community service with service for those who had fewer opportunities. I thought it was vital that the difference between level of opportunities be substantial. I viewed community service as a way of creating interconnections between classes of people who would otherwise not connect.
From this point of view community service is fairly elitest. It is for the priviliged to help the underpriviledged. From this reasoning, it would seem to make little sense for those who are underpriviledged to do community service for the priviledged. Therefore it would be only an elitest activity. I now find this understanding repulsive despite my intention.
Community service is about working for the greater good.
Equality is about erasing barriers betwen classes. Community service can be used as a tool to reach out to those you who would otherwise feel alienated. Equally, you must recognize when others extend you fellowship and accept it. However community service is not tied to equality. You can preform community service for those in your own community.
Community service is commiting an act which benefits any portion of any community without explicit compensation.
I feel like I have been given so much and it is only fair and right to use those gifts for the common good. I now realize that I don’t want to commit my life to community service but to reducing the enormous and artifical divides of inequality.