Tag Archive for fieldwork

Interview with Donna Dees; founder of Millions Moms March.

by 27benio

Last week, on January 17th we interviewed Donna Dee, the founder of Million Moms March; one of the largest protests against gun violence in US history. The march took place in Washington DC on Mothers Day, may 14, 2000 with a crowd of over one million people protesting for Gun Laws. Over the years, she has continued promoting gun violence prevention, wrote a memoir called “looking for a Few Good Moms: How one mom rallied a million others against the gun lobby” that earned an award, and co directed/produced the award winning documentary “five awake” about five Louisiana women who set out to strengthen domestic violence laws.

During the interview, Donna elaborated on Gun Carry Laws and the many lives taken by mass and school shootings. Many of us including myself assumed that guns used for mass shootings were predominantly bought legally. However, Donna explained that a study from the U.S Secret Service found 76% of school shooters got their guns from either their home or from relatives. She also talked about the issue where families who own guns don’t always lock them up properly. About eight kids die a day or are injured from improperly stored guns and this statistic alone emphasizes the fact we must also advocate for safe storage laws along with firm gun laws.

Donna was very informative and we were able to learn a lot from just this interview. She also connected us with the Newton Action Alliance where we joined a lunch and lobby on January 23rd. For our first fieldwork, I found it quite successful and we received more information on ways to stop gun violence.

by Graydon Kirchmann

We went to Bard’s 2022 Disrupt to Sustain Social Impact Pitch Competition Powered by RebelBase and learned a lot about people’s strategies to make sustainable business ideas that can also get money. It was very interesting because it was made in a way that would benefit everyone because it would be just as easy to use, and would be even more profitable.

Think this is a very smart idea because environmentally sustainable businesses shouldn’t be annoying to get anything from, because if the product wasn’t as good as non-sustainable ones, then why would people buy them? This information was very helpful and I will try to integrate it into my work on microplastics and ways for people to want to reduce plastic usage in a way that doesn’t affect them. We learned about a lot of situations where reusable products would be useful as well, like confetti and glitter, because those are both things that can get in the ocean.

by Iris Edelstein

Ashley Steimer-King is the program director at Girls Learn International. She told us all about how her organization had helped girls in the U.S and around the world. Their mission is to give everyone a chance at a proper education. Not unlike Sarah Symons’ cause, when girls are given an education, they have an ability to have a much more stable life down the road. Amanda Gorman had also been a volunteer at the organization before.

She said that she had been to the UN, and loved doing what she did and feeling like she was helping so many people get the education they needed.

by Dante Tejerina

On Thursday the 26th at the beginning of Big Time, we started heading out for our first fieldwork. Led by Jacob we took the one train for 5 stops to Rector Street where we walked a few blocks to the museum where we entered the Jewish Heritage Museum

The first exhibit we went to was “The Holocaust, What Hate Can Do” we mainly learned about antisemitism, and the 2000+ year history of it. But there was a strong focus on the Holocaust and those who survived it and the stories they told. The entire exhibit was completely moving to me and seeing all of the horrific events that occurred really lit up this spark of anger, because recently there have been major sparks of hate and antisemitism not only in the U.S but also in large countries in Europe. We were in that exhibit for around 2-2.5 hours

The second exhibit we went into was the “life after the holocaust” which was an exhibit about the photos of people and their story about what they did after the holocaust.

by Dylan

At 1:15 pm, we met with our chaperone Jacob Farkas in the lobby. After getting acquainted, we took a subway straight to the Jewish Heritage Museum. Once we arrived, we saw the exhibition The Holocaust: What Hate Can Do. When we first entered the exhibition, we were surrounded by pictures of regular Jewish people. This was done to help us feel more a part of the culture and to give it a more authentic feel. Next, we witnessed a brief overview of antisemitism’s long history. Then, we were introduced to Judaism. Following that, it discussed concentration camps and places of execution. We also saw lots of paragraphs about the history of antisemitism. I found out that antisemitism has existed for many years before the Holocaust. We spent about an hour on the first floor, thus the rest of the museum required us to move more quickly. More information concerning the Holocaust was discussed on the second level, although the emphasis was on individual accounts, crimes, and resistance. Once we got to the top floor, we saw a documentary about a photographer who captured 75 images of Auschwitz survivors on the 75th anniversary of the camp’s liberation. Behind us, the images were displayed in a chamber. Through this event, I discovered that antisemitism has existed for a long time throughout history.

by Sawyer Gersh

We met up with our teacher Jacob Farkas in the lobby of our school at 1:15pm. After that, we went to the Jewish Heritage Museum. Once we got there we went to the Exhibition called: The Holocaust: What Hate Can Do. When we first went into the exhibition there were photos everywhere of just regular people just like everyone else. This was done to connect us to the culture and make it feel all the more real. Next, we saw an overview. We saw a quick history of antisemitism going back thousands of years, next. Then, we got associated with Judaism. After that it talked about concentration camps and execution sites. We spent around 1 hour on the first floor and so we had to pick up the pace throughout the rest of the museum. On the second floor it talked more about the holocaust but focused more on individual stories, atrocities and resistance. I especially remember listening to a survivor talk about his experience seeing a dead boy inside a basket of laundry. On the last floor we saw a documentary about a photographer taking 75 pictures of holocaust survivors for the 75th anniversary of the Auschwitz liberation and behind us was a room filled with the pictures of them. Through this experience I learned that antisemitism has been prevalent throughout the history of the entire world. I also learned that there has been activists counteracting this throughout everyone’s history.

by Tobias Petrzela

Coach Macky was our first interview and it went well. Most of us previously knew him through basketball in lower Manhattan. We had a document of planned questions and Macky answered them in a lot of depth. We learned more than we had thought and we now see his non – profit in a whole different way. He talked about the diversity of the program and it’s main mission. We are grateful for his time and learning about his organization and early life.

by Pascal Duravcevic

Jonathan Gamberg is the associate director of sports at The CPF. He basically manages the researchers created by the foundation for kids. He said that the main issue that children go through is the access to resources and that many children who live in areas that don’t have them are struggling in my fields. Kids who play sports are said to be much more successful, 57 percent of those who play sports when younger grow up to be business leaders. Jonathan was a true delight to interview and his answers were always on point. Jonathan gave us so much information about the organization he is apart of.

by Holly Baumann

On Tuesday, January 24th at 2:00, me and my group had a called with Denise Zaraya and Andrew King who work at IAS (Integral Ad Science). IAS is a company that analyses advertising on the internet, and checks to see if its appropriate and safe.

In our interview with them, they taught us a bit of how the system works, and why it is useful. We talked a bit about current events, like how Elon Musk just bought twitter, and how he discovered how many bots there were. To lessen the amount of these bots, he introduced a subscription plan. Besides that, we talked about how on social media platforms, there is a massive amount of bots and false advertisements, thats purpose is to cause a stir to get more engagement. When we asked them why these bots are even there, they responded by saying that the main reason is to make money.

Andrew and Denise gave us a lot of information about how they censor certain ads online, and why it is helpful.

by Tobias Petrzela

After a week of emailing I had scheduled to meet in person with Jonathan Gamberg, the associate director of a non – profit in NYC, City Parks Foundation. He met us at 11:15 in front of the school building and we led him to the office where we sat down and started our interview. During the interview we were not only all focused, but we all asked planned questions, listened, and did our best. We started by learning how the foundation sets up events and sport opportunities for all NYC children 6 – 18 free of charge. Later in the interview I learned more about Jonathan himself and his personal story. Overall we had one our best interviews with Jonathan and we learned a lot more about the organization and how it corresponds with our project.

by Pascal Duravcevic

On January 23rd we interviewed Chris Klein a coach at our school, LREI, and a person who played D3 basketball and had his own fair share of experiences. We interviewed him about the differences between coaching and playing and which one he enjoyed more. We continued to ask him questions about NYC basketball in general which he had mixed feelings about. He said, “I feel there are plenty of Programs It’s just that none of them are quality.”

by Ivy Van Blerkom

On Tuesday, January 24th, 2023, my group interviewed Luis Hernandez about his work with the City, a basketball program in New York City that works mostly with girls. Luis has worked at various schools and basketball programs throughout New York City. He has worked at a few different private schools and he currently works for LREI and he also is a coach for the City. Luis talked to us about how the City has evolved over the years.

Before Covid, the City offered programs for both boys and girls basketball. Now, the City primarily focuses on girls’ basketball, with only one boy’s team. He told us that the main reason behind dropping boys teams was that girls would stay at the City through highschool while most boys ended up leaving and trying out for a more well-known league. After the boys would try out for a different team, if they did not get a lot of playing time, they would try and re-join the City but at that point, the City would not have spots left. Luis thought that it was a better use of his time to work with kids who would stay with him throughout middle and high school. Luis also told us about the two national championships the City won just a few years ago.

by Will Taschler

On Tuesday, January 24th, 2023, my group and I interviewed Luis Hernandez. Luis works at LREI and coaches for a girls volleyball team in the middle school and high school. He is also the 7th and 8th grade P.E teacher. He grew up in the city playing different kinds of sports like volleyball, basketball, and more. He is also a coach outside of school for a girls basketball team called the city.

We interviewed him because played sports as a kid in the city. Luis had a strong opinion on the idea that the girls will stay on a team until they are 18, but the boys will try to leave and join a better team when they are 11-14. He is passionate about this opinion because this exact situation happened to him when he coached the city. That is why there is only one boys team left and the rest in girls. This is really disappointing because the boys team would have a lot of potential considering they won nationals two years in a row in the early 2010’s and produced a few NBA players.

by Iris Edelstein

We interviewed Sarah Symons, founder of HFC, an organization that helps girls in India and Nepal have access to an education. We discussed that when girls have an education, it can help them with many things, including getting a stable job, having marriage not getting in the way of an education, and preventing early pregnancy.

I think this was super important because many kids do not want to go to school because they view it as such a chore, myself included. Hearing these girls’ stories and hearing about their journey was very interesting because i think we take education for granted very frequently, but maybe we should open our eyes and see how privileged we really are.

by Zara Seegers

My group interviewed Coach Macky on Thursday, January nineteenth, 2023. Coach Macky is the founder of a non-profit organization called Steady Buckets. Steady Buckets is a basketball, physical, and skill development program for girls and boys ages five to eighteen. The objective of the program is to help kids grow and develop hard-working skills. It is funded by the community, therefore there are high-quality free basketball classes that kids of various ages can go to. Macky shared us his insight on the prices of sports in NYC. I learned a lot about what it takes to run a non-profit organization and the benefits of kids that participate in sports. Kids who had taken part in the Steady Buckets in-person version of the program spread the word about the online workouts on Covid since they were accessible at any time of the day. Coach Macky expressed his pride at not really needing to publicize it because it did so well on its own. Coach Macky was aware that his high caliber free basketball program in downtown Manhattan would draw the attention it deserved and that anyone who chose to participate would learn about its caliber.

by Pascal Duravcevic

We met with Coach Macky, the leader of a nonprofit organization called steady buckets. He talked about access to youth sports and how his organization is designed for everyone no matter class, race, or sex. Macky went on to talk about the struggles that arose during covid and the struggles in funding organizations. Steady Buckets is an overall wonderful program and learning about how many children it helped only made us more motivated about our topic.

by Zoe Sullivan

This week my group and I went lobbying. This week my group and I went lobbying. We met a woman named Angila Webber and she invited us to lobby with her and her organization. We joined a zoom and were greeted by many others who had also signed up with us. My group and I were given a list of names of senators and their phone numbers. Gunner, Kai, and Elizer decided to split up and call the senators on half the list while Beni and I called the other half. We mostly spoke to people through voicemails or assistants who picked up the phone. I think I learned a lot about how to talk and convince people and also more about gun laws that are being passed in the senate. We did it with an organization called the Newtown Action Alliance. I think it was overall a very fun and informative experience.

by Holly Baumann

On Friday, January 20th, me and my group had a call with Patrick Riccards, the CEO of the non-profit organisation Life After Hate. Life After Hates mission is to help former extremists find their humanity again, and regain compassion. Patrick is the first person to be CEO of LAH, without being a former extremist, so it was interesting to get his close up perspective.

We asked Patrick a variety of questions, like how he gets through to people who are former extremist, what role social media plays, and what made him want to be apart of LAH, but his answer to one of them stuck out to me. When we asked him if he feels bad for any of these former extremist who are struggling, he bluntly says “no”. He goes on to explain that its hard to feel bad for them when they have done horrific things, and they need to take accountability for that, which is one of the hardest things to do when trying to turn over a new leaf.

Patrick gave us a better understanding on different parts of hate groups, and it was cool to get his perspective.

by Paloma Sherak

On January 12, 2023, a few of my group members and I joined a webinar about microplastics, specifically microfibers. The webinar had many experts talking about the problems about microfibers and solutions that they are working on. One of the speakers was Dr. Judith Weis, who is a professor of biological sciences at Rutgers University. Another person was Meli Hinostroza, who is the co-founder of Aya Eco-Fashion and Arms of Andes. She and her brother started a clothing company that is completely eco-friendly. The other speaker is the chief scientist of Planet Care. Him and his team are working on filters for washing machines that collect all of the microfibers. And Madeline MacGillivray was the discussion moderator.

It was really interesting to hear what they had to say about microfibers. Our group hadn’t focused on microfibers, so we all learned a lot of interesting facts that I didn’t know about. For example, I learned that over ⅓ of microplastics in the environment are textiles, which is surprising because when people talk about microplastics, they never really think about microfibers, when they are really a huge problem. Microfiber was a way bigger problem than I thought and I learned a lot.

by 27eliezern

We had an interview with Donna Dees and had lunch and lobby with Angela Weber. Donna Dees did the million moms march and Angela Weber is an interviewer about school shooting. By interviewing them I learned that 76% of people get guns from family or home, Donna also had a gun violence death in her family.

by Juliet Sandler

We met with Ashley Steimer via Google Meet on Thursday, January 19th. Ashley Steimer is a part of Girls Learn international which is a group that empowers middle schoolers and highschoolers to advocate for human rights, equity, and universal access to education in both the U.S and all around the world.

She gave us a personal story about a young girl from Kenya who came to the United Nations and spoke before many leaders about her struggle

by Holly Baumann

On Friday, January 13th at 12:30, me and my group met with Kalil in his office to interview him. Kalil is LREIs Director of Equity and Community, and his jobs is to make sure LREI stays diverse, and he uses his expert knowledge around diversity and community to make sure everyone feel comfortable in the schools environment. In our interview with him, we decided to focus on how online radicalization affects minorities, who they try to recruit (and why), and how lots of time, people in these hate groups (like the proud boys) are parading their harmful view and ideals in plain sight, and acting upon violent endeavors.

by Tiffany Palapo

At 9:00 am on the 25th, my group and I -minus Holly, she was sick- met with Jason Schultz in person. Jason works at NYU as a professor of clinical law. His class is all about the laws against hate speech online so he knew a lot about the lawful side of radicalization online.

One of the important things I learned from Jason was about why extremist/radicalization groups got away with so much online. A main reason is because of The First Amendment, it states that “Congress make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting its free exercise.” Basically, it protects freedom of speech. The reason why online radical groups get away with so many things they say/post are because of the blurred lines between freedom of speech and indication of taking (violent) action. A perfect example of this is if somebody was bullying a person, a blurred difference would be “Go beat up —-, their no good,” vs. “—- lives at this address, goes to school at 8:15 in the morning and leaves at 3:15.” The first example could easily be sued, however, the second example could not because it is not outright saying ‘go be violent’ to said person, their just stating something on the internet.

There are many other important and helpful things that I have learned from Jason. He was a very helpful source and will definitely play a big role in our project.

by Paloma Sherak

On January 20, 2023, our group met with Erica Cirino via google meet. Erica Cirino is the Communications Manager of the Plastic Pollution Coalition and has even written a book on the huge problem of microplastics, which is called Thicker Than Water. She has been working with plastic for a long time, and it was really nice meeting her. She taught us a lot about microplastics that we weren’t aware about. She also gave us a bit of insight on her own experience with microplastics and what compelled her to work in fighting pollution.

Erica explained about the impact of microplastics to living creatures. She explained about all the creatures that have been hurt because of microplastics. She also told us about the impact on our health, which was something that was mentioned before, but not very talked about. Not only did she speak about all of the animals that are eating plastic, but she spoke about humans themselves which eat plastic as well. She gave us more sources so that we could get even more information. It was really interesting to hear all that she had to say.

by Cydney Klass

On Friday January 20th, 2023, we had the opportunity to have an interview with Ty, Joanne, and Andy. They told us about how they got to where they are today, and many other interesting facts about mental health, and things LREI is doing to help kids who struggle with mental health issues.

Something that I learned and thought was really interesting from our conversation was how many different things can cause you to be tired. For example stress, if you are stressed even when you sleep a lot you will not be rested, in fact the stress causes you to be more tired. So physically you are extremely well rested, but emotionally and mentally you could be exhausted. This seemed especially important to me because a lot of adults tell me that I need to sleep more and that’s why I am always so tired. but in reality the amount I stress (and I stress a lot) is just tiring me out.

by Cydney Klass

On Friday January 20th, 2023, our group had the privilage to do a zoom meeting with Ellen Klety.

Ellen Kelty is the Director of Mental Health and Student Safety. She has also worked as a school psychologist for 23 years. In our interview she talked about why she decided to become a school psychologist, and her experience being one, she also told us about some of the the issues she specializes in.

Something that learned from our conversation with her was how many things school psychologists do, she told us that she works with kids, like in classes, she does suicide prevention work, she does counseling, and things like art therapy, and play board games with the kids to make them feel more comfortable. I also thought it was interesting that she told us that the also told us that the hardest part of her job was the secondary trauma, which is when the work she does starts to affect her.

by June Binnard

My social justice organization joined a google meet with Erica Cirino, the Communications Manager of the Plastic Pollution Coalition, on January 20, 2023, at 12:15 p.m. She has spent the last ten years investigating the problem of microplastics, nanoplastics, and microfibers in our society as a science writer, author, and artist. In her most recent book, Thicker Than Water: The Quest for Solutions to the Plastic Crisis, she discusses the problems that plastic poses to various ecosystems, shares personal accounts from the communities that are most adversely affected by pollution worldwide, and outlines effective prevention measures to stop plastic from further harming the environment and its inhabitants.

Erica was a great person to interview, as she had lots of personal experience in the field and was very knowledgeable about our issue. She discussed how microplastics are present in all things, including our food and water, and how when we consume those things, the plastic enters our bodies. This issue has an impact on many marine creatures, including whales, fish, and sea turtles. Erica suggested a few ideas, such as avoiding plastic water bottles and once more purchasing clothing that isn’t made of plastic. Since we will be responsible for solving this issue in the future, she believes it is crucial for young people to be aware of it.

by Graydon Kirchmann

We met with Erica Cirino who is a Communications Manager at the Plastic Pollution Coalition. We learned about microplastics inside of people and how it can affect health. We also learned about the scale of the problem and how there are garbage patches that are multiple miles long. We learned about opportunities to help out and the importance of starting early to help fix the problem before it becomes too large. We learned about how if we start now we can make a change and it is best to start when we are young and make a habit out of using less single use plastics.

by Sydney Hurley

My group interviewed Elizabet Altunkara who is the Director of Education at the National Eating Disorder Association. The NEDA usually helps people who are struggling with eating disorders or body image issues. They also help try to help by educating about the dangers and warning signs of eating disorders.

We thought it would be interesting to get Elizabet’s opinion on our topic and how the media and portrayal of women can affect girls and women who are on the receiving end of posts and ads. We learned more about how Covid caused so much isolation and sudden dependency on media that it created a spike in disordered eating. We talked more about how media usage, especially in young girls, can affect body images and how they view themselves. We learned that eating disorders in women and girls can be caused by beauty and societal standards that are portrayed by the media. This interview helped us understand the impact of the media, and now we can learn more about the cause of the representation.

by Tiffany Palapo

On the 24th, at 2:00 my group and I interviewed Denise Zaraya and Andrew King of Integral Ad Science. Denise was one of the essential people to the start of the organization. Andrew is one of the main people who build on the monitoring technology, updating it whenever a new problem comes up. We met with them on zoom.

I learned from them that having technology to monitor hate speech online would benefit not only consumers but also companies. With monitors available, social media companies don’t need to resort to tactics that would cause people to loose. For example, went Elon Musk recently obtained Twitter, to lessen the spread of bots, he suggested introducing subscriptions to twitter. While this plan would have worked immensely to lessen the amount of bots, it would have deterred many people who don’t have the finances or resources. They also spoke about the importance of monitors for hate speech because of how in recent times, everything has been online based. Most of the population uses social media as a form entertainment and communication, leaving lots of people vulnerable to be exposed towards violence/hate speech.

Denise and Andrew talked about various different things that will benefit my project with the online/advertising portion. They’re perspective has given me ideas of what to research for the advertising and more general online based hate.

by 27gracem

My group interviewed an abortion provider who works in the west village near us. We asked about what it was like to live through the overturning of Roe v. Wade as someone who provides abortions. We also asked about what a day-to-day schedule looks like for her. This was our first interview/fieldwork and it was very informative and helpful.

by 27gunnars

Last Tuesday, my group and I were able to interview the founder of Millions Mom March, Donna Dees. I always believed that the guns used for mass shootings were bought legally almost all the time. While that may be true in some instances Donna told us about a study the U.S. Secret Service did where the found that 76% of school shooters got the gun from home or from relatives. This emphasizes the fact that in order to stop gun violence we need to not only advocate for tighter gun laws but we also have to advocate for safe storage laws. Our interview with Donna has shifted my views on how we can stop gun violence and I’m very glad we were able to interview her.

by Kai Khorasani

Lunch and Lobby to End Gun Violence

by 27gunnars

Today, my group and I were able to go to an online lobby where we were able to call undecided senators about the Assault Weapons Ban. We were given a script to use for the calls and in the script we talked about the recent shooting on Sunday in Monterey Park. We urged the senators to cosponsor the ban since the gun used in the shooting would have been banned if the legislation was passed. I had a great time doing this and I am glad I was able to directly take action for my social justice issue.

by Zoe Sullivan

Last week we interviewed Donna Dees. Donna is an activist agents gun violence. She also organized the Millon Moms March which was a march on Washington in protest of gun violence. She talked to us about gun carry laws and how many children and teachers are losing their lives because of looser gun carry laws. She explained to us about families she has known that lost their children and how that affected them. She also gave us a good field work that we volunteered for next week.

by Marlee Erdreich

On January 19th, my social justice group zoomed with the program director of GLI (Girls Learn International) to learn more about how girls struggle with getting the access to education. Ashely is very devoted to human rights issues and helping out girls who deserve better treatment get the right materials and knowledge they need. GLI focuses in the U.S., but also outside of the country, empower girls to make sure they feel supported.

One thing that I thought was very interesting is that GLI offers sex education to girls who may not have known about it in the first place. This is important because it teaches the students how to make informed decisions and keeps girls safe from abuse that could possibly happen. Another significant factor was how GLI makes sure to prioritize safe living conditions/family problems before doing anything regarding education because it is important to make sure a student has stability before carrying on with other things. They can provide necessities like period products or getting food because that could be something that holds a girl back from attending school in the first place. Interviewing Ashely was very informative and I am so glad that my group had the chance to talk with someone who is very experienced. She taught us that leadership and taking action is very important to gaining justice which I will take with me in later fieldwork.

by Ivy Van Blerkom

On Monday, January 23rd, 2023, my group met with Chris Klein. We talked to Chris about his experience playing youth sports in New York City. He went to a test into public school in Manhattan and played basketball throughout his time there. He played for his school and many club teams throughout the city.

Chris told us about how he has coached different types of things,, including; LREI sports (boys varsity basketball an,d girls volleyball) and a basketball summer camp. He told us about his opinions on the economic diversity in youth sporris told us about how kids can and should play sports with economic diversity and should not just be able to play with kids who can affordograms as they can. We also talked to Chris about how there are youth sports programs that exist in New York City that cost money and some that do not cost any money. He also told us that often in youth sports the quality will increase as the price also increases. This means that some of the more affordable sports programs or free sports programs are not always very high quality.

by 27ajevv

On Friday, January 20, the Nuclear Weapons Group consisting of Ajev, Tyler, Erick, and Ajax interviewed a former missileer Lawrence Bullock. Tasked with being one of the two men who were situated at the launch zone. Armed with a pistol, both of the men had to turn the key at the same time, and once given the go to launch, had the ability to shoot the other missileer if they showed any signs of hesitation.

It turns out that despite general consensus that it was two men only, there was actually a third man behind the other two, armed with a machine gun who he too would shoot anyone if there were any signs of hesitation. Acceptance into the missile silos did not consist of any physically grueling training, but more so research about your back ground and past. Lawrence stated that you could be any citizen, regardless of your size or skin. But the government would track all of your history, all the way back to your childhood and keep a vigilant eye on any forms of a bad moment such as a robbery or time in jail. This would help them decide whether or not you would be loyal and dedicated to the nation to turn the key regardless of your perceptions on whether or not the nuke should be launched.

When soldiers would go in the silos, they wouldn’t leave it for 2 to 3 days. Meaning there would be no sunlight at all. The living quarters were somewhat decent, comprised of a gym, a kitchen, a place to sleep, and a work area. Lawrence went on to say that all of his peers went in the silos in countries in Europe which were situated at strategic geographical locations all across Central Western Europe which would be within striking distance of the Soviet Unions military locations. He said it was hell being there because civilians know you’re there. Lawrence and his peers thought that America was doing these countries a favor by aiding them in the standoff against the USSR, but it turned out that the civilians didn’t want nukes on their soil. Quoting Lawrence, “Once you’ve been in a country for a while; they don’t see you as an ally – They see you as an occupier”.

When asked upon how nuclear weapons modernized overtime, he said the equipment was more agile and had the ability to maneuver more quickly and had the ability to be launched much quicker than air dropped missiles/bombs. Currently, nuclear weapons hold enriched uranium which Lawrence said was “a lot more potent” than the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

Military spending would also alter depending on the presidencies. The Democrats, he said, would “try to undercut the military and take funding away”. He said the Democrats would try to find ways to ensure protection of the nation and the rest of the NATO nations through treaties and peaceful talks. The Republicans had the ideology that since they were the number one military, the only nation that could oppose them (The Soviet Union) military wise would be able to lead the race in terms of military power. Backtracking from military strength, but to technological strength in general, a lot of Americans had thought that the USSR was a bit more advanced than the U.S. due to the Soviets being able to be the first nation to send a man in a full orbit around the planet. The Republicans, especially Reagan, believed that a strong military would benefit the country, and they spent a lot of money to get high tech equipment.

In conclusion, it was hell for both sides, always military standoffs that marred many relations, all for a threat that resulted in nothing. But could it be worth it? Maybe all that military spending was the reason that there was no nuclear escalation, for fear of retaliation from the other side. Maybe no side decided to strike first, because they were scared of the capability of the other superpower. Nuclear weapons still today pose a massive threat to society, but those few men such as Lawrence Bullock have ensured that there has been no nuclear use since over 3/4 of a century ago.

by Ivy Van Blerkom

Last Thursday, January 19th, 2023, my group met with Coach Macky. Coach Macky is the founder of a nonprofit organization called Steady Buckets in downtown New York City. Coach Macky told us about how he founded Steady Buckets. He founded Steady Buckets because he felt there needed to be a free sports program that was high quality. Coach Macky started Steady Buckets after working at various Basketball programs in the city. Steady Buckets was originally located at the Chinatown Y.

Over Covid, Steady Buckets had to switch to be online. Directly before Covid, Steady Buckets reached its peak of participants. Over Covid, Steady Buckets online workouts became very popular as they were available at any point throughout the day and kids who had participated in the in-person version of Steady Buckets, spread the word about the workouts. Coach Macky talked about how proud he was that he never really had to advertise it, it advertised itself. Being a high quality, free basketball program in downtown Manhattan, Coach Macky knew that the fact it was free meant it would get the attention it deserved and that people would find out about the quality if they decided to participate in it.

by Ziva DeMattia

On January 19th, we interviewed Ashely Steimer-King who is the program director of Girls Learn International (GLI). We got to learn about their entire program, and more about what they do to help girls access education. Their organization is important because they make sure girls and their families have stability in their lives, so that the girls are able to attend school. GLI’s mission is to advocate for girls’ education across the U.S. and around the world and to empower and support new generations of people fighting for social change.

I learned so many new details about GLI’s work from Ashley and how they help girls access a safe education. One of things I learned is that if another priority comes up when they are working with families, such as access to food, water, and shelter, GLI will help them access these things before trying to encourage the girls to attend school. I also learned that sometimes a family’s culture or religion can get in the way of the family wanting their daughters to attend school. GLI offers a variety of subjects in their educational programs and some of them are teaching the girls about mental health and sex education, since they usually haven’t been taught about these things. Once they give these girls an education, it not only helps them learn new things and be educated but it also opens up new opportunities for them, and that is one of their goals. GLI is still helping many girls access a safe education, so the girls have more opportunities to choose from throughout their lives.

by Ziva DeMattia

On Wednesday, January 4th our group had an interview with Sarah Symons, the founder of Her Future Coalition (HFC). She is important to our topic because their organization helps girls around the world access a safe education. I learned that HFC is taking action to address this issue by giving girls around the world the opportunity for a safe, equal, education. This is extremely important because in many countries girls cannot access a safe education, let alone any education at all. HFC’s mission is to try and give as many girls the opportunity to experience a safe education in a safe environment.
I learned that some girls choose not to attend or are restricted by their parents because of religious, cultural or other beliefs that limit these girls/their families from wanting them to go to school. One of these restrictions is marriage, because in some cases the parents want their daughter to get married early on instead of going to school. I also learned that if there are other priorities that the family or the girls need before getting an education like shelter, food, and water, then HFC will help them access these things before trying to get the girls involved in their program. I learned that they need to go into these situations with a humble attitude because their intentions are to give the girls an opportunity to go to school. HFC has helped and is still helping so many girls be able to attend a safe school, and learn many different subjects so the girls can have new opportunities in their lives.

by Tiffany Palapo

On Friday the 13th, at 12:30, my group and I had an in-person interview with Kalil Oldham in his office. During our interview with Kalil, my group and I focused on the overall effect of radicalization, the groups that are the most targeted, why they are targeted the most, and myths. Kalil’s position as director of equity and community means that he has gone through studies about topics such as radicalization and extremism. He knows about the mental and conspiracy aspects.

During the interview, my group and I asked Kalil of what group of people are the most recruited/affected by online radicalization and why they are so. He responded that young/teen white males are the most affected. This is so because of the multiple platforms that they are on online, games, and social media, making them easily accessible as a vulnerable person. These are males who don’t feel they belong, in any group or clique, males who feel that nobody is truly listening to them. Then radicalization groups take advantage of this, acting as a source of comfort and understanding, bonding with them through gaming sessions or memes. Kalil also mentioned the irony of this, young white males being the most affected group, because they are the majority, the stereotypical ‘fits in everywhere’ group.

The interview with Kalil helped build on the things we saw online, and gave them more perspective and details. He also recommended us a video to watch and organizations to contact. He also made me and my group aware of the psychological side of all of this, giving us another area of our topic to look into, to be able to have a deeper knowledge for our project.

by Tiffany Palapo

At 12:30 on January 20th, my group mates and I got on a google meeting with Patrick Riccards in Kalil’s office. Patrick is the CEO of an organization called ‘Life After Hate’. LAH is a nonprofit organization that focuses on helping former extremists get rid of their hate and help them to lead a more compassionate life.

Patrick is the first CEO of LAH to not have been a former extremist, so getting his perspective on things was insightful. We spoke to him about a range of things, from how he became interested in his field of work to how social media plays a role in radicalization. One of the many things I learned from him is why it can be challenging for extremists/supremacists to go through the process of healing/becoming a new person. First of all, they’d have to accept that they’re at fault not only to others but also to themselves, the process is really only beneficial if one truly believes that they were horrible and they were not doing the right things. Second, it’s the fear of going back to a normal life, one that is not decided by someone other than themself. Recruited supremacists are essentially in a cult, they’re whole life is dictated by their ‘leader’, their words are manipulated, their actions monitored and their thoughts processed; so going back to a life that is led only by themselves can apparently become really frightening.

I’ve learned many other things from Patrick, things that will definitely benefit me and my group’s project. From talking with Patrick, we’ve also been giving ideas of who to talk to and what to visit, allowing us more opportunities to learn and educate ourselves.

by Zoe Barrett-Kahn

We decided to interview Natalia Petrzela. She is an author, activist, and fitness expert. We heard about her through our teachers and learned about what she does through her book on the pros and cons of the fitness industry, along with the articles she has written about beauty standards and the fitness industry. She has been in the fitness industry for a while and knows all about the unrealistic standards and socioeconomic divide that goes along with it.

We interviewed Natalia about how the fitness industry’s effects on women and girls, and how it can be quite toxic, along with how she thinks this issue has progressed over time. She told us that although she thinks the issue of the fitness industry and it being toxic (ex. Making comments about how women have been “bad” just by eating or forcing women to pay large amounts of money for a class that doesn’t do much) has gotten better over time, but it is still not great. She also referred us to some other people and organizations we could possible volunteer at in the future, which was really useful. We also read her articles, which also gave us some useful information. One of her articles was about the toxicity of an idea of a “beach body” and how it restricts women and has negative effects on their body image and self esteem. Overall, it was a very useful interview and we learned a lot, it will really help us when we put together our teach-in.

by Madison Mize

We spoke with Natalia Petrzela, a professor, writer, and specialist on America’s obsession with fitness. She’s important to our topic because she has experience with the way women are represented in the media. We interviewed her over Zoom and asked her questions about her career.
Natalia wanted to educate us about a number of different ways that women’s representation in the media leads to unhealthy exercising. She explained to us how the fitness business in the 90’s was especially harmful for women and focused entirely on obtaining the beauty standard, not being healthy. Since then, fitness culture has been progressing slowly, although there are still many issues. Although most people consider exercise as a good thing, they are unaware of the significant physical and mental harm it may cause. One of the numerous ways social media may be harmful is when people watch other people exercising in the media and feel bad about how much exercise they do.
Despite the fact that exercise is very beneficial and important, some people exercise for the wrong reasons, such as trying to achieve an unrealistic body type. In order to stay healthy, people need exercise, but the way that women’s bodies are portrayed in the media isn’t always realistic, and it can make women feel as though they need to change how they look. I never thought about exercise being something that can be negative, i’m so grateful that we had the opportunity to interview Natalia.

by Sydney Royce

Last week we had our interview with Elizabet Altunkara, the Director of Education at NEDA. NEDA, the National Eating Disorders Association, is one of the largest nonprofits in the U.S. Their mission is to help any people who suffer with eating disorders, but also educate people on what an eating disorder is and how to prevent one. NEDA has a website with lots of information but they also have a hotline for anyone who is struggling with this, or is curious about eating disorders.

Elizabet said that most people who experience body dissatisfaction feel as though their bodies are flawed. Most people but mainly women, feel that they don’t have their ideal body and this idea usually results to eating disorders. On the website it states, “Over one-half of teenage girls and nearly one-third of teenage boys use unhealthy weight control behaviors such as skipping meals, fasting, smoking cigarettes, vomiting, and taking laxatives.” These symptoms can be different for everyone, but these are the most common ones with eating disorders. A lot of girls and women feel that they need to be thin and beautiful in order to be “desirable” or “accepted.” A lot of boys feel that they need to be thin and muscular so they can feel more masculine.

From both sides, the reason why many people have eating disorders is because of our culture and the pressure to be a certain way. NEDA’s goal is to really teach people to love themselves and learn to accept their bodies. This organization is so amazing and inspiring and I’m so glad NEDA exists. It is such a great help for anyone who is struggling with eating disorders and/or has any questions about it. It was a great opportunity getting to talk with Elizabet.

by Sydney Hurley

Our group interviewed Natalia Petrzela, she is a parent in middle school, a writer, a historian, professor, fitness expert and activist. She has written two books, one about America’s obsession with fitness, and another about modern political culture. She has written several articles in different newspapers, including the Washington Post, the New York Times, CNN, and the Atlantic.

In our interview, she talked about America’s fitness culture and body standards, and how it’s changed throughout the decades. In the 90s it was desired to be super slim, a term that it sometimes referred to as “model skinny”. In the 2000s, it turned more curvy with big boobs and wide hips, but small waist and not much of a stomach, and that gained a lot of popularity with the Kardashians as they were looked up to as body inspo. She mentioned how while taking fitness classes in the past, it was more common for fitness instructors to encourage the women to work out, but not for the sake of them and their health, but instead to “lose last night’s cake”. Instead, we as a society should be focused on helping women become the healthiest and happiest versions of themselves that they can be. It gave us a very interesting new idea of all the things that can affect women’s representation.

As we continue with our topic, this interview helped us a lot with a new perspective on how women’s body trends affect their mental and physical health. This interview was very informational and helpful and we are very grateful for the opportunity to speak with her.

by Nico Rudder

On January 4th 2023 our group met with Sarah Symons to talk about her involvement in HFC and her experiences. Before the interview we researched her and why she decided to found her company. In 2002 Sarah had been working to make songs for tv shows. She had seen a documentary about sex trafficking in Nepal and India, it had influenced her to quit her job and create this foundation.

Throughout the interview Sarah told us about what she has done so far for example going into refugee camps. She also told us about certain people she helped and her views on going into different community with a respectful mindset. Her company goes into different community and set up an education system which can give girl access to education. In the beginning they set up workshops so that the girls could make jewelry and other things that could provide them with income and skills. They started offering education later after realizing that it could make the women more successful and it would be more productive.

by Marlee Erdreich

On January 4th, my social justice group sat down and had the opportunity to talk to Sarah Symons about how she engages with girls who may not be able to attend schools. She founded HFC with her husband in 2005 and is devoted to make a difference in places like Nepal and India in order to make sure everyone has a fair chance at learning.

Sarah Symons has traveled outside the country to help girls on sides of railways, involved in domestic problems, and other hardships that make it difficult for girls to go to school. She has also provided shelters for kids who may not have a place to sleep.

by Juliet Sandler

On January fourth my group sat down with Sarah Symmons about her involvement in HFC. She talked to us about how she quit her job in the early 2000s to dedicate her time to starting a girls education rights group.

HFC stands for Her Future Coalition. Since 2005 Her Future has been creating powerful and positive change in the lives of survivors of gender violence and girls at the highest risk.

She shared some of her personal stories, how her mindset has changed, and HFC’s various volunteers programs.

by Cyrus Fawkes

On Thursday, February 24, our group met with Ayn Riggs, the founder and CEO of Slave Free Chocolate, a company that helps bring awareness to how child labor is used in the chocolate industry. This brand was founded in 2007 by Ayn Riggs, Paige Hahn, and Bridget El Khayati. The company has grown a lot since day one as it was originally planned to be a brand that’s only job was to spread the word but since then they have led campaigns and speaking engagements while also helping other similar companies with their own work.

During our talk with Ayn we learned a lot more about her work and against companies that implement child labor and enslaved working in their chocolate making. Some major companies that use these services include Nestle, Hershey, Mars and Cargill. These companies find loopholes in the laws to make use of these inhumane practices. These companies don’t outright encourage child labor but their process of checking their company to see if it is being used is subpar. Although these are some companies are one side of the spectrum, on the other hand some companies are working hard to combat this, like Tony Chocoloney. Or so we thought…

The most interesting part of the interview was when we started discussing Tony Chocolonely. We had heard from other sources that this company was doing a lot to help our cause and that we should consider interviewing one of their representatives so we were surprised when Ayn Riggs told us about how they weren’t who they seemed. Tony Chocoloney was apparently using child labor and enslaved labor behind the scenes. Their chocolate was also from another chocolate company, Barry Callebaut, who is known for treating their workers poorly. How did they get away with this? On their label it tells you that they are working towards 100% slave free chocolate and that they are not their just yet. Lots of people overlook this small detail and that’s why it is easy to miss. All in all, I learned a lot in this interview with Ayn, including how you shouldn’t always believe everything you hear.

by Dakota

On 12/19, my social justice group went to help out at an organization called Dress For Success. They are a non-profit organization and located in the midtown area and they give clothes to women who need them for work. They are located in an office space so they are available by referral only. If women…

Page 2 of 2

« 1 2

Interview with Donna Dees

Interview with Beth Sousa, Senior Policy and Strategy Advisor at Planned Parenthood

Interview with Ana Oliveria, CEO of New York Women’s Foundation

Meeting with former D1 Soccer player Carly Wetzel

The Teenage Perspective

Learning About Local Climate Activism With Keanu Arpels-Josiah