The Drum
April
2004
The Drum
April
2004
Office of Multicultural
Affairs/International Student Services
Editors: Chris Wilson and Andrea Hodges
Bryant
K. Smith, Director ¿
Pej Clark, Secretary
¿Lower
Level – Richards Treat University Center 1184 W. Main. St.
Decatur, IL 62522¿
(217) 362-6411
Return to THE DRUM Index of Issues
Capital Punishment: Pro or Con?
By Marcus Winston
Aaron Patterson is definitely in the con category capital punishment and
his story is converting death penalty supporters into opponents every day. I had
the opportunity to hear his narrative when Patterson spoke at Millikin
University Tuesday March 31, 2004. He
spoke of his life as a misguided youth, his seven-teen years of incarceration,
and his eventual release of from prison. Like all too many young black males in
American society Aaron Patterson was sucked into a “street” life, defined by
gang violence. He headed an
infamous “gang” on the south side of Chicago.
Patterson’s disreputable image made him a prime target of law
enforcement officers and higher authorities.
Police from Cook County police station apprehended Aaron for questioning
on suspension of a vicious murder. Once he arrived at the station officers
ordered Patterson to sign a typed confession and when he refused he was forced
to endure 24 hours of rigorous torture.
During the presentation Patterson described the torture tactics inflicted
on him that were so hideous I would not wish them on my worse of enemies. Cook
County Police Department was suspected of torturing sixty-six individuals, all
of which are “black”. Patterson
was forced to confess to the crime he did not commit and consequently served
seventeen years in prison on death row. Once
incarcerated he did not accept a seemingly emendable execution, Aaron Patterson
declared his innocence and with the help of Professor Protest, of Northwestern,
he fought for his release from confinement. Patterson was finally pardoned by
Governor George Ryan, making him a part of what has been dubbed the "Death
Row Ten," a group of ten men that were sentenced to death row due to
confessions and testimony derived by torture, as sited on
. Though
this case may seem peculiar it is hardly abnormal. Which is why many people feel
the judicial system is "broken", "arbitrary and capricious,"
and "racist", as stated by Governor Ryan. Patterson’s near death
encounter, along with carefully gathered data, helped expose some of the flaws
that exist in the system of capital punishment: racism, the arbitrariness, the
financial burden it places on our nation, and the United States image under the
international eye.
Accompanying
Aaron Patterson on his trip to Millikin was Jane Bowland of the Illinois
Coalition Against The Death Penalty (ICADP).
She reported that a murder suspect whose victim was white is three times
more likely to receive the death penalty than if their victim was black.
If the murder occurred in a rural area then the suspect was five times
more likely to receive the death penalty then if it occurred in an urban area.
Also, Illinois alone has spent $800 million to put twelve men to death
since the reinstatement of capital punishment, money that the victim’s family
does not see a dime of. Seventeen
men have been pardoned in the state of Illinois since the reinstatement of
the death penalty, meaning more men have been pardoned from the death
penalty than actually executed in Illinois, costing the state millions in funds
paid to appease those wrongfully persecuted.
The final point is about U.S. progress in comparison to other nations.
One hundred countries have abolished the death penalty and while America
holds itself as a leader in human rights it continues to practice the inhumane
act of capital punishment in it’s judicial system.
Aaron Patterson and his associates provided our campus with a great deal
of vital information on our defective judicial system, information that will
allow society to make educated decisions on their position on capital
punishment. I have always been opposed to the death penalty, so all Mr.
Patterson’s presentation did for me was strengthen my stance on the issue.
I cannot stand for a system where a person’s race and place of
residence has any influence on the penalty he/she receives.
Over sixty-six million dollars is spent on average to execute one man in
the state of Illinois. It cost just
over twenty-five thousand dollar to attend Millikin University for a year. What type of message is this sending? Does our society place a higher value on revenge than
education? This is unacceptable.
I know where I stand on the issue of Capital Punishment, do you?
With
all of the hype over Janet’s Breast, same sex marriage, and weapons of mass
destruction it is easy for college students to get so distracted by the drama in
the media that we forget about the day to day drama that comes with obtaining
some higher learning. Recently I determined that for some unknown reason college
students are struggling with how to address each other in common face-to-face
discourse.
Last week I was asked to mediate a disagreement between two
students. The student who requested my assistance did so over email. He thought
email was the best means of contacting me and found it easier to email me than
to speak with the person he had an issue with. On the surface this seems like a
non-issue, however when one examines the situation a little closer one can see
that the underlying principle at work here is fear. The student was afraid to
share his opinion with his peer. He did not know how to do so – he was unsure
of how his opinion would be received. In essence he was afraid of what the
repercussions would be for him engaging his classmate in an intellectual
discussion about the appropriateness of some language he had used during a
campus event.
This is just one of the many instances I have witnessed
whereby college students opt out of challenging each other to live up to
accepted norms and standards of a college community. My fear is that if college
students cannot and do not possess the ability to talk issues over in the
pristine environment of a college campus, how and when will they ever learn this
skill? The only way to improve any skill is to practice it. At the rate we are
going most of our students will graduate experts in keyboard politics, but
amateurs in basic conversation.
Bryant K. Smith
Reflections on Incarceration (Doing time in my mind)
By Andrea Jones
Andrea
L. Jones is currently participating in the Washington Semester Program at
American University in Washington, DC. She is enrolled in the justice seminar
with an emphasis in law enforcement. She is a 3rd year political science major.
I
can’t begin to describe what I have seen. What I have felt. I’ve been a few
shady places in my life. Seen some shady things, but nothing could prepare me
for this. All week they’ve been preparing us for the taunts and what we will
encounter.
We started off small. We went to
criminal court, and saw people being brought out of lock up for trial. We went
to a private and a state jail (there’s a difference between a prison and a
jail!) where we mostly got weird looks from people who would be out in a year or
so. But nothing could compare to Jessup, Maryland. First of all, it looks like
one of those towns you see in prison movies. And the only thing in this town is prison.
A women’s prison, a prison for the criminally insane, a boot camp for
prisoners, and the Maryland Department of Corrections Prison for men. Scared out
of my mind, scared out of my mind. Boot camp was alright. Just guys, sitting in
class learning algebra. Doing drills. Nothing big. Just like jail. I can do
this. But up the road, is this fortress; also known as the Maryland DOC…it’s
a fortress. As we were getting ready to leave the woman who was giving us
our tour at the boot camp was all too happy to scare the living sh*t out of us.
“Y’all going up there? I didn’t want to work up there. I couldn’t do
it. People getting stabbed everyday, and some of the stuff you see, I just
couldn’t do it. You’ll see the difference when you get there, you will. I
promise you. You come back and tell me how it was.” What the hell? Are we
going to a haunted house or a prison? Scared out of my minnnnnnnnd.
So we get there,
and I’m trying not to be afraid. These are people, not just prisoners. They
can’t hurt you. Well, they could… but they won’t. And Jamie, my girl,
keeps saying, “Don’t be scurred.”
I say, “I ain’t scurred. You scurred?” Yeah. Hell yeah. This place looks
like Shawshank Redemption. The gate shuts behind us, and now we are within the
prison complex. The first thing I notice was all the fences lined with razor
wire. Tons of wire. At least three gates that I can remember. Our tour guide is
an officer. He’s been working there for twenty some odd years. Blah blah. (Why
do they always sound like they are from the south?) We get our ids, and they sit
us in this little waiting room. Rule number one: Boys have armbands, if they
lose their armbands, they will have to count the entire prison before we can
leave. Rule number two: do not provoke the inmates; they are not animals in a
cage. Someone asks, “Have there been any stabbings?” Officer answers yes,
last week. “Did anyone die?” Yes, two weeks ago, but that was the first time
in a while that some one has died. Oh dear God help me. So we get up, and walk
through the passageway that’s outside to the main prison. And let me tell you,
when those gates clank behind you, and you feel the cold air, and all you can
see is barbed wire and bars, it’s a whole new experience. You are locked away
from the rest of the world. It’s a scary feeling, but at least in about two
hours I would get to leave. First, he takes us to what would be called in prison
movies as “the hole”. He tells us they don’t use those cells for
punishment because it is against the law, but I bet he’s lying. It’s
freezing down there. All cement and metal, and they would throw you down with no
clothes?! Dear Lord.
We move towards the stairs and
ascend up into the main prison. I’m shaking and we’re walking in a line, and
I’m telling my self not to look scared. They’ll know I’m scared and
they’ll get me. Whatever, Andrea. When we go up the stairs there are
men waiting to be processed. It’s their very first day of prison. I feel so
sad for them. They look so lost and dreading. So many black men. So, so, so, so,
so many black men. I mean, we read about how “over 45% of men incarcerated are
African-American” and all, but you would have thought it was 97%
African-American. Anyone Latino and especially white, immediately sticks out. We
go to the hospital ward first. The men there aren’t chained. “WHY ARENT THEY
CHAINED?” my brain screams. Because I’m on their turf, that’s why.
Oh, and did I mention I’m the only black female in this whole group? And since
it looks like everyone in this place is black…let the catcalls begin. I
didn’t mind all the comments at first, in fact, I actually said hello when
people were polite enough to speak… in a friendly, semi non-threatening
manner. I then I saw this kid, (no, for real- he looked all of seventeen), and
he goes “Hey ma…hey.” Only, I didn’t really hear him until I passed, so
I don’t say hello back. He looks so young. He looks like a baby. My heart
hurts for him. I wanted to go back and hug him. But you can’t do those sorts
of things. We move around the prisons, we see the “geriatric ward”. The men
there are so complacent. Their cells aren’t even locked. Besides a brief
encounter with inmates scaring the shit out of some of the guys. Nothing too
much. They take us to the library and there are three inmates that are allowed
to talk to us. And this is where I really begin to understand prison. Well at
least as much of it as one can possibly understand in one day.
There are three men. I only
remember one of their names, so I’ll make up the other two. The first one,
let’s call him “C” because he reminds me of my ex-boyfriend. C is kind of
pudgy, light skinned black male. He
goes to work, watches sports, goes to bed. Every freaking day. This is so my
ex-boyfriend, and that’s kind of scary. He’s from Prince George
County in Maryland, is currently serving a life sentence, and has been in prison
since he was 17. He is now in his thirties. He had never previously been in
trouble, and when probed, he claims that his crime was a self- defense issue.
Also, he explains to us that his interrogation broke him down. He said that any
seventeen year- old kid would break down after being questioned for ten hours.
After the tenth hour, he broke down and let the cops fill in the blanks about
his story and what happened. He got a family lawyer who was not experienced in
criminal cases. Now he’s in there for life. LIFE. He’s trying to get
out by saving every dime he makes working to get a better lawyer. He tells us
its what motivates him. Oh, and he makes like a dollar a day. “E” is a dark
skinned black male in his late thirties. He’s already been in prison for
twenty years with five left to go. E’s lawyer was also inexperienced in
criminal cases. He [E] says he drove his cousin to an apartment building and his
cousin killed some people. He didn’t think he’d be in as much trouble
because he didn’t even get out of the car. He
was offered an original sentence of 10-15 if he would testify against his
cousin. He wouldn’t and he was originally sentenced to 40-60, the same as the
actual offender. A little work, and a lot of prayer got it down to 20-25. And
finally, there is Darryl. I remember his name because he was the most articulate
and frustrated young man there. Darryl has been in prison since he was fifteen.
He’ll get out somewhere shy of
when he dies, since he’s in for LIFE. His eyes were so piercing. I could
barely look at him because I felt like he was looking through me. He really
didn’t want to talk about his crimes. For the next hour we just bantered back
in forth with questions. I asked what keeps them sane, being locked up so long.
E said he had a strong will, C said he thinks about his appeal, Darryl didn’t
get to answer my question because he was cut off by another question. We asked
them about AIDS in prison. They didn’t even know how high the percentage was
for AIDS. Why don’t they [prison administrators] tell them these things?
It was so
depressing to see them in there. Darryl was fifteen when he went in, and has
pretty much raised himself. He told us how he refused to let prison culture make
him a man. How he was going to do it himself. How he kept out of the way. How
these brothers in here need to be reading books and working on their appeals. I
kept thinking, “All that motivation and determination wasted. Wasted.” How
there must be so many other men like them in prison, wasting away?
I learned so much from these
men. Most importantly, I learned that a few stupid mistakes could cost you your
freedom. I asked E what he thought about the system being so slanted towards
African-American males. He said it was because many of them live in the ghetto,
and the ghetto traps people. “But… how did you get here? Weren’t you from
a middle class family?” He told me he made a really stupid mistake. That he
was on the same path that I’m on right now, and he made a stupid mistake. All
of them pretty much echoed this stupid mistake claim. Honestly though, that’s
all really is all it takes, few stupid mistakes can change anyone’s life. We
talked about their release. Both Darryl and E feel they have served enough time.
That they should be let go, and that even the families of the victims should see
that, but I thought, “How long is long enough when you are responsible for
another person’s death?” My cousin Corey was once involved in a gang but
decided to leave that lifestyle- I think he had to be beat out or something.
Still, his past followed him and two years later, he was shot and killed in a
retaliation drive by. How long would I want to see Cory’s murders in prison?
Forever. Nothing is long enough,
unless some arbitrary amount of time would bring Cory back. I bet most families
of the victims feel that way.
When
the prisoners left, the officer informed us that together those three inmates
were responsible for 8 murders. One shooting that killed two, one that killed
five, and one intoxicated individual beat a 78 year-old grandmother to death.
(I’m guessing the last crime mentioned is Darryl’s.) Here in lies the
conflict. All of these men are clearly reformed. They are articulate,
intelligent, and very well behaved. In fact, if you met them on the street, you
would never know they are responsible for someone’s death. However, just
because they have changed, does that mean the punishment should cease? It’s
frustrating to see all these men, especially all these black men in
prison wasting away. What happens is they either stay there for life, come out
and recidivate because they have gained no new skills (the inmates told us how
there are virtually no programs in the prison to aid those who will be leaving),
or they go back to a community that is stretched too thin to properly absorb
them, and to a society that labels them an outcast. It is frustrating. I had
this overwhelming sense of urgency to DO something about this! But I don’t
know what I can do or where to even start.
As we descended
the stairs to leave prison, that same group of men that we saw when we came in
was still standing there, waiting for cell space. I half wanted to wish them
luck, but for some reason that seemed weird. Luck for what? Maybe they deserve
to be there, so good luck with your rehabilitation and punishment. Maybe they
don’t deserve to be there, so good luck getting out. Either way, good luck in
surviving with your mind intact. Those three men we met were exceptional, as I
am sure that man men fall victim to the prison lifestyle. They LIKE prison, and
they get so accustomed to it that it is okay for them to be there. Strange, but
I suppose it’s a coping mechanism. You’ve got to make it somehow, or
you’ll go crazy in there.
As we finally
left the main building and the doors clanged shut behind us, I kept saying in my
head “I’m free!!” I almost felt bad for seeing those men, because I was
leaving, and they had to stay. We checked out (all bracelets turned in), and we
left prison, and Jessup, Maryland altogether. But prison has yet to leave me. I
doubt it ever will.
International Night
April 17, 2004
6pm Lower RTUC
Food and Entertainment from Around the World!
Call 217-362-6411 for ticket information.
The latest endorsements by Hip-Hop artists
are not only sneakers or carbonated drinks, but also an election that will
hopefully receive support from youth to vote. The 2004 Democratic political
candidates are using well-known hip-hop artists and their songs to reel in teen
votes. Some have used
OutKast’s lyrics “Shake it like a Polaroid picture” as a new slogan
equivalent to “Rock the Vote”. Al
Sharpton, 2004 candidate, celebrated his last birthday with two of hip-hop’s
largest stars: P. Diddy and Jay-Z. The
party was also hosted by Russell Simmons, the godfather of hip- hop, as stated
by Tatsha Robertson of the Globe Staff. "I am convinced the swing vote of
2004 is the hip-hop generation," Sharpton said during a recent interview
with Robertson.
Several
hip-hop summits have been done nationally to encourage the hip-hop generation to
vote. “38 percent of college students identify themselves as Independent
(uncommitted to any party), 31 percent as Republican, and 27 percent as
Democrat. The students said they would take part in politics if they were
asked”, Robertson stated that a survey by Harvard University's Institute of
Politics said.
The
Hip-Hop Summit Action Network (HSAN), as set up by Russell Simmons, boss of Def
Jam Records, has a goal to signing up two million hip-hop generation voters
before the election. The HSAN was
founded in 2001 with the intentions of “harnessing the cultural relevance of
hip hop music to serve as a catalyst for education advocacy and other societal
concerns fundamental to the well being of at risk youth through out the U.S.” In 2002 Ras Baraka, a candidate for an at-large position on
the Newark City Council who was against police brutality, said Simmons' HSAN
contributed $1,000 to his campaign, however he told a Washington Post writer
that he wished that Simmons’ had thrown a fundraiser instead.
Only
3 years in and 1.5 million voters have been registered, including 8,000 in
Chicago. At programs like the
Collegiate Coalition and the Youth Council, panels of artists and executives
include rappers Ludacris, Kanye West, Damon Dash, and Common who answer
questions that promote and educate adolescents about the importance of getting
involved in the political process. With
the help of HSAN it may be possible that one day a leader from the hip-hop
generation could become president. A
hip-hop candidate might even seek to be elected into office on the local, state,
and federal level, in the near future.
Pictures top to bottom: Sean “P. Diddy” Combs,
recording artist,, Kevin Powell, Hip-Hop Activist, Russell Simmons,
philanthropist and co- founder of Def Jam Records, and Kanye West, recording
artist
As
a young boy it was very hard to find a toy that looked like me. If I recall
there were only two toys that I could definitely associate with being definite
minorities: The Planeteers (of Captain Planet fame), Roadblock (from GI Joe),
Winston (of the Ghostbusters) and Panthro (who while a panther – his
personality was unquestionably a black man). While it is possible I am
forgetting a few in between, a toy that looked like me was almost entirely
non-existent. So imagine my surprise when I discovered the toy line “Homies.”
You’ve most likely seen the “Homies” toy line in vending machines at your
local supermarket or favorite eatery. “Homies” are unique in that they began
as the manifestation of creator David Gonzales’s boredom with class work.
“The Homies” first started out as an underground strip called the “ The
Adventures of Chico Loco,” later renamed “The Adventures of Hollywood.”
Gonzales confesses in an interview taken from the toys’ official website: “I
drew it as a senior in high school when I was supposed to be taking notes.”
From these humble beginnings “The Homies” evolved from doodles in the
margins to a monthly cartoon series in Lowrider Magazine to collectible two-inch
figures that have become a dominant force in the toy industry.
Despite Gonzales’s best intentions, his creation has been met with
intense scrutiny of the very thing which makes the “Homies” such an original
toy patterned after neighborhood friends and himself. “The Homies” are a
line of figurines of Mexican-Americans dressed in: baggy pants, tattoos, and
bandannas. Accompanying the diverse array of personalities are distinct and
individual backgrounds that are tailor made for each character. While the
“Homies” have been a source of entertainment, they have also been a source
of ridicule by anti-gang advocacy groups who feel the toys are an endorsement of
gang behavior, resulting in the banning of “Homies” by the Los Angeles
Police Department. Gonzales’s response to this opinion: “That was a single
incident … a certain popular website keeps it alive against my wishes and my
request to remove it … in all fairness to the LAPD, they made those statements
before the website was built and the true story of the Homies was told.”
Whether abhorred or adored by the Latino community, or society as a whole
David Gonzales’s “Homies” have left a definite impression. One of
Gonzales’s biggest hopes for his “Homies” is that: “Hopefully our
society learns to become more tolerant of the cultures and lifestyles of other
religions, races, and languages and age groups. We are all God’s children and
have to share this world he gave us without killing and hating each other
because of our differences.”
For more information, or if
you are interested in purchasing “Homies” toys visit the official website
at: www.homies.tv
For Your Mind - Pt.2: Who is Tookie?
By Andrea Denise Hodges
When a Death Row inmate is
nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, does it insult his victims...or does it
prove that people do change?
Stanley "Tookie” Williams is a convicted murderer on Death Row
nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in addition to the Nobel Prize for
Literature for his children’s books. How? In the spring of 1971, a 16
year-old Tookie resided in the crime stricken South Central Los Angeles. At this
time, many minor gangs roamed loosely about the streets, terrorizing
neighborhoods and individuals alike. Being raised in such an environment, Tookie,
and a friend, Raymond Lee Washington, joined each other to create a
“super-gang” that would protect their families and neighborhoods: the Crips.
However, this endeavor to create justice and security where the
government had failed quickly turned sour, and by the late 70's, the Crips
spread to other parts of the state. In 1979, a rival gang member murdered
Raymond, and Tookie was charged with the murder of four people. He was convicted
in 1981 and placed on Death Row.
In 1987, Tookie was placed in solitary confinement for what would last 6
½ years. During this time, he was forced to realize the pain he helped to
create with the birth of the Crips Legacy, which now spans over 42 states and
two continents. What are referred to as copycat gangs, exist in both South
Africa and Switzerland. In 1993, Tookie began dedicating his life to invoke
peace where he believes gang influence has and may potentially interrupt the
lives of children. His first venture, Tookie Speaks Out Against Gang
Violence, is a series of books geared toward the elementary level, while Life
in Prison strips life down to its base reality on Death Row, for middle and
high school students. * In 2001, Mr. Fehr, of the Swiss Parliament, nominated
Williams for the Nobel Peace Prize. According to the November 2000 electronic
issue of The Christian Science Monitor, Fehr’s intent was to honor
Williams, as well as call attention to the injustice of the death penalty.
"This will help push the death-penalty debate to a higher level," says
Fehr from Zurich.
Read
about Tookie’s Internet Project for Street Peace, his letters to incarcerated
youth and more at www.tookie.com
*Also,
check out Redemption, a movie about Stanley “Tookie” Williams’
journey on April 11, 7 PM Central, on FX. Starring Jamie Foxx as Tookie
Black
people on TV! I find myself at times either loving or hating it – but no
matter what, I can’t avoid it. And I am forced to deal with the repercussion
of the misappropriation of my image. Please, do not be mistaken and assume that
I hate the image of blacks on television. No, I love it and count myself
fortunate for living in an era where I see an abundance of Black, Brown, Yellow,
and Red images on television. What I cannot stand is the superficial caricatures
of what is believed to be the everyday life of minorities in America.
It is this blatant manipulation of the minority image by the media that
is at the heart of my anger. Take the network BET for example. This is
supposedly a network that is centered on the positive depiction of
African-Americans. Its purpose is to uplift the faulty image of
African-Americans. When it comes to the depictions of blacks as well as other
minorities, the mainstream press more often than not relies on the crutch of
stereotypes as opposed to an accurate portrayal. If you have ever seen an
episode of College Hill then you know what I am talking about. It is
disheartening to see such a limited view of the many complexities of minority
individuals and minority communities. Minorities, be they black, brown, red, or
yellow, are all made victims of cultural stereotypes.
When you really look at television
it is a glossed over view of the world, where there are definite heroes and
villains. There is little room for discernment of behaviors -- a person is
either good or bad. Most often these labels are dead centered on race – a
person always expects the antagonist to be either black or some other minority,
while the hero is generally accepted to be a person who is white. This is
something that we see daily in the media, whether a reality show, a sitcom, or a
drama.
Perhaps the area where it is most
pronounced is the big screen, where you can always bet on the villain, or at
least an evil character, being a person of color. I guess what it all boils down
to is the fact that when you are unable to control your own image you are
subject to the identity that is assigned to you by society. It is disgusting
that the only network that is centered around the voice of a minority
perpetuates its own stereotypes. Black Entertainment Television (BET) should be
simply called what it is: Black Embarrassing Television. (To borrow a term used
by the Internet group YAAAMS at www.yaaams.org)
There is no excuse for a network with such potential to uplift and inspire to
simply exist – inert with no forward movement, no progression. No growth.
Instead BET panders to the century old view that “This is black people.” No,
it is not, and I find it unacceptable that the entire only thing we consider
valuable about ourselves is the ability to sing and dance *(Could it be we
have created our own new millennium minstrel show?).
Yet, I do not limit my anger
solely at BET, but to the people who perpetuate its limited view. Us. You. Me.
As a nation we have slumped into apathy, and become fat on our own inflated
images of self. We have settled. We settle for the simple snapshots, as opposed
to a bigger picture of the many complexities of a cultural or ethnic group.
While BET is the more pronounced – because it is a network dedicated solely
for a minority group -- this behavior can be seen on all cable and network
television from HBO’s series The Sopranos to Fox’s Playing it
Straight – all of which lean heavily to cultural stereotypes. And we
accept them. Why? Because it is considered entertaining – that’s why. Well,
entertainment comes at a cost. Its price is a person’s self-worth. If the only
image you see of yourself is that of a criminal or clown then you begin to feel
that is all you are. Whether we want to admit it or not – society is shaped by
public perception. You are convicted not in the courtroom, but in the public
eye. We are entrenched in a world
of mass media, and its influences are far and wide. What is taken in as the
people who it targeted to serve digest entertainment as fact? It is not questioned or challenged. Instead it does a
disservice and I think it is time we all recognize it.
Just a thought …
*See the Director Spike Lee’s film Bamboozled
for reference
You Know What I’m Sayin’
By Andrea Denise Hodges
Over the break, I spoke with one of my best friends from home. She was
excited because she had just gotten the internship she was dying to have, some
of the events she was planning with her organizations we pulling together
nicely, and her finances were…acceptable. However, though she was loving all
of these new and wonderful things that were happening in her life, she also was
anxious about having being consumed with work, meetings, responsibility…could
she handle it? Not only that, but
did she deserve to be so content with her life at the moment? I laughed.
Girl, stop. Knowing this person as well as I do, I have complete faith in
her ability to handle any situation. Maybe I am a little biased--but quite
honestly, I just KNOW this is true.
The fact of the matter is, we deserve to be wherever we are- dealing with
whatever situation we are dealing with. Why? Because our actions have gotten us
to that point. In the past, each of us has been challenged enough, confronted
with enough difficult issues, that we have gained knowledge to help us handle even
more challenging situations that we may find ourselves in today. You deserve
to be an RA, a star quarterback, or a LV scholar. You deserve your Millikin education. In each of these
positions, thousands of lessons are learned that will prepare you for the
obstacles that are waiting for you in the shadows.
With
the closing of this semester, many of us are getting closer to our dreams;
moving higher towards the goals we have set for ourselves. For some of us that
degree Jimmy is so proud of will be in the palm of your hand. For some of
us it is an internship, a job, a vacation, and even a place within
ourselves where we feel at peace with who we are. All of us have different
aspirations, and have taken different paths to attain them. Don't worry about
whether or not you will be able to "handle" the changes. Just use your
life experiences to ease the process.
Are
You Interested in Writing for The Drum?
We
are currently seeking: Writers, Proofreaders, Sports Columnist, Layout, and
Photographer
Willing
to train writers!