For my final SAMO, I went to the Northbrook Public Library to watch a film titled “American Creed.” The film centers around Condoleezza Rice and David Kennedy who, together, have traveled around the country compiling the stories of Americans from all backgrounds. Rice and her family grew up in segregated Birmingham, Alabama where the only way to fight Jim Crow was to get an education. … Continue reading Does It Matter Where We Come From?
Over the past few weeks, I’ve been Pete Earley’s book Crazy: A Father’s Search Through America’s Mental Health Madness which highlights the treatment that the mentally ill face when they are arrested during psychotic and manic episodes. The book discusses many problems that prisoners with mental illness face but one of the most influential aspects to the maltreatment of these inmates is the horrid conditions … Continue reading Something Doesn’t Quite Add Up
8.4 million is a larger amount of people than the individual populations of 37 states in America, just shy of the population of Israel, over 24 times larger than the population of Iceland, and 35 times the amount of miles from earth to the moon. 8.4 million also represents the number of adults in America that have both a substance abuse disorder and a mental … Continue reading Mental Illness is a Gateway Drug
Merriam-Webster defines the word “citizen” as “A native or naturalized person who owes allegiance to a government and is entitled to protection from it.” The Cambridge English Dictionary defines the word “citizen” as “A person who was born in a particular country and has certain rights or has been given certain rights because of having lived there.” The word “citizen” isn’t found until page six … Continue reading Dictionary Definitions Just Don’t Cut It Anymore
On Tuesday, March 12, 2019, Cara Niswonger (a fellow CST’er) and I visited the Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation in Evanston, IL. On this fine night, Tony Michaels was going to give a presentation titled “African Americans and Jews: Parallels and Divergences” from 7:30-9 pm. After hitting the local McDonald’s, Cara and I parked on a side street near the congregation. As I sat in the passenger … Continue reading Where Should My Wallet Go?
Normally when I see the words “convicted murderer” I would run for the hills, but after reading Shaka Senghor’s memoir “Writing My Wrongs,” I began to question whether this man was born evil or was molded by his environment into an evil person. I took this wonder of mine and ran with it and with the research that I had done, I knew that I … Continue reading Born Behind Bars
One Sunday morning, Paula DiBenedetto, Jack Joselit and I decided to take a trip to fulfill our duties as CST’ers. Paula, Jack and I were lucky enough to be given the opportunity to tour the Ronald McDonald House just blocks away from Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago. Here at GBN, we are all a part of the Burger Day Club which organizes an event in … Continue reading No Burgers Here
When solving a rubix cube, one can notice that there is no one “right” way to solve the puzzle. Not everyone shifts the top level the same amount of times to the right or the middle column up and down the same amount of times. Additionally, not everyone starts to solve a rubix cube with the same figuration, just as not everyone starts at … Continue reading How Easily Can You Solve Your Rubix Cube?
Why You Think You’re Right — Even When You’re Wrong I had mistakenly created a world I need to let go of I need a new awareness I need new beliefs I need new questions There is no reward for being confused But if we make the contrary invisible We will never change We can keep being our own enemies And focus on … Continue reading Understanding Perspective Is Knowledge
When I first stepped into the Museum of Contemporary Art, my first thought was, “Oh this looks different.” Throughout my almost 18 years on the planet, I have been to countless museums in different cities and countries but they all tend to have the same characteristics: dark, wooded, and old-fashioned. I walked through the doors to the MCA and found myself surrounded by sheer whiteness … Continue reading SAMO Trip To The MC(Ayyyyye)!!!!!!
Margaret's Momentos 