Why Sandy Hook?

         The horrible tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut, with 20 children and six adults dead this past Friday, seemed to come up numerous times at my family dinner. Why? Think about how the media presents and sensationalizes these killers.  But the real "Why?" that my family members asked was: why would anyone do this in the first place? The thought of suicide is devastating to begin with, but why kill all these other innocent people too - in this case, innocent, young, totally helpless children? My brother was talking about people who feel they are outcasts, never got along socially, "If you are going to go out (kill yourself), you want to go out and be remembered. They know they'll never be remembered any other way." Sadly, according to the American Society of Suicidology, "in 2005, 32, 637 people completed suicide. Of these, 4,212 were completed by people between the ages of 15 and 24." Do we hear about all of these deaths? No. The ones we do remember are the shootings in which the killer "went out with a name." 

         In years to come, what will we remember about the Sandy Hook shooting? We'll remember Adam Lanza - he got his notoriety - the attention he never had.  We won't remember the victims and their names. In fact, isn't it ironic that I'm blogging about him right now? My mom brought up the school shooting that happened in the Hubbard Woods School in the 1980s. The first name was Laurie Dann, the shooter. It was not how many people were wounded or shot, but the actual killer. I think this says a lot about how our media portrays these devastating events. But, how else would they? Adam Lanza will never be just be another young man who committed suicide, but his name will signify a historic event in history that may be remembered for generations.

Rising Temperatures in the Ski Slopes

A ski resort in Colorado that closed early last spring
because of the melting snow and warm weather.

"Under certain warming forecasts, more than half of the 103 ski resorts in the Northeast will not be able to maintain a 100-day season by 2039, according to a study to be published next year by Daniel Scott, director of the interdisciplinary Center on Climate Change at the University of Waterloo in Ontario." 
-New York Times   
        Last year my family opted out of our normal New Year's plan of skiing in Vail, Colorado to visit the sunny beaches of the Dominican Republic. Why? We asked ourselves: will there be enough snow? is the base too thin? will it ruin our skis? And again this year the weather has not quite given us skiers a good winter so far. After many resorts opened in November due to snowfall, they have now been having trouble because of the unusually warm weather. Currently my winter break destination, Vail, has 44 of 193 trails open and the base depth is 18 inches! Now to put it in perspective, 18 or more inches is sometimes known as the "average base depth" for compacted snow; people say that about 36 inches on a groomed run is good and over 60 inches on anything would obviously be the best. Just thinking about last year has been worrying skiers for this coming year. Last year was "the fourth-warmest winter on record since 1896, forcing half the nation's ski areas to open late and almost half to close early." This has also majorly hurt the ski and snowboarding industry; it is estimated that the industry as a whole lost over a billion dollars due to climate change. Analysts have projected that resorts at lower elevation levels will eventually vanish.
         In New England, by 2039, about half of the ski resorts will be gone. It is also crazy to read that my frequent ski spots in the Rockies are also pretty spotty: "average winter temperatures are expected to rise as much as 7 degrees by the end of the century." Park City, Utah could be gone; Aspen, Colorado could be "confined to the top quarter of the mountain." I couldn't imagine Vail, Park City, Deer Valley etc closing. Not only should we be concerned about how this will impact our economy, but also the impact on our lives. This industry employs about 187,000 people directly or indirectly, so what happens to those jobs? What can we do to prevent these projections from happening? In our everyday lives, how can everyone of us lesson our carbon footprint? Did we cause this climate change, having a huge impact on tourism and industry?

Another Triangle Shirt Factory

         Last week the New York Times published "The Human Price" which is "the first of two articles examining failures to protect garment workers in poor countries who make much of the world's clothing." A fire in Bangladesh Tazreen Fashions Limited proved a "gap in safety for global brands." It instantly reminded me of the tragic Triangle shirtwaist factory fire in which victims were trapped behind locked doors. Who would have known that this is still going on today, nearly a century later? Recently in Bangladesh, upon hearing the fire alarm, workers were startled and told that it was just a drill and to go back to work. Meanwhile managers blocked the stair case doors. Smoke started to rise from the first floor. It turned out that "mounds of flammable yarn and fabric were illegally stored on the ground floor near electrical generators" caught fire. There was really no way out for the people above. Safety was inadequate and in no way were the workers prepared for a fire of this magnitude. And who was the Tazreen factory making clothes for?

The staircase at the Tazreen Factory shows terribly
inadequate fire safety preparations.

         Tazreen produced apparel for stores in Europe and the United States. On the fifth floor, workers were making shorts for Walmart; on the sixth floor, workers were making lingerie for Sears. After the fire, both Walmart and Sears as well as other companies claimed that "they did not know that Tazreen Fashions was making their clothing." However, the New York Times also presented documents that were found at the factory with proof of American buyers, Walmart and Sam's Club.The fire killed 112 people. Bangladesh is home to nearly 4500 garment factories. The government has now started inspections and has already "found fire code violations in almost a third of the hundreds it has examined." It is important to know where the products we buy come from and the conditions under which the items are produced. Why would the United States support poor labor practices with insufficient wages and safety measures?  Should our only concern be to buy the cheapest? Because of the demand we often create, we indirectly exploit workers around the world, who earn wages that may not even be enough to support their family.

Current Drama Parallels

        When we talked about how the "psychological method" was used in times of slavery and during the Holocaust I couldn't help but think about the current, very popular psycho-drama, Homeland (on shotime). The show was developed after an Israeli series that brought the stories of returning soldiers of war into the homes of Israeli civilians. The lead character in Homeland, Sergeant Nicholas Brody, was a POW that finds himself thrown back into his American life after 8 years of captivity and torture. Not unlike experiences known between slaves and their masters as well as some between Nazi guards and their prisoners, Brody was broken down mentally - tortured, deprived of daily necessities - and eventually, completely broken in mind and spirit, and built slowly back up with an altered mindset by his own torturer and wanted terrorist, Abu Nazir.
        The psychological method is used to manipulate the victim, often to the point of severe loneliness, such that they feel affection for those they should, in fact, dread the most - their torturer! At some point when the abuser decides to refrain from torture, the victim actually begins to feel grateful and sees their (former) torturer as a "good" person. It seems pretty twisted for sure - but, if you're a Homeland groupee, you'll get it pretty quickly.

Here But Not Here

          Imagine coming to this country as a child, growing up and living a fairly common life through your 20s, then getting deported and returning to a country which you never really knew. Your parents came here illegally with you as a baby; you didn't have a choice whether to come or not so with your family, you made America your home, never becoming a citizen or a legal resident n any way. This is exactly what has happened to many immigrants coming from countries such as Peru, Ecuador, and Mexico. These immigrants have given themselves a name: Dreamers. The Dreamers have initiated the Dream Act, "a bill before Congress that would create a formal path to citizenship for young people here illegally who came to this country as children." It is interesting to note that "Latinos rewarded Mr.Obama with 71 percent of their votes," and now it is Obama's turn to act on the Dream Act. The president says that a top priority for his agenda next year will "be a bill to legalize 11 million illegal immigrants in the United States," offering a path for young people to citizenship. Consider Lorella Praeli's story: as a two year old Peruvian, Lorella's dad brought her to the United States for medical attention after a tragic car accident. Her leg had to be amputated. Lorella stayed in America and worked hard in school and was generally a good citizen - but not legally a citizen. Eventually she went to college on a scholarship and graduated with honors. The idea that she could be deported back to Peru is unimaginable. It would be like going to a foreign country for her. She speaks perfect English and considers herself American. But, she is a Dreamer.
           In 2010 the Dream Act passed in the House of Representatives, but failed by five votes in the Senate. Dreamers will try again and "keep the heat on the White House and Congress during the coming immigration fight." Anti-dreamers argue that it will support illegal immigration and take away jobs and school spots for American citizens. I believe the Dream Act should be passed. These people went to school here, many have worked and contributed to American society and culture and probably even pay taxes. Why shouldn't they have the chance to live out their lives where they perceive their home is?  Will Dreamers be able to turn their "dream" into reality? More than 600 Dream Activists will meet this weekend to work out a plan, taking one step at a time. This eight minute video describes the Dream Act and what Dreamers/activists are doing for their own citizenship.

A SAHY Day

(Top) Students of Morton playing musical chairs at last
years Holiday Party. (Bottom) Students with their crafts.

         "There are about 25,000 homeless youths in Illinois ranging in ages from 13 to 24, and that that number does not include children under the age of 13, said Megan Wickman of Teen Living Programs, a Chicago-based social services agency for homeless youth." These numbers are exactly what drive a not-for-profit organization I am apart of, Student Alliance for Homeless Youth a.k.a. SAHY. Today, we had our annual Winter Holiday Party. We went to the West side of Chicago to Morton School of Excellence, an elementary turnaround school. For clarity, a Chicago turnaround school is an elementary school structured using a specific model to change the culture of the school in order to help the students become higher achievers. Morton has also been very lucky to have the support of the Chicago Bulls! This has impacted the students tremendously --there are countless drawings by students of the Bulls players all over the walls. The Bulls actually built a new gym in the school! Clearly, the Bulls players are role models for many of the kids at Morton - how great is that!? I wonder if these kids have a lot of positive role models in their lives. Shouldn't all kids have a chance to have a good education, good food, fun, and to feel safe?
           Today, we set up a fun day for the kids including gym games, arts and crafts, bingo or "Jingo" as in jingle bells, and lunch. The day provides 30 to 50 elementary school kids with fun activities they would not usually have the opportunity to do. It also gives their parents a break and the security of knowing their kids are safe and well taken care of.Our partnership with Morton is special for me and my friends at SAHY because we feel like we get as much out of the day as the kids we are mentoring and playing with. Seeing the smiles on the kids faces makes all of us smile and want to be there. As we handed out goody bags at the end of the day, we were embraced in hugs from the kids, showing their thanks. In fact, some kids even remembered our names from last year! I can't wait until our next event at Morton, the Valentine's Day Party! To read a little about SAHY, check out this article from our Candlelight Vigil in which representatives from the other organizations we partner with spoke.