Week 14

  I really enjoyed the documentary that we watched in class this week. I got really into watching documentaries on social issues this summer and it's something that I actually might be interested in doing someday. I feel like it's one way to get the general public interested in issues that are not addressed in the 'typical' media. It's actually interesting that we watched a documentary about Angela Davis, because I just found out that she'll be speaking at my undergraduate university (in Wisconsin) on Martin Luther King day! I really wish I could be there on that day, because I think her speaking is so real and inspirational. Ta-Nehisi Coates actually just spoke there as well - it's a shame that all of these amazing speakers are speaking at my undergraduate university this year when I'm not there! I'm in the midst of reading his book "Between the World and Me" which has been so inspiring and eye opening.

   This class has surprised me in a couple of different ways - originally, this was the class I was least looking forward to. I've always been interested in history, but I assumed that this class would be somewhat boring and repetitive. However, I have really enjoyed this class and the discussions we have had, especially in regards to relating history to current social and political issues in America and the rest of the world! This journal project has been especially interesting to me, as it's helped me realize how passionate I am about social work and politics. I've always known that I was passionate about these subjects, but it's been amazing to see my thoughts formed into (hopefully) coherent writings. It's also interesting going back to my earlier posts and seeing how my thoughts have evolved. 

  One more political post to close out this journal. I posted before that my final paper for my racism class is on refugees and asylum-seekers. My mother lives in southern Germany, where many Syrian refugees have settled since the beginning of the conflict in Syria. My mom has recently started to volunteer at a school in Germany that teaches German to refugees recently settled in the area. My mother was a high-school teacher in America, and when she left to move to Germany, she said that she would never be a teacher again. Funny how the world works! She is absolutely loving volunteering at the school and teaching adults beginning German. She has a blog, so I'll link her most recent post about her experiences at the school. http://bhejl.blogspot.de/2015/12/debos-story.html
This post about Debo really helped to inspire me even more to keep doing the work that I'm doing. My mother is very quick to say that she doesn't volunteer because she wants to be noticed for it, but I am so inspired by what she has started to do in her community. She had been wanting to get involved in the community but wasn't sure how - and then a very Islam-phobic facebook post from her brother sprung her into action. She decided then and there to get involved - it was just the little push that she needed.

I am so excited to see what the next year and a half of this program will bring and I'm excited to start my career as a social worker. I have become more and more inspired over this semester and I can't wait to see what else will happen. :)